We are all used to and do not notice such an ordinary and everyday thing as an electric light bulb. The maximum that an average person thinks about this topic is: “should I replace an incandescent lamp with a more interesting design or switch to energy-saving technology?”. Meanwhile, for its age it was a truly revolutionary thing! There are disputes about who was the first to contribute to the invention of the first light bulb. Our compatriots are sure that this Russian engineer Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin, but scientists from different countries worked on this problem: Swan from England, Goebel from Germany, Delarue from France, they all worked a lot in this field of scientific discoveries. Who invented the first light bulb?
ancient prototypes
How did ancient people paint caves with rock paintings when there was no natural light? Torches and bonfires? But smoke and soot come from them, and you can’t draw much like that, it’s already dark three meters from the fire ... Historians reflect on this topic and cannot come to a consensus. The only mention of lighting - on the Egyptian pyramids are depicted people in whose hands lamps very similar to electric.
First experiments with an arc lamp
The history of the invention of the electric lamp
Each student in the physics lesson went through the topic of the history of the invention of electricity. It is generally accepted that the invention of the design of a working electric lamp belongs to Thomas Edison, who published his discovery in 1879. However, this invention is much more hard work than we think.
The advent of modern electric lamps was preceded by a large number of preparatory studies in different countries of the world by inventor-scientists. The achievements of the previous generations were improved, experiments were carried out with different types of medium in which the incandescent filament was placed, the light bulb was changed and improved. The history of the invention has many stages.
The task before the scientists was simple and difficult at the same time - to get a design that could be used in everyday life. One of the promising directions was study of the effect of incandescence of various materials.
If an electric current is passed through some metals, they will glow and give a source of light. The question was only one - how to prevent overheating, melting of the material or its combustion. Many experiments have been carried out in this direction. Scientists understood that achieving a balance between the incandescent element and the environment in which it heats up would mean a giant breakthrough.
What is combustion? First of all, it is direct contact with oxygen. Since it is found in the environment, the only way to avoid burning the filament element is to limit the contact of the heating element with air. Consequently , you need a container, a lamp.
Contribution of Russian researchers
Edison era
I must say that in addition to a brilliant mindset, Thomas Edison had obvious business talent. He was the first to realize what enormous financial benefits the mass production of incandescent lamps promises. Edison began work on improving the design of the lamp in 1878 and immediately declared that he had solved the problem of the electric lamp. At that time, Edison was the inventor of the telephone and the phonograph, so he was immediately believed. Edison's statement was reflected in the stock exchange. Shares of gas companies rapidly crept down in price.
but Edison got a little excited. The problem was not immediately resolved. The inventor had the idea to create a switch for the normal operation of the lamp, so that there was no excessive overheating of the filament element. But they did not fire at the right time, which was unpleasant to the eye and led to flicker. The design was not applicable in mass production. The laboratory led by Edison conducted numerous experiments with experiments from different materials of the filament and different environments where it was placed.
The breakthrough was helped by a young fellow physicist from the Princeton Institute surnamed Upton. Physicists began to study the already obtained patents and discoveries in this area. And they came across the idea of the resistance properties of metals in relation to incandescent technology. It turned out that metals with the highest coefficient of resistance heat up more easily and do not burn. By the beginning of 1880, the first results began to appear. The design that worked best was a combination of a vacuum tube and filament-shaped bamboo charcoal rods. Thus, the first efficient electric lamp appeared.
In addition to the problem of improving the incandescent lamp, Edison also dealt with the problem of lamp power. His laboratory owns the invention of the base, the switch for the lamp. After 2 years, Edison's commercial talent was revealed to its full width. The Edison Electrical Light Company was founded, with a network of stations and branch stores throughout New York, and the lamps were heavily advertised and sold. These were the first analogues of modern light bulbs.
Edison had a serious rival in England who was also working on the problem of improving the electric lamp. Englishman Swan I realized that with the help of a pump you can make a better quality vacuum. But its carbon rod was too thick and left soot, so in practice such a lamp was difficult to use.
After analyzing the successes of Edison, Swan began to use his discoveries in his lamps. He opened his own lamp manufacturing company. Edison did not leave such impudence without attention and filed a lawsuit for violation of copyright law. Disputes continued for some time, but both researchers decided to reconcile and join forces in one company. So, there was Edison Swan United, a major manufacturer of electric lamps throughout the world.
Which inventor is considered the first?
Both Russian and American inventors worked on their projects almost simultaneously.
Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin received a patent for the invention of the lamp in 1874, Thomas Edison began research five years later.
Of course, with all due respect to the commercial talent of T. Edison, the promotion and mass use of such a necessary and useful invention, the main place for the invention of the electric lamp is rightfully given Russian inventor A. N. Lodygin.
