Level of invention is a relative degree

Comparative

In grammar, the comparative is the form of an adjective or adverb which denotes the degree or grade by which a person, thing, or other entity has a property or quality greater or less in extent than that of another, and is used in this context with a subordinating conjunction, such as than,...

 of changes to the previous system

System

System is a set of interacting or interdependent components forming an integrated whole....

 (or solution) in the result of solution of inventive problem (one containing a contradiction

Contradiction

In classical logic, a contradiction consists of a logical incompatibility between two or more propositions. It occurs when the propositions, taken together, yield two conclusions which form the logical, usually opposite inversions of each other...

). Term was defined and introduced by TRIZ

TRIZ

TRIZ is "a problem-solving, analysis and forecasting tool derived from the study of patterns of invention in the global patent literature". It was developed by the Soviet inventor and science fiction author Genrich Altshuller and his colleagues, beginning in 1946...

 author G. S. Altshuller.

After initially reviewing 200,000 patent

Patent

A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....

 abstracts, Altshuller selected 40,000 as representatives of high level inventive solutions. The remainder involved direct improvements easily recognized within the specialty of the system.

Altshuller separated the patents' different degrees of inventiveness

Inventive step and non-obviousness

The inventive step and non-obviousness reflect a same general patentability requirement present in most patent laws, according to which an invention should be sufficiently inventive — i.e., non-obvious — in order to be patented....

 into five levels:

• Level 1 - Routine design problems solved by methods well known within the specialty. Usually no invention needed.

example: use of coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

 for writing

• Level 2 - Minor improvements to an existing system using methods known within the industry.

example: graphite pencil

Pencil

A pencil is a writing implement or art medium usually constructed of a narrow, solid pigment core inside a protective casing. The case prevents the core from breaking, and also from marking the user’s hand during use....

 (wrapped coal stick)

• Level 3 - Fundamental improvement to an existing system using methods known outside the industry.

example: ink pen

Pen

A pen is a device used to apply ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Historically, reed pens, quill pens, and dip pens were used, with a nib of some sort to be dipped in the ink. Ruling pens allow precise adjustment of line width, and still find a few specialized uses, but...

 (ink instead of coal)

• Level 4 - A new generation of a system that entails a new principle for performing the system's primary functions. Solutions are found more often in science than technology.

example: printer

Computer printer

In computing, a printer is a peripheral which produces a text or graphics of documents stored in electronic form, usually on physical print media such as paper or transparencies. Many printers are primarily used as local peripherals, and are attached by a printer cable or, in most new printers, a...

 (another whole system for writing)

• Level 5 - A rare scientific discovery or pioneering invention of an essentially new system.

example: electronic pen&paper (see Anoto)

These levels of invention are applied to solutions rather than problems requiring a system of solution.

Also level of invention and the potential for innovation in any nation, geographical area or economic activity is as measurement in the concept of innovative capacity originally introduced by Prof. Suarez-Villa in 1990.

External links

• Levels of Solutions (with examples) By Kalevi Rantanen
• Introduction to Basic I-TRIZ Levels of Invention
• Maturity Mapping of DVD Technology By Sanjana Vijayakumar
• Introduction of the Innovation Patent Australian Government response to the Recommendations of the Advisory Council on Industrial Property (ACIP) Report "Review of the Petty Patent System"
• What is innovative capacity? by Luis Suarez-Villa
• ideas21 - do You have an idea that can change the future?