I had a couple of ideas several years ago.
For both ideas, a year after I came up with the idea,
I saw it a year later in the New Products section of Popular Mechanics.
So somebody must have had the same idea at the same time as me.

One of the idea was simple.
I wondered why nobody had ever thought before to replace an alternator on a truck with a generator for 110 power to run drills and saws and other electrical stuff.
A year later I saw this idea in Popular Mechanics then I saw an episode about it on ShadeTree Mechanic (tv show).

Another idea I had was when I had a car that leaked a lot of oil.
I added about 3 quarts a week to this car and didn't have the money to fix the leak. I had to buy oil by the case.
I noticed that when I poured a bottle of oil in the engine and then threw the bottle back in the box that the residue oil in the bottle settled to the bottom of the bottle. I figured this amounted to quite a bit of oil over several cases. So I thought of an idea for a funnel that I could put the bottles in, several at once, and it would hold the bottles upside down while they drained into the funnel. All this time another bottle would be under the funnel to catch the oil.
About a year later I saw this idea in the New Products section of Popular Mechanics.
So someone else must have had the same idea as me.

Wish I knew how to put these ideas into the market.

I had another idea recently.
Wait a year. Someone will probably put it in production by next summer.
No I won't share the idea. :o)

Pooh Bear