Did you know that in 1882 the first Christmas tree was illuminated by the use of electricity? Or that a Catholic priest called Gregory Keller invented a machine to automate candy cane production during the 1950's? View whimsical drawings of Christmas related design patents with my own added whimsical commentary as a bonus.

Many people will swear that store merchants did invent Christmas when we observe cash registers singing and shopping malls filling up with happy shoppers during the days before Christmas. However, Christmas is not a physical invention, it is both an old tradition and a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Christ. Many physical inventions have been created to aid with Christmas festivities that you can research the history about including: candy canes, electric Christmas lights (invented by a teenager), artificial Christmas trees, and snowmen. Illustration: Candy Canes by about.com

Toy manufacturers and toy inventors use both utility and design patents, along with trademarks and copyrights. In fact, many toys especially video games take advantage of all three types of intellectual property protection. Visit our collection of famous toy patents and photos. Image: Federal Art Project

Want to know what to give an inquiring mind for Christmas or any other special occasion? How about a book about gadgets or inventing, or books on the popular topics of television history, history of cars, biographies of Bill Gates. Need a gift idea for a kid inventor? What about a science fair kit? Image Courtesy: African American Inventors - Publishers John Wiley & Sons Inc

Well, if you live where I do you are. And that makes me think of all the inventions that have to do with ice. We don't know who invented the first ice skates, however, the largest outdoor ice skating rink is the Fujikyu Highland Promenade Rink in Japan. This rink was built in 1967 and boasts an ice area of 165,750 square feet or 3.8 acres. Did you know that the first artificial ice rink (mechanically-refrigerated) was built in 1876, in London, England? The rink was named the Glaciarium. The rules of modern ice hockey were written by Canadian J G A Creighton in 1875. Ice hockey rinks are cleaned by a Zamboni and I have always wanted to ride a Zamboni. The Zamboni is the namesake of its inventor Frank Zamboni. Zamboni ® Trademark Used with permission of Frank J. Zamboni & Co. Inc. 1998