In this recent history, I draw on the work of Eric von Hippel to explore the motivations of inventor-entrepreneurs in the sports industry. The paper will present multiple examples of user innovation featured in a forthcoming Smithsonian exhibition and companion book, Inventing for Sports.
In The Sources of Innovation (1988), von Hippel rejected the traditional, linear view of corporate R&D and product development. Instead, he found that “lead users”—experts operating at the cutting edge of their disciplines—often became frustrated with the limitations of their field’s existing tools. To compensate, these sophisticated users built improvised solutions that achieved better results. The manufacturers then partnered with the lead users to commercialize their prototypes.
The sports industry has long been a fertile sector for user innovation because amateur and elite athletes demand superior performance from their equipment. To illustrate, the paper will describe the innovations of Joe Breeze, who modified standard bicycles to develop the sport of mountain biking in the 1970s. A second case examines how a competitive runner (and von Hippel student) named Doug DeAngelis developed Lynx Systems Developers in the 1990s to provide improved photo-finish cameras and timing solutions for various sports. A third case describes how a frustrated cricket player and computer scientist named Paul Hawkins developed the Hawk-Eye ball-tracking system to aid officiating in tennis, soccer, and dozens of other sports.
Overall, this paper will explore who invents for sports and why. It argues that athletes’ frustrations with incumbent technologies motivate “user innovation” and new product development in both competitive and recreational sports.
Dear program committee: This individual paper could fit well in a panel on innovation, entrepreneurship, sports, STS, or public history. Thanks for considering! Eric S. Hintz