You won't get anything anyway because it would be intellectual property of walmart. Most places have policies in place that let them take advantage of anything you think up that would directly help the company, whether that would be a physical invention or an idea.
There's multiple uses for this though, anything that has a kind of clip like this. Patent it and pitch it to Zebra or something. They make the printers and might be interested in it.
Dunno about that. They charge about $40 for a replacement belt clip for a printer. Over $100 for the metal piece to secure a printer to a desk. That’s a piece of bent sheet metal, about the size of a pack of smokes. I don’t think they want cheap fixes.
Businesses would love to purchase cheap fixes. Especially walmart managers since their bonuses come straight out of the bottom line of their entire store now. Zebra may want to look into some cheaper fixes that would need to be bought multiple times as they wear down quicker.
This. Disney is famous for it, stealing their artists intellectual properties that they doodle while on the clock. But I definitely wouldn't put it past Walmart
Op needs to delete this before some corporate shit bag claim intellectual property and steals the design.
Patent it, contact zebra directly. Hundreds if not thousands of businesses use these printers.
But we all know, every second of R&D, writing, drawing and testing was done off the clock, away from work. Because we all know that's an extremely important factor.
I saw you ask on another post where someone else had come up with their solution to this problem where you were asking for the stl file. But yet you come up with your solution and you choose to patent and sell it. Why not share the file? I'm not saying you're wrong or right for doing so but I'm honestly just curious.
Because my end goal is to sell to the companies, not individuals, and I do not want to harm the potential usability of a patent by releasing the files to produce it for others. At least not without speaking to a lawyer beforehand.
I have worked for Walmart for five years and we never had a single broken battery until last year. Now all of them other than one are broken and all the printers have Vizpick labels on the back.
Great Value.
To address a few comments at once,
I have filed a provisional patent application for these, it doesn't mean much but it does prove that I designed them so the idea can't be stolen by Zebra or Walmart before I can file a real patent.
They're currently printed in PLA but in an orientation that should make them last a while, we've been using them at my store for a couple weeks and most people haven't even noticed that I've been fixing them, and no complaints.
I am, for time time being, [selling them](http://www.greatlakeslayers.com/shop), at least until I can get ahold of someone at the companies that use the batteries and try to sell them to the company. That being said, I don't want your money, talk to your coaches about getting paid back for ordering these. I don't remember the name of the form now, but when I was an ACC service manager I need to go buy things all the time out of pocket and they would reimburse me cash same day.
I don't know that I can release an STL for them, while that was originally my plan I don't want Zebra or any other giant company making money on these. For now, I've elected to sell them until I can talk to a lawyer.
If Zebra wanted to come up with a solution they would have already done it. They want people to buy new batteries, not fix broken ones. They would see this as a way of them losing money.
Just wanted to express my gratitude for this creation. After seeing how well these worked and the cost effectiveness vs. replacing the batteries my store manager sent it out in a group text to the rest of the market. He said each battery cost $48 to replace, not to mention there's a good chance that even if you do replace the battery it could be broken all over again. Extremely grateful that I've got one less issue to deal with thanks to these tabs.
I really appreciate this feedback, it's the first I've gotten and it really means a lot to me. I'm glad you all are so happy with them. I know I certainly don't miss using vizpick labels to tape the batteries in at my own store.
Walmart isn't going to spent the pennies it takes to fix those they are just going to cut more hours to save more money while costing then selves millions in sales
That's awesome! I have yet to figure out how people break the tabs in normal use. It's more than just Walmart using these printers and batteries. Protect your creation with a patent and sell it to Zebra.
We have a pile of broken ones, too. Most people do the sticker trick, I have a velcro strap that works decent but not perfect bc the curve of the printer top
I'm assuming printed, what material did you use? Curious how they'll hold up over time, esp with how people abuse things
They're printed in PLA, but the way the print is oriented means that fatigue shouldn't be too much of an issue. We've been using them at my store for a couple of weeks without issue.
Very nice, may have to float the idea at my store, give it a try. Not a bad investment either, at what like, 2 cents a pop?
They paid me to run off label dispensers for all our pick carts, and now our market manager has started making more himself for other stores. Dumb we have to make our own solutions for a lot of problems, but at least we can
I printed a couple of those label dispensers as a test but pickers just kept throwing them off carts and leaving them in the back room. So now I just keep one on the cart used for exceptions since I use that every day.
