Circuit reinvention in power electronics and identification of prior work

A review of literature and patent records for industrial controls and power electronics over the past 100 years shows a pattern of circuit invention, loss and reinvention, often repeated. This has resulted in a great waste of time and effort as well as interminable legal wrangling and the loss of useful ideas for long periods of time. This paper gives an overview of the problem using several examples of circuits of current interest. The paper then goes on to discuss searching for prior work.