Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Dyson is in the news frequently and so a dedicated thread.

.

DysonInventsBig wrote:

Thanks for pointing this change out. The use of Flash to present information like this is usually tedious at best, but this Dyson example is quite good.

There's lots of stuff there that even a borderline Dyson obsessive like myself didn't know. If you're new to the world of Dyson, you could literally spend hours here.

Points :-

Videos of dust mites
http://www.dyson.co.uk/insidedyson/#dustmitezoo

See them move and everything!

Things we never launched
The Dyson tank vac:-
http://www.dyson.co.uk/insidedyson/#thingsweneverlaunched

Our family had a VAX 'tank' cleaner at about the time Dyson were looking in to this area. They were popular, the tagline from the TV adverts "The best selling vacuum cleaner that Washes, washes, washes...." True to the write up, the novelty of waiting until the summer to shampoo your carpets soon wore off.

DC06 robot vac
http://www.dyson.co.uk/insidedyson/#dc06

Really good segment, with a number of videos of the machine that haven't been seen before.

Inventions
http://www.dyson.co.uk/insidedyson/default.asp#inventions

Sound absorbent screens, developed by Dyson engineers to filter out human voices - crazy! Dunno about the implied fact that only James Dyson's thumbprint has access all areas around the HQ - but it's certainly true that the workforce as a whole is kept isolated. For example, if you were working in marketing on a certain product, you'd be allowed access to 'the basement' to talk to the people working on your product, but you wouldn't be able to see what else might be going on.

Research, design and development
http://www.dyson.co.uk/insidedyson/default.asp#rdd

Nice video - 'gotta love that giant robot arm!

Dyson HQ
http://www.dyson.co.uk/insidedyson/default.asp#dysonhq

'...there's no air conditioning - displacement ventilation is used to blow cool air in at floor level while warm air naturally rises and is dispersed through vents in the roof'

I remember some years back, the account of a journalist who turned up to interview James Dyson, who was witness to an air conditioning engineer protesting that it wasn't possible to do what James was asking. James was proclaiming "But we want FRESH air", before asking him to go off and think about it again. Clearly, it was somehow resolved!

I haven't been around for a months.. Anything new from Dyson regarding a Stick, Robotic vacuum and a washing machine?

During the recent  HSN airing of DC21, the dyson Dave guy stated several times that dyson is not just a vacuum inventor but a problem solutions inventor.  He followed the statement with the stat that dyson's work force is comprised one third of engineers and has filed over 635 patents.  Sounds like a patent record.

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:
Dyson is the worlds leader in vacuum cleaner technology, yet they sound insecure when they speak of their total world patents when interviewed and/or selling on HSN, this huge patent total can be interpreted as a total of U.S. patents.  I do not believe Dyson has 500 plus engineers and scientists and wonder if this too is an insecure statement (“engineer” is a UK term for a repair technician).  They have other ways of describing themselves that could/would establish themselves as worlds leaders.  Sir James should always be confident and not say anything that can undo his companies/his products integrity, his changing life via his/his people innovations speaks for itself.  Let his innovative lazy competitors hype their tired wares, people are smart enough and will/should see this as nothing but hype (no innovations).  Oreck Canada for example hypes their company as being on the cutting [innovation] edge yet their lack of patents and/or lack of new utility patents tell the reverse story.  Typical to see a vac mfg's. revert to hype when they have nothing new.

DIB

According to recent dyson product literature, and I quote:  "Dyson has over 450 engineers and scientists obsessed with developing new and better products and technology." 

"Obsessed " is a poor choice of words IMHO.  As is the lack of a direct link of these pros to vacuum products and technology, its primary business.   As a consumer for a $500 plus household vacuum, I  really don't care/want to know that hundreds of dyson engineers and scientists are obsessed with better products and technology .............that may be totally unrelated to vacuums.  Or that the company filed 635 patents, many of which are unrelated to the vacuum I'm thinking about purchasing.  And that the company is not an inventor of vacuums but a problem solver.  In other words:  Is this hype, unrelated to the vacuum's performance, substitutes for: Never clogs, never loses suction?

