ENT 24-Venture Concept

Opportunity:

I believe that there is an opportunity in Gainesville, but also in many other cities and towns across the country and even world, to improve the flow of traffic on the roads at all hours of the day. No one likes sitting in traffic. People are often in a hurry, and like to get to their destination as quickly as possible. I believe that is why the opportunity for improved smart light traffic technology is so huge. The “customer” base is any person on the road. Millions and millions of people every day see traffic lights. And, many of them are constantly wondering why they sit at red lights when no other cars are coming in the other direction. This is where the smart lights come in to play. The increasing number of cars and motor vehicles on the road is increasing every day, and that’s why this opportunity will always exist. In other words, I don’t believe the window of opportunity will ever close on improving technology for how fluid and well traffic lights work and sense the flow of traffic. I think the window of opportunity will be open until a solution better than the standard traffic light comes along.

Innovation:

            My innovation is a better and more improved traffic light sensing technology. This technology already exists. However, I believe that there is an opportunity to make it better. Traffic patterns are constantly changing, and there needs to be a product that allows traffic lights to monitor these patterns and change with the traffic. Since traffic lights are city/government controlled, pin pointing exactly how I envision making money is difficult at times. However, I believe the best way would be to develop a new technology that Improves the flow of traffic, and simply is better than anything else in the industry. Then, I would license this software to the traffic light manufacturing companies, who would pay me to allow them to install my technology in their lights to ensure that they operate well. I don’t have an exact price, but if the technology worked well, it could be thousands of dollars. In addition, I would sell improved light bulbs for traffic lights as I believe there is also an opportunity to make traffic lights more visible during the day time, where they don’t stand out against the night sky.

Venture Concept:

            I think that my innovation will fulfil my opportunity because improved traffic patterns not only makes people’s lives easier, however it also opens doors for more opportunities. An example would be making it easier to do construction. Traffic lights that are timed well and can sense the volume of cars would aid in reducing the clutter around construction sites which would make everyone’s lives easier, and safer overall. But, more than that, I think it just comes down to if the technology works better than the rest of what is out there. In every business venture, there is some sort of competition. In this case, it would be the current manufacturer of smart light technology. I would have to create software that functioned better and was more advanced than theirs. Everyone wants the best product available, and it is no different with traffic lights. I would ensure that mine is the best and that it helps traffic flow the best making the driving experience overall more enjoyable for people of all ages. Another point I want to add is that the good thing about licensing software is that it does not require a manufacturing facility or packaging costs. That would be taken care of by the company that manufactures the tangible traffic lights themselves.

1.     I believe that my most valuable resource is going to be someone who is extremely tech-savvy and can create the software that I am looking for. Not everyone can write code to function at the level that I would need it to, so that individual or group of individuals who could write the software itself would be my most valuable asset. Another would be someone who is a phenomenal salesman who could convince cities and companies why my traffic lights are better than my competitors and how they will benefit the area.

2.     Another opportunity I see in this venture is improving the light bulb used in traffic lights that emit different colors. Too many times I stop at traffic lights and can barely see what color it is because of the sun or the light itself is too dim to see. I think there is a light that should be/could be made that stands out well in the daylight hours in addition to night.

3.     Assuming I were to launch, 5 years from now I would want to have my traffic light software across the entire united states. I’m not saying every traffic light would have to have my technology, but I would like for it to be in all 50 states in certain lights to help prove that mine works better than the others, I could also gather data to help me constantly improve and fine tune my software.