And here is a patent application from 2005 https://patents.google.com/patent/US20070075509A1/en?invento... for the item. Doesn't look like it ever issued however, if you look at related patents you will see there are people all over this space "idea wise". As a result its perhaps best to read his story as "Here is how to get an idea to go viral."

More often than not the idea itself isn't really what makes or breaks a company, it is the people executing that idea that gets it out in front of people.