Can you do research at home, without being backed by a university? [electronics]
In the academia, degrees matter, being used as the main gatekeeping mechanism for identifying the pool of eligible applicants for positions at universities. Typically, the higher up you climb up the degree ladder (Master's, PhD) the more (and fancier) doors open.

In private industry, the majority of companies still require at least a bachelor's degree. So if you are considering working for a company at least for a short period of time to develop additional skills, I would highly recommend finishing a bachelor's degree. In some startups (especially Internet startups), you may be able to secure a position through networking with the founders (who sometimes themselves are dropouts).

But it sounds like you prefer to lay your own path in this life. I think you could make a living out of this by becoming an independent inventor, receiving and then either selling patents to corps or developing them into businesses on your own. 

You could also work as independent consultant (formally, a sole proprietor) offering software and/or hardware engineering solutions to businesses. In this case, it is important to develop expertise in a fairly narrow niche, such as robot sensors, a programming language (e.g. Java), or a particular manufacturing process in a specific industry (e.g. programming car electronics for auto manufacturers). Typically, a way to develop such skills is to actually work for a company with a focus in this niche, then striking on your own. 

To build up experience, also consider design competitions (e.g. dexigner.com/design-competitions). While some of these are for students affiliated with universities, others are open to anyone. 

These options are not necessarily either/or, so you might be able to stitch a successful career and comfortable living by combining two or three of them at once, varying only the extent to which you allocate your time and energy to each of these pursuits. The most important thing is, to make sure you have fun no matter what you do. If it ain't fun, it ain't worth doing. You seem to have the talent and motivation to pursue your interests, which many people dream of but only a few have the guts to actually do. Good luck!