Well, now you're talking about a science project, and the costs really go up. If it takes me hours of research to gather the parts and get it all working, someone has to pay for that. 
I actually have ideas on wireless communication, but I need to do some development work to make the link more intelligent so there can be more than one running at the same time. That's going to require a new PCB, new software, etc. In other words, if I were doing this as a product, or for my own use, it would be on me. However, if I took on a job for someone to do all of this, I'd expect them to foot the bill.
