Li Yu rented another house next to the Fifth Avenue laboratory as a training school, and hired three former employees of the electric lighting company at a high salary of US$300 per month.
One of them even resigned from General Electric. No way, Li Yu gave him too much.
Li Yu first taught them how to make the electronic starting system according to the drawings.
These people already know electricity and master it quickly. Then they can continue to teach the recruited Chinese.
In the rest of the time, Li Yu continued to work intensively on the engine for the Wright brothers. Although the status of today's engineers is not as good as that of later generations, they still know a lot. They used to mainly do electrical work, but they also know a thing or two about mechanics, so
It can assist Li Yu's engine development and greatly advance the development process.
They also admire Li Yu's reputation. Even though Li Yu is Chinese, his status as a foreign academician of the Royal Society and a member of the American Astronomical Society is indeed too dazzling.
Moreover, Li Yu does not have too much of a capitalist greedy character, at least his salary is much higher.
In addition to engines and electronic ignition systems, sometimes small inventions can also play a big role.
That day, several people from clothing companies came to the door.
To be precise, they found Sierra first and she brought them here.
Li Yu smiled and said: "It will happen in the future."
As for small companies stealing patents, don't worry too much.
"I can't say it's a trend, I can only say it will be a popular thing in the future." Li Yu said, after all, for him, zippers are too common.
At first, Li Yu also guessed that the first companies to find him would be garment companies and jeans companies, because the ones that most wanted to use zippers would definitely be jackets for outdoor scenes.
Li Yu couldn't help but feel itchy when he looked at the numbers in his account that he could make so much money from patents.
In addition, there are many people who only have an American high school education and can only fill out a form and wait for the time being.
Huang Boyao was soft-hearted and didn't know how to refuse. He still had to rely on Situ Meitang to stand up in person:
"Yes, let me in too. The whole family is leaning on me."
VF Corporation is the earliest large-scale apparel company in the United States, predating Nike by more than 70 years.
The patent protection period in the United States at this time is 17 years. Once the sales effect is good and more companies join in, the patent may be sold for more than 200,000 US dollars.
Huang Boyao followed his instructions carefully: "I remember it."
Sierra had never been to the breeding farm, so she continued to go to the patent office with the drawings in hand.
“It’s our Chinese factory anyway, so why are we afraid of hiring a few more people?”
Huang Boyao was more or less educated. He first selected some people using examination papers, and then finally selected about 20 people based on their level of proficiency.
A few words calmed everyone down.
Zou Zhou said: "I like these technological things, but I have never been able to find a place to learn and apply them."
——
Like zippers, expansion screws are not a difficult design. To put it simply, they allow the pointed part of the screw to expand when it is driven into the wall, making it very stable.
"Don't make any noise! Do you think it's easy to set up a Chinese factory in the United States? Even if it's for charity, the factory has to run normally! Mr. Li Yu built the factory to be the best, we can't hold him back
Hinds! When his factory expands in size in the future, he will naturally recruit more people. So don’t waste your time here, just go back and continue studying!"
David Lee said: "If it can be produced reliably in large quantities, I think its cost will be even lower than buttons, and at the same time it will have convenient features. It's exciting to think about it."
Situ Meitang turned to Huang Boyao and said, "You can do whatever you want from now on. You have to learn to refuse."
"The people sitting inside said," Li Yu let them into the room, and then said, "Yes, you can conduct tests to ensure that there will be no problems."
David Lee and VF were equally satisfied with the price, and it was settled.
But they really want to find a job and keep begging:
"Uncle, please do well. I can continue to study."
Of course, if you want, you can continue to refine many different usage scenarios, but for now, these can meet the needs of the construction industry.
Zou Zhou was poorly dressed and was not yet twenty years old.
Situ Meitang then found Li Yu and asked him to come and see the selected people in person.
The requirements are quite strict, and at least they must reach the entry-level level of a general technical college in the United States.
The first zipper jeans were indeed produced by LEE.
Following Huang Boyao's report, many Chinese came to New York's Chinatown, hoping to enter Li Yu's factory.
Li Yu pointed to his answer sheet and asked Huang Boyao: "Bring him over first and let me take a look."
"Okay," Sierra took the drawing, "What is it this time?"
In addition to jeans, VF Corporation prefers zippers for its tops and jackets. They have been developing convenient leather jackets and jackets. The buttons are too leaky and are not suitable. If zippers are used, they will be very popular.
"An improved screw structure." Li Yu picked up the drawing and explained the principle to her.
Sierra has never heard of this term, "duck?"
