The former engineer's Wiltshire-based company is now set to launch the Ball, a revolutionary new domestic cleaning device.

Well done for your invention, what advice would you give to a young entrepreneur who is looking to start his own business? Ross Peckham-Cooper, Tonbridge, Kent

I don't really consider myself an entrepreneur, but it's important to have ideas. You'll need perseverance to push you through those many moments of frustration to fuel your idea. I wish you the best of luck; you're amongst just 14 per cent of the British population who would like their own business, compared to the US with 74 per cent. I hope that one day the Government makes it easier to start small businesses from their homes, allowing people to take their ideas forward for themselves. Too many great innovations have been lost because of unnecessary complications and expense.

Design and engineering seems to be a profession dominated by men. Which female designers or engineers do you admire and why? Name and address withheld

A: I like designers and engineers who create items with a strong emphasis on function rather style. Car design is often thought of as a male domain, but one of car design's greatest innovations was actually designed by a woman. Mary Anderson invented the humble windscreen wiper in 1905. It’s a fine example of a functional, well-designed mechanism that’s on every single car today. I believe that Mary came up with the idea when on a trip to New York. Her driver struggled to remove the snow and ice from his windscreen and this prompted her to come up with the wiper operated by a lever inside the car. She patented it, but never actually went into production. But she finally found recognition and success in 1913, when it became standard on all American cars. At Dyson we have 20 female engineers and inventors who are very talented, but sadly are very much in a minority.

We bought one of your cleaners, which works well, but makes a hell of a noise. Isn't there a possibility to reduce the noise of your product? Rolf Hablutzel, Switzerland

At Dyson we have an acoustics team that spend all day, every day analysing noise and vibration levels. We have a semi-anechoic chamber which measures noise. Its walls and ceiling are covered in thick grey foam wedges. The wedges are designed to make sound travel away from the noise source – in Dyson’s case a vacuum cleaner or washing machine – without echoes.

You’ll find that noise does emanate from all different areas of the machine, but we do put a huge amount of work into getting this as balanced to ensure it is as quiet as possible. Remember that the fan rotates at 35,000rpm (Schumacher’s Ferrari does 19,000) – so it creates a loud noise to silence. But you are quite right and it is a major area for improvement. People care more about the machine's cleaning performance than they do about the noise though.

Will anyone ever be able to invent a robotic vacuum cleaner that can clean stairs? Matt Wilkinson, London

It's coming, but truly different technology takes time. We're developing a robot that cleans properly and intelligently. Really it has to be the home's only vacuum cleaner and has to do the job better than you, or otherwise there's little point to it.

I have had an idea which I and my family believe would be useful to a lot of people. But I lack the engineering skills to make a prototype, how should I proceed but at the same time protect my idea? Philip Glenn, Enniskillen

Philip, I recommend a book called ‘The Business of Invention: The Essentials of Success for Inventors and Innovators’ by Peter Bissell and Graham Barker. It has vast amounts of information on prototypes and patents. It's available from the publishers – Wordbase Publications.
I also suggest that you contact a patent agent, as they are experts in all aspects of Intellectual Property. This will cost you money of course, but you may want to think about getting an initial opinion from one of the Chartered Institute of Patent Agents clinics. These are free half-hour sessions, run on a one-to-one basis with a qualified patent attorney.
If you log onto our website – www.dyson.co.uk you will find more detailed information and help.

Were you confident you were on to a winner with your idea? If not, what kept you focused during the time of development and marketing before it was received as a success? Paul Sheen, Nottingham

Frustration! The Dual Cyclone vacuum cleaner came from a simmering frustration that took nearly twenty-five years to boil over. I channelled this frustration into something practical. I started with a crude cardboard cyclone which appeared to work and this led to machined prototypes as I refined the design. Fifteen years and 5,127 prototypes later I had perfected a vacuum cleaner that didn’t lose suction, the Dual Cyclone. It took 15 years of swearing, struggling, creating, being knocked back by several short-sighted companies and inventing to get to this stage today. Of course, now I am not alone, I’ve got 350 like-minded engineers working with me in Malmesbury, so it's more fun and more stimulating.

Can industry do more to encourage young designers and produce your kind of success? Daniel Bond, London

Yes, absolutely. Since the 1980s Design and Technology in schools has been giving young people an insight into industrial design and engineering. The subject gives them the chance to use their hands and brains creatively and they gain a real understanding of the design process. Industry can support schools by getting involved in outreach work. For example, here at Dyson, engineers regularly visit local schools and sixth forms to talk about the design process and give students a hands-on opportunity to respond to a design brief and create functional prototypes. The key lesson, I think though, is that success in design engineering is all about making mistakes. Each mistake brings you closer to a successful functioning design. It’s a hard lesson for children, but a valuable one.