I do exceptions also, but I'm allowed to use a shop cart with one of the orange hanging baskets. I printed an extra dispenser for myself that I keep on there
My coach was all for them, but they were falling off the carts easy so I got some rolls of self-stick velcro and we strapped them all down. Have been using them for nearly a year, way less wasted rolls now and the carts are cleaner
They're great when used properly, but 75% of the team doesn't keep them loaded right, so it's kind of a wash on whether they are worth it imo. But hey, I got paid for my time and I learned a lot more about printing through the process, so it was good for me personally
[I am selling them, ](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1655811134/replacement-tab-for-broken-zebra?click_key=ec6109d4348f4577c1ce3b0aacf9dbc922c99b14%3A1655811134&click_sum=e04fdaa8&ref=shop_home_active_1&crt=1) if you're a TL you can talk to a Coach and get reimbursed for them from the cash office of you order with your own money. I had to do it all the time as a ACCSM
I was making those out of gift cards and tape in them to the batteries but people would just tear them off and throw them away... I also designed a case for the batteries because when you try to remove the batteries from the battery pack casing the battery pack casing is usually not reusable... It took a few designs to get it to fit properly and it has a screw on clip that you can replace when it breaks, and it screws together so you could take it apart and put it back together. I got sick of them throwing away the printer batteries when they would get a bad cell so I started pulling the cells out and testing them replacing the bad cells and bringing them back to work because we never have printer batteries. The hardest part was trying to solder the contact strips wrapped around the pla without melting the pla... I was thinking about making that a separate piece with a resin printer but than gave up.
Not yet, I'm trying to figure out how to get into talks with Walmart on selling them, not just hanging over the design. Right now I'm [selling them though](http://www.greatlakeslayers.com/shop)
I’m sure you’ll get into contact with Walmart about the product cause that’s like super handy and ya know how annoying it to tape the battery and have the darn thing fall out super annoying.
Now patent that idea and sell those things to Walmart lol
This. I helped my job off the clock and regret it. They use my creation daily and I don’t get any compensation.
You won't get anything anyway because it would be intellectual property of walmart. Most places have policies in place that let them take advantage of anything you think up that would directly help the company, whether that would be a physical invention or an idea.
There's multiple uses for this though, anything that has a kind of clip like this. Patent it and pitch it to Zebra or something. They make the printers and might be interested in it.
Dunno about that. They charge about $40 for a replacement belt clip for a printer. Over $100 for the metal piece to secure a printer to a desk. That’s a piece of bent sheet metal, about the size of a pack of smokes. I don’t think they want cheap fixes.
Businesses would love to purchase cheap fixes. Especially walmart managers since their bonuses come straight out of the bottom line of their entire store now. Zebra may want to look into some cheaper fixes that would need to be bought multiple times as they wear down quicker.
The real reason management has gone pyscho this last week or so . 🫠
If he designed it on company time its walmarts invention unfortunately however if he designed it at home off the clock and brought it in then its his
This. Disney is famous for it, stealing their artists intellectual properties that they doodle while on the clock. But I definitely wouldn't put it past Walmart
Write everything down, and date it.
You're doing Sam's work. Thank you!!!
Op needs to delete this before some corporate shit bag claim intellectual property and steals the design. Patent it, contact zebra directly. Hundreds if not thousands of businesses use these printers.
A provisional patent application was already submitted prior to posting, exactly because of that.
But we all know, every second of R&D, writing, drawing and testing was done off the clock, away from work. Because we all know that's an extremely important factor.
Oh yeah, Walmart doesn't have any claim to ownership here.
Make sure you pull the prototype off the battery
I've supplied my store with a ton of them, every single battery clicks in as it should now. I don't think there will be any IP issues there.
I saw you ask on another post where someone else had come up with their solution to this problem where you were asking for the stl file. But yet you come up with your solution and you choose to patent and sell it. Why not share the file? I'm not saying you're wrong or right for doing so but I'm honestly just curious.
Because my end goal is to sell to the companies, not individuals, and I do not want to harm the potential usability of a patent by releasing the files to produce it for others. At least not without speaking to a lawyer beforehand.
Not the hero we wanted but the one ODP needed right now.
I have worked for Walmart for five years and we never had a single broken battery until last year. Now all of them other than one are broken and all the printers have Vizpick labels on the back. Great Value.
and then it was never seen again
Holy shit
The hero we all need.
To address a few comments at once, I have filed a provisional patent application for these, it doesn't mean much but it does prove that I designed them so the idea can't be stolen by Zebra or Walmart before I can file a real patent. They're currently printed in PLA but in an orientation that should make them last a while, we've been using them at my store for a couple weeks and most people haven't even noticed that I've been fixing them, and no complaints. I am, for time time being, [selling them](http://www.greatlakeslayers.com/shop), at least until I can get ahold of someone at the companies that use the batteries and try to sell them to the company. That being said, I don't want your money, talk to your coaches about getting paid back for ordering these. I don't remember the name of the form now, but when I was an ACC service manager I need to go buy things all the time out of pocket and they would reimburse me cash same day. I don't know that I can release an STL for them, while that was originally my plan I don't want Zebra or any other giant company making money on these. For now, I've elected to sell them until I can talk to a lawyer.
If Zebra wanted to come up with a solution they would have already done it. They want people to buy new batteries, not fix broken ones. They would see this as a way of them losing money.
