PATENT FOCUS: COLORADO - Last year, at least 48,000 newly incorporated businesses were born in Colorado. But if Small Business Administration calculations are correct, only about half will survive long enough to blow out the candles on their fourth-birthday cakes.

Yet during the state's 128-year history, thousands of businesses, products and innovations have done more than just survive - they've flourished. Each day, people across the country encounter products invented or perfected in Colorado.

From hard candy to dog toys to revolutionary footwear, creative Coloradans have made imprints throughout the world. And, based on the number of new ideas sprouting up each year, there's no end in sight.

According to the U.S. Patent Office, Colorado residents - who make up 2 percent of the nation's population - filed for 7 percent of all patents in 2003; two-thirds were granted. Another recent study done by The Corporation for Enterprise Development ranks Colorado the ninth- most-innovative state in the union.

In the second installment of Colorado Originals (the first ran in June), The Denver Post showcases some of the notable products, businesses and inventions with Colorado roots.