Screws were invented more than 100 years ago. With the beginning of the industrial revolution, screws have been widely used. However, it would take many more years for expansion screws to be invented.
David Lee said: "I'm afraid sir won't need jeans."
Huang Boyao said: "He is currently working in a restaurant and learned about the recruitment by chance."
Li Yu said with a smile: "While we are in the United States, get more out of it, otherwise it will waste time running back and forth."
This was also the case with later foie gras production. Each goose had to be force-fed with more than ten kilograms of feed through a tube into its stomach every day in the breeding farm. So in fact, the fancy foie gras that everyone eats was all force-fed.
Later, fatty liver was six to ten times larger than ordinary foie gras...
David Lee took off his hat: "Dear scientific giant Mr. Li Yu, we are here for your zipper improvement patent. According to Miss Sierra's claim in the newspaper, it can be guaranteed that it will not loosen."
The design of the expansion screws only took about half a day. Li Yu came to Sierra with a few drawings and said, "I have to trouble you to go to the patent office again."
Situ Meitang sighed: "The more you wander overseas, the more tenacious you have to be. If you can't do this, how can you stand still? You must not have the kindness of a woman."
Well, respectively, Lee and the founder of VF Corp.
At this time, jeans were basically work pants, and they were the most popular among workers entering the factory.
In addition to zippers, Li Yu also encountered some minor problems when decorating the laboratory. He found that it is difficult to install things on the wall because there is no key invention: expansion screws.
Sierra thought for a while and said: "I didn't expect it to be quite popular. How about we just license it for $10,000 per person. I estimate that there will be at least a dozen or more companies interested in the follow-up, which can greatly exceed the original reservation of $100,000."
Valuation.”
This year Edison will air his movie "The Great Train Robbery", which has dominated American screens for nearly ten years. In it, the Western cowboys wear something similar to jeans.
Although it is all basic physics knowledge, it is already rare and valuable because today's middle school physics is not as conventional as later generations in teaching electrical knowledge.
"How do you think the price should be set?" Li Yu asked.
Li Yu originally wanted to sell the patent directly, but since there were two companies at once, there would probably be more in the future, so he first invited Sierra to discuss it.
Zou Zhou replied: "No, but I am very interested in these things and I learned them all by myself."
Weifu said: "Mr. Li Yu, please set a price. We are all interested in purchasing the patent rights to use the zipper."
There are some patents that he will not be involved in the subsequent production of, but there is nothing wrong with launching the patents to make some money.
Li Yu joked: "Cramming education."
Sierra didn't know whether she should be surprised or not, "Have you come up with a new patent again?"
Sierra said: "Let me introduce, this is Mr. David Lee, and this is Mr. Wei Fu."
Li Yu quickly designed three different structures, ranging from simple to complex, and from low to high prices, basically covering most of the usage scenarios of expansion screws.
Li Yu asked curiously: "Have you studied in an American school?"
Moreover, Europeans and Americans have always had the habit of hanging things on the wall, so as long as the expansion screws are pushed out, they will be very popular.
——Thankfully, I learned so many things by force back then.
Moreover, expansion screws with different degrees of sophistication can be designed according to different pricing, and some expansion screws can be pulled out from the wall.
Sierra was convinced, "I really don't know what kind of education you received in China before, you know too much."
Nowadays, the construction industry in the United States is very developed. It is similar to the period when we were engaged in infrastructure construction in later generations, and the demand for building materials is very strong.
Li Yu explained: "It's like making foie gras. Feed farms force feed into the geese's mouths to make them reduce the amount of exercise and grow rapidly."
Later, VF Corporation acquired Lee. In addition, the famous The North Face, Vans, etc. are also VF's brands.
Li Yu decided to go with what Sierra said because she understood the current market in the United States better.
But the first pair of jeans was made by Levi’s.
"If we can overcome the reliability issues that zippers have had in the past, I think it will become a trend in clothing in the future," VF said.
Li Yu said: "I'm also looking forward to seeing your new jeans debut."
Coupled with the later promotion of jeans, which was deliberately associated with denim, sales in the United States were very hot.
Li Yu read the questionnaire and was very interested in one of the people named Zou Zhou. He not only answered all the questions, but even drew several circuit diagrams.
If you really want to look for it, you will definitely find talented Chinese people.
Zou Zhou is a very ordinary child from a Chinese family. He was named very casually because his parents' last names were put together.
Except for him, everyone else basically has the level of Western learning, so the training is relatively simple and fast.
Li Yu said to them loudly: "You will be trained at the school on Fifth Avenue for the time being. I will provide food and accommodation. I hope you can master the knowledge you have learned as soon as possible."