But Canberra inventors all had their version of the ''Eureka!'' moment as they worked to come up with something that had never been done before.

Canberrans who had invented everything from a better way to eat a mango to a spray that kills cane toads gathered at IP Australia at its Woden headquarters yesterday to celebrate World Intellectual Property Day.

IP Australia director-general Philip Noonan said the event was about honouring local inventors who were often unsung heroes.

''Today is a day where the celebrities and the sporting stars can take a back seat and [be] replaced by those who really matter, the people who are helping us continue to be a rich country,'' he said.

Mr Noonan said IP Australia granted about 25,000 patents a year to ensure the owner had exclusive rights to commercially exploit their invention for the life of the patent.

''We can't at the IP office guarantee a commercial success when we grant a patent, but there's one thing for sure, if you don't secure your [intellectual property], then any success you might have will be lost to you,'' he said.

The Stubby Glove has been one of Canberra's quirkier inventions - with Jim Kroezen and brothers Glen and Leon Krummel first joking they needed a glove attached to their stubby during a particularly cold camping trip on Lake Eucumbene.

Mr Kroezen later made three gloves for them to take on a skiing trip to New Zealand and a local publican promptly ordered 500 of them. ''When we came back to Australia, the next day we went and saw a patent attorney,'' he said.

The Stubby Glove was patented in 2001, with more than 150,000 gloves sold over the internet since then. The men also have the licence to do Stubby Gloves for NRL and AFL clubs.

''Everybody said, 'No you can't do that and it's all worked','' Mr Kroezen said.

Another Canberra success story is HopStop, a spray in an aerosol can that anaesthetises and then poisons cane toads, invented by scientist David Dall, of Downer. HopStop was released on to the Australian market in 2010.

Dr Dall said exact sales were confidential but were in the ''multi tens of thousands''. He was now looking to have the product registered in the US for use in Florida, Hawaii and Guam.

''Cane toads are big problems in all of those areas. We estimate there are four million households affected by cane toads in Florida, which is more than all of Australia put together. So there is potentially a big market,'' he said.

Other inventors are still waiting for their big commercial break.

Linh Ho, of Lyneham, was inspired by his late mother's battle with diabetes and Parkinson's disease to come up with the Medical Alert Digital Watch to help people with chronic illnesses feel more confident about leaving their home.

He uses a computer program to add information and images to the watch, including details about medication, blood type, allergies and emergency contact numbers so that it is accessible should the person become incapacitated or unconscious.

''I just want people to feel more empowered and confident,'' he said.

Andrey Zoska, of Gordon, invented his mango eating device to help people eat mangoes without mess. The stainless steel tool - which plugs into the seed of the mango so it can be sliced - was eventually judged by industry as being too expensive to produce on a mass scale. Still, 80-year-old Mr Zoska, a retired driller for geologists, remains enthusiastic about his invention. ''I made it because I wanted to eat mango a better way, with clean hands,'' he said, with a laugh.