From my mentoring of inventors for several years, I’ve come to believe that three basic types exist:
• The stumbler.
• The “on-purpose” inventor.
• The visionary.
Most of us are stumblers. We stumble onto a need, problem, or want, and we come up with a solution. Nothing wrong with this process. But we’ve got to be aware of how timing affects it.
The “on-purpose” inventor usually works for a business, and has an assignment or mission to create a solution to a need, problem, or want. However, independent inventors also work on purpose. For example, Alexander Graham Bell and Elisha Gray worked on inventing the telephone, and filed papers with the Patent Office on the same day.
Was this merely a timing coincidence? Not likely. The telegraphs had been around for more than 30 years when Bell and Gray filed their papers. And the principle of sending vibrations (dot and dash electric-al pulses) over wires was well understood. The problem was how to send a continuous vibration caused by the human voice, rather than an interruption of the electric current, as was the case with the telegraph.
Bell gets the credit for the first practical telephone, although an in-depth reading of history reveals some unsavory stories about how he illegally obtained Gray’s patent application, obviously an unfair advantage. But before Bell and Gray, international inventors such as Bourseul, Reis, Meucci, Varley, la Cour, and Drawbaugh all had invented versions of a primitive telephone.
The point is that “on purpose” inventing, especially in today’s technological and global culture, is prevalent. But it is not how most of us invent. We discover problems, needs, and wants randomly, not on purpose. These discoveries, typically, are also discovered by many others, most of whom do nothing about them. But a few of those persons who solve or satisfy the problem, need, or want, go on to search prior art, (mainly patents, but any form of public disclosure qualifies), and file for a patent.
The older that the invention that forms the basis for the new invention is, the more likely it is that it the new invention is either already patented, or can’t be patented due to failing the “unobviousness” test. The Patent Office rules state that your invention must be “unobvious to someone skilled in the art.” The “someone,” for example, is a designer or engineer working in the industry that produces the basic invention. For example: someone invents a tool with a long wooden handle. Another inventor drills a hole through the tip of the handle so that it can be conveniently hung up when out of use. The Patent Office almost certainly will deem such a change as unworthy of patent protection because such improvement would not likely escape the first inventor or others who work in the same field.
But even if such improvement were considered unobvious to the Patent Office, the further out in time from the basic invention, the more likely it is that someone has already invented your invention, with or without patenting it.
If the stumbler is often too late with his inventions, the visionary inventor is the opposite. He or she is dreaming of inventions that will be useful perhaps decades from now—more likely, not at all. The dictionary defines a visionary as a dreamer, and an impractical person. And so are most of his inventions, such as a personal airplane that converts to a car for everyday transportation. Or a car with levers for steering rather than a steering wheel.
Am I suggesting that we change our ways? Well, if you’re a visionary, yes. Get down to Earth, and invent something useful for the present time. If you’re an on-purpose inventor, and you have the resources to compete with big corporations, then, good luck. But if you’re a stumbler, as I am, there’s no need to change. Just recognize that opportunities fade as the technology ages. Recognize that to invent a basic garden tool or kitchen gadget you’re up against years and years of inventing. The rake and the can-opener have been done. Think niche applications. Think of the special needs of a certain kind of person. For example, persons who no longer have the strength or manipulability of their limbs may respond well to a tool designed with them in mind.
If your first attempt is foiled by prior art, stumble on. You’re in good company. We’re the folks who fill the catalogs with innovative products.
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Best wishes, Jack and Karla 

www.Karla and Jack.com