Mad scientist-types.  “The independent inventor often has been portrayed as something of a mad scientist-type individual or an uneducated dreamer in search of the Holy Grail. The result of these perceptions is that the independent inventor no longer is viewed as a serious source of product innovation.” (Lisa Blades, R. Stephen Parker, Gerald G. Udell, “The new independent inventor: implications for corporate policy,” Symposium: Preparing for the Future, Review of Business, March 22, 1996)

Lunatic fringe and weekend hobbyists.  “Indeed, Bruce Lehman, then commissioner of the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) and pushing some of these changes to the patent system, referred to independent inventors as 'weekend hobbyists' and on 'the lunatic fringe' and called his critics 'amorphous phantoms with no large identifiable constituency.'” (G. Scott Erickson, “Organizational size and invention: an examination of U.S. patentees,” Global Competitiveness, January 1, 2006)  Find other published articles by G. Scott Erickson.

Brainy geeks with coke-bottle glasses.  “Often stereotyped as brainy geeks with coke-bottle glasses, inventors seldom win any teen popularity contests. Their status, however, is rising among teens. According to the latest Lemelson-MIT Invention Index™, an annual survey of Americans' perceptions about inventing and innovating, teens do recognize the value and importance of inventors when survival is at stake. Using the hypothetical and popular example of being stranded on a desert island, the study finds that almost half of all teens (46%) surveyed would choose the company of an inventor over a famous musician, athlete or actor—the prevailing teen role models.” (Lemelson-MIT program press release, “Despite Geek Image, Inventors Respected By Teens,” Cambridge, MA, January 10, 2001)

Idiots and nuts.  “Unfortunately, within the business world, the inventor isn't usually recognized as a genius but often stereotyped as an idiot or nut.” (Bobby Toole, president of United Inventors Association quoted in Caryne Brown, “Making money making toys: how black inventors are bringing innovative ideas to the toy market”, Black Enterprise, November 1, 1993)

Overcoming the negative image of inventors is a big problem.  "The inventor doesn't have a good reputation because corporations want to take credit for good ideas. Overcoming that is one of the biggest problems we have."(Bobby Toole, president of United Inventors Association quoted in Caryne Brown, “Making money making toys: how black inventors are bringing innovative ideas to the toy market”, Black Enterprise, November 1, 1993)

Wacky.  “People have this image of the wacky inventor, but the vast majority of patents are for quality technology, and in the next five years they will be in mobile phones, cars and computers. They really will make changes in the future.”  (Mike Rees, business development manager for UK-IPO quoted in Sarah Harris, “Inventors of tomorrow,” Daily Mail, November 27, 2007)

Unglamorous and unpopular.  “The task of motivating teens to invent is even more daunting due to the unglamorous image and general unpopularity of inventors as role models. In this year's Invention Index™, teens rank inventors lowest (8%) among five categories of people they would most like to meet.  In line with prevailing stereotypes, the most popular professionals that teens want to meet are musicians (30%), athletes (23%) and actors (22%).”  (Lemelson-MIT program press release, “Despite Geek Image, Inventors Respected By Teens,” Cambridge, MA, January 10, 2001)