One of the issues inventors face is that they can typically see their invention in their mind just as they believe it will be when finished. Unfortunately, almost everyone else only sees what you can show them.  They don’t envision all the future changes the inventor sees. 

Most people have s better understanding of what they see rather than what we read or hear about. If you have a new invention idea, you may need to convey its usefulness before the prototype is developed. That means you’ll need an image of what it may look like and what it does. Invention illustrations are the visualization of your idea, a conceptual representation. It is used to show and tell before you have the actual product to demonstrate. Eventually product photography will take its place, but for now illustration will do a great job subject, making it easily understand your invention..

The best time for product illustration is right away when you need a visual. An illustration will generate almost as much interest as a photo, so put it on a brochure to send out if you want to create some buzz early on or if you want to test the waters to see what kind of attention your idea generates. It could even be the drawing that you show to an engineer to help him or her decide on how to produce the prototype. They have to base their calculations off of something.

There are multiple ways to illustrate a product: either with a computer or by hand. Either way works fine. Computer illustration is the most common and can sometimes be quicker and generate a more realistic look. There are a few different illustration software programs that are the standard in use. Some work strictly in three dimensions while others act as more 2D drawing tools. They can provide all sorts of textures and effects to make the product look finished. Do an Internet search for illustration software and many options will come up, and you can sometimes get some software free..

Rendering by hand can be done with pencils, paints, pen and ink or any art materials. The choice really depends on the product, a soft and fuzzy stuffed animal, which could get that look through colored chalks. Charcoal will give an aged, hard look while watercolors would create more delicate artwork. Before anything, you’ll need to decide on your product’s branding, or its personality, that you want to convey to your audience. That will help determine the illustration style.

Most likely you’ll need at least a couple views of the product to show its dynamics. The basics are front, back, side, top and bottom. There should also be a ¾ view to show the product in three dimensions, which typically looks down at a product. The views used need to bring the most important details of the subject at the forefront.

A cutaway view takes away external areas of the product or makes them transparent in order to see the inner parts. This allows someone to understand the internal workings of the invention in relation to its outward appearance. Cutaway views are not needed for some products, but if you invention relates to a feature people can’t see, you should consider having a cutaway view.

An exploded view  is also helpful, it shows the different parts of the product before they are assembled. They are floating and separated slightly to show their relationship and how they fit together. This type of drawing shouldn’t be the main image to represent the product. It may do a good job explaining how the product works or how it’s constructed, but it doesn’t do an adequate job showing what exactly the invention looks like