Ag Technology Show Announces Winners of the AG Inventors Contest 2004

The Ag Technology Show announces the
winners of the Ag Inventors Contest 2004. Seven Ag
Inventor Finalists competed for 2 awards – The $1,000
Top Inventor Award and The People’s Choice Award at
the Holiday Inn Trade Center January 8-10, 2004.

The People’s Choice Award was chosen by the attendees
of the tradeshow and went to Kent Granmoe, Glendive,
MT, for his Hydraulic Pressure Relief Tool invention.
This tool is used for relieving hydraulic oil pressure
in hoses connected to powered equipment. Granmoe does
have a full patent on his invention.

The $1,000 Top Inventor Award chosen by a panel of 5
judges and went to Fred Davison, Highwood, MT for his
E-Z Reach Gate Winch invention. This winch is used for
easy opening and closing of wire fence gates. This
invention enables people, especially the elderly, the
young and handicapped individuals access to open and
close tight wire gates.

The Ag Technology Show 2005 will host a new Ag
Inventors Contest during the farm & ranch tradeshow
January 20-22, 2005. The new contest entries must be
submitted to show management by December 15, 2004.
Each submission must be: For a Farm &/or Ranch usage,
commercially viable (inventions must be reproducible
or duplicable), innovative (A new idea, method, or
device) and must be unique and original.

“A Jury Selection Committee will choose the finalists
who will be invited to display their inventions free
of charge during the 3 day Ag Technology Show 2005”
says Cynthia Berst, Show Producer. Berst is
emphasizing Ag inventions at the Ag Technology Show
because the exposure for the inventor will gain them
access to other companies and organizations that could
show them how they could turn their innovation into a
possible revenue stream for their farm or ranch
operation.

“We encourage inventors to protect their idea with a
patent or other protection before they publicly
display their idea. The Jury Committee will accept
drawings, photos or videos of the prototype along with
a written description of the function and purpose of
the invention. The deadline for all entries is
December 15, 2004.”, says Berst. For a complete set of
inventor rules and entry forms can be obtained by
interested inventors by writing to Cynthia Berst,
Bright Cat Productions, PO Box 20044, Billings, MT
59104-0044.

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Cynthia Berst
Bright Cat Productions, Inc.
PO Box 20044 Billings, MT 59104
406-855-5765

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Tool invention earns local man people’s choice award

By Margaret Brinkley
Ranger-Review Staff Writer

http://www.rangerreview.com/digest/

Local resident Kent Granmoe was awarded the People’s Choice Award at the Ag Technology Show held in Billings Jan. 8-10.

Granmoe’s hydraulic pressure release tool earned him a spot as one of seven finalists in the Ag Inventor’s Contest.

There were two prizes given. There was the People’s Choice Award, based on votes from people attending the show and the Top Inventor Award of $1,000 awarded by a panel of five anonymous judges. Granmoe’s invention was unusual and well-received and he was very happy with his award, he said.

Necessity was the mother of invention for Granmoe, who works at Milne Implement, in making his new tool. He always had the job of hooking the hoses up on machinery being moved around at work. The machinery is moved periodically in the summer to mow the grass. There was often pressure built up in the hydraulic lines that needed to be released.

Typically, he would bang the coupling against something to move the ball in the coupling and release the pressure. After enough times of getting covered with hydraulic fluid, Granmoe said he thought, “There must be a better way to do this,” and began thinking how to make it happen.

The whole invention is just a simple way to release pressure which has built up in hydraulic hoses between uses. Coupling the female coupler of one hose to the male coupler on another hose becomes very difficult, and messy, when pressure has built up in one of them, Granmoe said.

If the two parts of the hose cannot be linked together due to pressure in the hose with a female coupler, a person will often bang the end of the hose against something, such as the ground or the side of a tractor, to push back the ball in the coupler and release some of the pressure. However, with the release of pressure also comes the release of hydraulic fluid. It was the inconvenience of being sprayed with the hydraulic fluid on a regular basis which prompted Granmoe to look for a better way to release pressure in the hoses.

To release pressure in a hose with a female coupling, Granmoe’s invention is made of a modified male coupling. The male coupler is placed on the female coupler and adjusted by turning a handle which applies force on the ball, pushing it back until the pressure is released. Any fluid in the line is diverted through a spout, which can be positioned over a bucket used to catch the fluid, in the bottom of the tool.

There is also a tool to release pressure in the male coupler which uses a modified female coupler. Granmoe has made his tool in a few different sizes, according to the different coupler sizes. He is also considering making tools for different brands of machinery which use different couplers on their hoses.

There were a lot of producers attending the show who wanted his invention, he said. However, because he was one of the finalists in the contest, he wasn’t allowed to sell his product at the show. Some of those who attended the show insisted he take their name and phone number and call them when it was over, he said. He was very pleased with the positive response to his product and hopes to begin marketing it. Granmoe has approached some hydraulic equipment companies already, however, most have told him the tool doesn’t fit in with their product lines. The positive response he received at the ag technology show has provided him with motivation to continue looking for a way to market his tool, he said.

It took just an evening at the shop to come up with the design of his tool, Granmoe explained. He said he first took a coupling apart and then began finding a way to make his tool to do what he wanted it to do. The first tool he made was very crude, but it worked. After making some improvements in the design, he began using it around the shop and began the process of patenting his invention.

The patent process took about two years, he said. Diagrams and descriptions were mailed back and forth between Granmoe and his patent attorney before being mailed to the U.S. Patent Office. The packet of paperwork was turned down the first time and had to be rewritten, he said. Eventually, he was awarded a patent on his tool.