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I've come up with something that can be reduced to a single paragraph in a sidebar, removing all need for extra rules.

No new mechanics needed. No extra rules. These all work with the core book alone. Please, please, please, use this. It would make the core book complete for all characters.



A new sidebar in the core book would accomplish all of this :

Invention & Genius
Geniuses in Invincible don't roll to invent gadgets. Invention is handled narratively with consequences. Temporary devices are stunts, Challenges or plot devices with costs, and permanent gadgets require advancement as Signature Items or Powers. This allows brilliant Inventors to save the day!

A Scene-Level Solution for when the player needs to build something temporary to interrupt a process.
The rules can allow invention as a stunt or improvised effect and the cost is Stress, Resolve or a Complication introduced by the GM. For example, this allows a player to Jury-rig a device that delays a reactor meltdown, jam a signal long enough for evacuation or reroute power to weaken a shield. This gives a one-scene or one-beat solution, buys time, alters the situation but doesn't solve the threat permanently. No new mechanics required.

Conditional Solution
The GM Frames invention as part of a multi-step Challenge.
Example structure: Get access to materials, Build under pressure, Deploy under fire.
Each step uses: existing rolls, risks and opposition, and the gadget is not a power, it's a plot device. Failure doesn't mean it doesn't work, but it introduces consequences and possibly escalates the threat.

Temporary Gadget
The player spends a large amount of Resolve and accepts a significant Complication or a Drawback for the remainder of the story arc. The gadget works, but at a cost: mental collapse, exposure, loss of a relationship or becoming a target. This is still rules-legal without need for crafting rules.

Permanent Solution
If the player wants their character to do this reliably, then the rules require Advancement, a new power or Signature Item, or a limit, drawback, or narrative vulnerability. This is the only way that invention becomes permanent. Technological brilliance should give narrative permission, not gamey shortcuts. A genius should be allowed to attempt world-saving solutions and justify new abilities, but not remove the pacing of challenges.
So, when a genius wants to invent something to save the city/planet/universe ask is this permanent? If it is then advancement is required. If it's scene-limited then allow it as a stunt or effect, then apply Stress or a Complication. If it bypasses the core threat then split it into steps or impose consequences, the cost being Resolve, escalation, targeting or moral fallout.