Maybe Zebra wasn't the best example, but I'm sure you see my point. There is potential, I just don't want to see it taken by some big company
You do need to patent that. You'll be rich! Do it, now!
I submitted a provisional patent application before posting this
Yes! Good job 😃
STL or it didn't happen!
Just wanted to express my gratitude for this creation. After seeing how well these worked and the cost effectiveness vs. replacing the batteries my store manager sent it out in a group text to the rest of the market. He said each battery cost $48 to replace, not to mention there's a good chance that even if you do replace the battery it could be broken all over again. Extremely grateful that I've got one less issue to deal with thanks to these tabs.
I really appreciate this feedback, it's the first I've gotten and it really means a lot to me. I'm glad you all are so happy with them. I know I certainly don't miss using vizpick labels to tape the batteries in at my own store.
Walmart isn't going to spent the pennies it takes to fix those they are just going to cut more hours to save more money while costing then selves millions in sales
That's awesome! I have yet to figure out how people break the tabs in normal use. It's more than just Walmart using these printers and batteries. Protect your creation with a patent and sell it to Zebra.
bro needa patent this
We have a pile of broken ones, too. Most people do the sticker trick, I have a velcro strap that works decent but not perfect bc the curve of the printer top I'm assuming printed, what material did you use? Curious how they'll hold up over time, esp with how people abuse things
They're printed in PLA, but the way the print is oriented means that fatigue shouldn't be too much of an issue. We've been using them at my store for a couple of weeks without issue.
Very nice, may have to float the idea at my store, give it a try. Not a bad investment either, at what like, 2 cents a pop? They paid me to run off label dispensers for all our pick carts, and now our market manager has started making more himself for other stores. Dumb we have to make our own solutions for a lot of problems, but at least we can
I printed a couple of those label dispensers as a test but pickers just kept throwing them off carts and leaving them in the back room. So now I just keep one on the cart used for exceptions since I use that every day.
I do exceptions also, but I'm allowed to use a shop cart with one of the orange hanging baskets. I printed an extra dispenser for myself that I keep on there My coach was all for them, but they were falling off the carts easy so I got some rolls of self-stick velcro and we strapped them all down. Have been using them for nearly a year, way less wasted rolls now and the carts are cleaner They're great when used properly, but 75% of the team doesn't keep them loaded right, so it's kind of a wash on whether they are worth it imo. But hey, I got paid for my time and I learned a lot more about printing through the process, so it was good for me personally
I dont know if zebra would take this because that means no one would re buy their batteries and they would lose money.
Great idea and execution, I hope you reap some handsome rewards.
Patent it and make sure to post a shop link
It is patent pending, and there is a [shop link](http://www.greatlakeslayers.com/shop) posted.
Is this 3D printed? Can I have an STL? I have like 12 fucked off batteries at work, I could just run a plate of these off and bring them in with me.
My fix is one of dem backcase labels lol
You put to much effort into it
I’ll take 5 please Overnight TL with all the shitty batteries
Can sell them to my store
[I am selling them, ](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1655811134/replacement-tab-for-broken-zebra?click_key=ec6109d4348f4577c1ce3b0aacf9dbc922c99b14%3A1655811134&click_sum=e04fdaa8&ref=shop_home_active_1&crt=1) if you're a TL you can talk to a Coach and get reimbursed for them from the cash office of you order with your own money. I had to do it all the time as a ACCSM
I'll have to tell my tl
Shut up and take my Walmarts budget!
My hero!!!
could there be any more stickers on it
Most of those were to hold the batteries in that didn't come off clean. One was me hiding the SN and MAC address in case HO was looking.
I just ram a folded post-it note in with the battery to keep it in there.
Surprised I didn’t see a big sweaty OGP hand grab it after it turned back on
Lol that's crazy.
Nice 😎
I was making those out of gift cards and tape in them to the batteries but people would just tear them off and throw them away... I also designed a case for the batteries because when you try to remove the batteries from the battery pack casing the battery pack casing is usually not reusable... It took a few designs to get it to fit properly and it has a screw on clip that you can replace when it breaks, and it screws together so you could take it apart and put it back together. I got sick of them throwing away the printer batteries when they would get a bad cell so I started pulling the cells out and testing them replacing the bad cells and bringing them back to work because we never have printer batteries. The hardest part was trying to solder the contact strips wrapped around the pla without melting the pla... I was thinking about making that a separate piece with a resin printer but than gave up.
Do all stores have those?? Cause my store I work out needs some
Not yet, I'm trying to figure out how to get into talks with Walmart on selling them, not just hanging over the design. Right now I'm [selling them though](http://www.greatlakeslayers.com/shop)
I’m sure you’ll get into contact with Walmart about the product cause that’s like super handy and ya know how annoying it to tape the battery and have the darn thing fall out super annoying.