Hmm, well there is the twin fan upright design, dual motor upright design(which I believe even Dyson "ripped" off on newer uprights, HEPA bagged uprights/canns, sealed air uprights and canns, Windtunnel technology, UV technology, I could go on and on, every mfr contributes something, but in the end what matters is what works... not who did it first. Heck Xerox invented the graphical user interface and a guy at Stanford invented the mouse, but Apple popularized it, so who do you think gets more credit? Anyone can come up with a great idea and be compensated for it but its those who make that idea popular and bring it to the masses whether it be by affordability, mass production, or just sheer marketing genius gets the gold in the end. Dyson got his gold but his product is not withstanding the ages and now he's paying for it.
Steve Jobs: Steve Jobs thrives on being first and saying so... over and over. Being first has many advantages. Jobs typically takes many shots at Microsoft at MacWorld for copying Apples innovations. One of the latest PC Mac guy commercial spoofs Microsoft’s blatant copying of Apple. Jobs purchased, not stole or reversed engineered the GUI from Xerox and then made GUI history.
Hepa: Per Google patent searching/results - *Amway was first with the Hepa inside a household vacuum cleaner. Using a Hepa is not patentable.
The dual fan, dual motor (brushroll motor?) are all in the public domain. Running seals on a vacuum is not new nor a technology (IMO). Although [some] Miele Dealers will have people think the sealed system is a technology, is special and is exclusive to Miele.
Does “every manufacturer contribute something” (of commercial value - a must have idea)? No. - A patent check will prove this out.
Dyson vacuums and repairs: There are major differences between the bad mouthing of Dyson dealers and the consumer magazines (CR and Which). The mags say the Dyson’s are reliable, the bad mouthers or those who profit [more profit] from selling vac’s with higher mark ups than what Dyson can offer say Dyson’s are not reliable. Hmmm.
DIB
*If Amway did not steal Dyson’s Dual Cyclone, James Dyson probably would of been credited (patented and dated) as the first with a Hepa inside a household vacuum. Amway probably got the idea from Dyson himself. Dyson led, Amway stole.
This message was modified Feb 24, 2009 by DysonInventsBig