2.009: Product Engineering Processes 

Patent searches can tell you which companies are producing similar products, and they are also a good source for diagrams of similar products.

VIEW THE PATENTS GUIDE, including video tutorials on patent searching.

Standards are generally set by industry associations or government agencies. When searching for standards, consider what types of standards might exist related to your product.

• Are there likely to be safety standards?
  
• Is there some aspect or part of your product that must be standardized so that it will always work with other manufacturers products?
  
• Will there be some standard method of testing the quality or functionality of the product?

Additionally, be sure to consider the source of the standard -- both the organization and the country. Though the country of origin may not be the US, it may affect where you can sell your product.

VIEW THE STANDARDS GUIDE, including links to the full text of ASTM standards and the form to order standards.

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