ember passing new model data into component

I am trying to grasp the way ember works (probably the exact opposite of the way I think).

I am working with ember 2.0.

The test app I am trying to make will show an inventory component on the application index page. I want to avoid navigating the user through routes (page urls, in this case), and simply give them information on a single page.

If I only want to get the inventory data AFTER the user opens, for instance, a modal dialog, how do I open a component modal and pass in new data?

I recognize that you can pass data into a component like {{modal-component name=name age=age}}, but if the data wasn't, how do you get new data after a click?

Thanks