idea protection

From Massachusetts, I have an invention that I researched for it's patentability. Unfortunately, a small portion of the invention is already patented by a large company. I would like to contact the company to discuss possibly discussing my research and invention. How do I protect my idea/invention?

What you might do is to see if you could first file to patent the IMPROVEMENT (consult a lawyer to see if it is patentable) and then you can more safely discuss the license of the improvement.