Bob Noe’s idea for a better mousetrap is called the Rat Zapper. Sold under the slogan “The Power Tool for Rodent Control,” it is a blue plastic box about the size of a milk carton that runs on four AA batteries. It electrocutes rats or mice after luring them inside using dried dog food as bait.Unfortunately for Mr. Noe, the world hasn’t beaten a path to his door. Despite decades of innovation, this busy corner of entrepreneurship remains unusually fruitless. Since Mr. Noe began selling the traps a decade ago, profits have been “spotty,” he says. Before long, he became embroiled in an expensive legal battle with one of the U.S.’s oldest mousetrap makers.
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