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I wonder why there aren't more cheap R&D contests like those. It seems like a fun way to get outside ideas and can result in some really nice inventions.

by xutopia 14y ago

bluehat 14y ago
I think it's a matter of knowing how to connect to a community of folks who make things. That's probably why they partnered with Hacker Dojo.
- BrianEatWorld 14y ago
  I find this incredibly interesting, but I am a bit intimidated by my lack of hardware hacking experience. What would you recommend as a good way to get into these sorts of hackathons?
  - bluehat 14y ago
    If you're local, sign up and attend the info sessions on carbonation etc. Generally though, this is about understanding the technology then repackaging it for a new place and purpose, so with some business sense you should be able to hobble along fine.
elmuchoprez 14y ago
I would guess that the legal teams at major companies are traditionally gun shy about this kind of thing. Let's say Coke buys some IP resulting from this thing for $10k and then it goes on to revolutionize their business model and they make millions and millions from it . I'm going to guess that whoever got stuck with the $10k is going to come back with lawyers and say they were taken advantage of, that their interests in the IP negotiation weren't properly represented, that a team of tinkers was no match to negotiate with a professional team of IP lawyers, etc... That's not to say that those are valid arguments, but they are arguments plenty of people make after the fact. It's been my experience that huge companies have a vested interest in the appearance of dealing fairly and matter-of-factly with small third party vendors, especially in terms of IP law. Even if taking advantage of someone in such a manner doesn't become a legal issue, it's a huge PR liability.
joezydeco 14y ago
Maybe because product development engineers know what their time and skills are worth, and it's a lot more than $10K? Don't get me wrong, little contests like this can be great experience for smaller businesses that need development skill and for designers that need the portfolio pages. But this is Coca-Cola. Then again, considering how much money got sunk into the Freestyle (and they're not out of the woods yet, that machine has problems), maybe a $10K contest is a way to keep the PD pipeline going and keep the accountants happy.

I wonder why there aren't more cheap R&D contests like those. It seems like a fun way to get outside ideas and can result in some really nice inventions.

by xutopia 14y ago

I wonder why there aren't more cheap R&D contests like those. It seems like a fun way to get outside ideas and can result in some really nice inventions.

bluehat 14y ago

I think it's a matter of knowing how to connect to a community of folks who make things. That's probably why they partnered with Hacker Dojo.

BrianEatWorld 14y ago
I find this incredibly interesting, but I am a bit intimidated by my lack of hardware hacking experience. What would you recommend as a good way to get into these sorts of hackathons?
- bluehat 14y ago
  If you're local, sign up and attend the info sessions on carbonation etc. Generally though, this is about understanding the technology then repackaging it for a new place and purpose, so with some business sense you should be able to hobble along fine.

elmuchoprez 14y ago

I would guess that the legal teams at major companies are traditionally gun shy about this kind of thing. Let's say Coke buys some IP resulting from this thing for $10k and then it goes on to revolutionize their business model and they make millions and millions from it . I'm going to guess that whoever got stuck with the $10k is going to come back with lawyers and say they were taken advantage of, that their interests in the IP negotiation weren't properly represented, that a team of tinkers was no match to negotiate with a professional team of IP lawyers, etc... That's not to say that those are valid arguments, but they are arguments plenty of people make after the fact. It's been my experience that huge companies have a vested interest in the appearance of dealing fairly and matter-of-factly with small third party vendors, especially in terms of IP law. Even if taking advantage of someone in such a manner doesn't become a legal issue, it's a huge PR liability.

joezydeco 14y ago

Maybe because product development engineers know what their time and skills are worth, and it's a lot more than $10K? Don't get me wrong, little contests like this can be great experience for smaller businesses that need development skill and for designers that need the portfolio pages. But this is Coca-Cola. Then again, considering how much money got sunk into the Freestyle (and they're not out of the woods yet, that machine has problems), maybe a $10K contest is a way to keep the PD pipeline going and keep the accountants happy.