1. The reason why Edison invented the electric light
As early as 1821, British scientists David and Faraday invented an electric light called the arc lamp, which used carbon rods. As a filament, although it can emit bright light, the light is dazzling, consumes a lot of power, and has a short lifespan, so it is very impractical. Edison secretly determined to invent an electric lamp with soft light that could be used by thousands of households. .
2. The process of inventing the electric light
In 1874, two Canadian electrical technicians applied for an electric light patent: a carbon rod filled with nitrogen under the glass bulb to energize it. However, they did not have the financial resources to continue to perfect the invention, so they sold the patent to Edison in 1875. After purchasing the patent, Edison tried to improve the filament, and finally created a carbonized bamboo filament lamp in 1880 that could last for 1,200 hours.
However, the U.S. Patent Office ruled that Edison's carbon filament incandescent lamp invention was behind others and the patent was invalid. After years of legal battle, Henry Goebbels won the patent, which was eventually purchased by Edison. In England, Swann sued Edison for patent infringement, and they later settled out of court and established a joint company in England in 1883. Swann later sold his shares and patents to Edison. Extended information
The significance of Edison's invention of the electric light
Edison was not just an inventor, but an inventor-type entrepreneur. American technology historian Thomas P. Hughes called it " System-builder. According to Hughes' research, Edison was problem-oriented from the beginning when he designed and built the electric system, that is, how to make the electric system more competitive in price than the original gas lighting system.
After identifying this core issue, Edison used market research, cost analysis, and theoretical calculations to determine the shortcomings of the system—the filament material. This transformed a commercial issue into a scientific issue, and finally proposed A solution for high-resistance spiral filaments. At the same time, Edison did not work alone, but managed a team of talented people, including masters in mathematics and physics, experienced technicians, and people who were good at social interaction and familiar with the financial industry.
With the efforts of Edison and his team, the electric lighting system moved from the laboratory in Menlo Park to New York, the United States and even the world. It can be said that Edison was the person who truly completed the transition from electric light to electric lighting system, which was a milestone in the history of the invention of electric light.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Thomas Alva Edison