Are there ways I can search to make sure my invention is unique?

Are there ways I can search to make sure my invention is unique?

Matt Dixon (Partner) gives expert video advice on: What is an 'invention'?; Can I tell anyone about my invention?; If I invent something do I have to patent it before I make or sell it? and more...

You can certainly search to try to make sure your invention is unique. There are lots of patent data bases available on the internet. There's a very good data base called 'espacenet' that's available from the European patent office. That allows you to key word search, or search through the international patent classifications to try to find similar ideas.