Carmine D

M00seUK wrote:
You're welcome and thanks for your your posting, I read and click on em all.  I friend told me of the/a problem with the diesel filters; what to do/how to dispose of the pollutant’s once they were filtered.

I've seen many U.S. Dyson [not discussed here] dishwasher, clothes dryer and washing machine patents.  Interestingly, LG (pretty sure it was LG) has a patent on a clothes dryer that used a single [tapered] cyclone to remove moisture.

 DIB

CarmineD wrote:
Does it take a professor to figure this out?  He would of been much better encouraging you/the class in understanding a widgets potential, the many avenues to profiting from said invention and to take it seriously.  Certainly inventions that can be measured to be radically better are the easiest to get the attention of others and/or profit from.

DIB

CarmineD wrote:
Carmine,

The old vacuum cleaner is perhaps thought to be developed as much as it can (just my guess) and Dyson has much competition/future competition (Dyson-like filtering).  Dyson MUST invent outside of vacuums.  He loves inventing and all that goes into it, so invent he will. - That’s the fun stuff.  Even your darling Dave Oreck invents and/or claims to be cutting edge and/or buys inventions outside of his core antiquated vacuum line.

Hype?  Well Dyson/his peoples hype also has patent protection (aka monopoly) which (globally) folks purchase.  Hype comes from manufacturers without producing innovation or innovation with benefits, so they lie and hype their tired wares.

Ironically Amway’s latest television commercials talk of their owning over 700 patents.  Why do they advertise this?  Because it works.

DIB

Hello DIB:

The good professor's point was that the students should seek positions in sales.  And yes, most college freshmen need a seasoned professor with both academic credentials and real business world experience to steer/guide them into the right professions.  I can't recall at the time if there were any women in the class.  Probably a couple.  Maybe they even became dyson sales reps?

I have great respect for companies large and small which successfully produce and market their products for consumption.  And contempt for companies that can't and say they do [read: hype].  

Your fave inventor's company prefers to file hundreds of patents in lieu of producing/marketing products.  His hopes are that at some future point in time another company will take all the risks to produce and market a consumer good/product that directly/indirectly infringes on a patent.  Then a potential unrealized gain may be made by selling the patents and/or threatening legal actions for patent right infringements.  It's an innovative business approach, indeed.  Certainly full employment for patent right lawyers.  You think the good history lovers of Bath are onto him?

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:
I think it's misguided to imply that Dyson are typically of this type of behaviour. To my knowledge, they haven't sold the rights of any of their patents, nor do they have any current licensing arrangements in place with anybody else. They have filed a large number of patents in their short history - they even have their own dedicated in-house IP department. But, like any similar technology company, only a proportion of what they patent will make it in to final products.

For example, one patent they have from a few years ago is a cable management system, so that a robot cleaner can clean a room while getting its power from a wall socket. Their method looks good and from the reference sources they're not the only major company who have been investigating this possibility. Presumably, this type of method has yet to make it to market (by anyone) for one of the following reasons :-

1) It doesn't work well enough in practise.
2) It is believed this feature wouldn't be perceived favourably by the consumer.
3) It's not worth taking any further. They've progressed with an alterative method that works better.
4) Recent advances in battery technology will quickly make it redundant.

But, of course, there's no real incentive to not file a patent. Advances in other product areas could make a valid business case at a future date and it prevents any competitor making a claim in the meantime which would invalid the claims.

There are a large number of opportunists purely in business to file patent with no desire at all to ever manufacture a product themselves and simply make as much money as possible by holding the big players to ransom. Partially with software patents, towards which the US parent system is very favourable, unfortunately). These people are the scum of the earth in my view.

In my view, what Dyson does is above board, ethical and exactly the same as any company of the same profile. Please feel free to prove otherwise if you disagree.