Modern incandescent lamps are modifications of Lodygin's invention, since they have a more efficient flow of light, as well as excellent color rendering, higher efficiency. Today we have the right to be proud of our compatriot for his contribution to a brilliant and useful invention.
Attempts to overcome darkness, to drive it away have been made by people since ancient times. For this, a variety of sources of illumination were used: oil poured into an earthen vessel and a burning wick, torches, torches, candles made of wax and tallow. But all such lamps "worked" from a source of open fire and were fire hazardous. A new era in the history of lighting was the invention of electricity and the first lamp at the end of the 19th century.
The first attempts to create a permanent light source that would work from the mains. It is noteworthy that those who invented the incandescent lamp turned out to be already three.
Russian scientist Lodygin Alexander Nikolaevich is an inventor who created an incandescent lamp. It used a carbon rod calcined without oxygen, placed in a hermetically sealed vessel. The vacuum inside kept the filaments from oxidizing quickly, extending their lifespan. Subsequently, Lodygin suggested using tungsten filaments or molybdenum twisted in a spiral.
Lodygin - the first who invented the light bulb and received a patent
The Englishman Joseph Wilson Swan received a patent in 1878. It was an improved version of the Lodygin lamp: inside the flask there was a rarefied oxygen atmosphere, which increased its service life.
When did Thomas Edison first demonstrate the electric light bulb? His patent dates back to 1879. The inventor suggested using a platinum thread, but a year later he returned to carbon fiber. Thanks to hard work and thousands of experiments, Edison managed to get a lamp that worked for more than 1.2 thousand hours. Also, the inventor actively promoted his invention, participated in the creation of a centralized power supply and lighting, organized the first company for the production of lamps.
Edison is called the "father" of electric lamps
Do not assume that scientists "stole" the idea from each other. Who, then, invented the first electric light bulb, reminiscent of modern? Similar experiments were carried out in different countries independently of each other, and it was not difficult to obtain almost the same result.
Her appearance
The very first - experimental - light bulb was an elongated tube, inside which were placed platinum strips, to which current was applied. The design did not change much later: the threads twisted into spirals, the tube took on the shape of a pear.
From Edison's early experiments to our "fluorescent" future, this issue highlights the light bulb's history.
(Total 13 photos)
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1. "Bright idea."
Thomas Edison was not the only inventor of the incandescent lamp. But it was the light bulb, patented by Edison in 1880, that became popular in the market, brought light to homes and made Edison rich, who at that time was 33 years old.
2. "Light work".
In the late 19th century, Edison merged with the Thompson-Houston Electric Company to form the General Electric Company. The lamp factory, located in Harrison, New Jersey, was originally built to manufacture light bulbs invented by Edison, but in 1930 was converted into a factory for the production of radio receivers for a branch of General Electric. In 1976, the plant was closed and currently a shopping center is located on this site.
3. "Golden time".
In 1928, Joan Crawford and Johnny Mack Brown danced under tungsten lamps in Our Dancing Daughters. Invented in 1903, tungsten filaments made lamps brighter and more durable, ideal for lighting newly minted Hollywood stars.
4. Bright light and big crash.
1929 marked the 50th anniversary of the Edison light bulb. On this occasion, a national celebration was planned. Anniversary events were held from May to October. The Golden Jubilee celebrations culminated in a carefully planned banquet for 500 of America's foremost scientists and intellectuals. The evening hosted by President Hoover was a resounding success. In fact, the anniversary was a farewell toast to the golden age of American invention, since nine days later.
5. Lighting the way.
In the 30s, electric light became widespread in everyday life, including the very first headlights. Not elegant, yes, but no worse than Dadaist fashion.
7. Luxury.
The post-war American boom did not stop solely at improving light bulbs. Many manufacturers have spent decades improving camera flash. And in 1955, General Electric proved that there is no better way to advertise a new invention than to demonstrate it in the ears of a beautiful girl.
8. In the 1950s and 60s, the Miami-based Line Club announced a local girl who became the spokesperson for the annual Light to See charity, Miss Light. In 1954, the Miss Light crown was awarded to a University of Miami student who passed the baton to Sandy Verch. In 1955, Werch reached the finals of the Miss America Championship.
The answer to this seemingly elementary and straightforward question is still ambiguous. It is believed that the light bulb was invented in the not so distant 1879 by the American Thomas Edison. Well, or at least that's how our students are taught.
But it is worth understanding the issue and finding out: is it so? Indeed, in fact, the history of the well-known light bulb is a sequential chain of inventions and discoveries that were made at different times by different people.
- It is known for certain that the "progenitor" of the modern lamp appeared a long time ago. Since ancient times, attempts have been made to create devices capable of illuminating the darkness at night. And some attempts were quite successful and impressive. According to historical data:
- Not far from the Appian Way, a luminous lamp was discovered in one of the Roman tombs. It turns out that she worked, on average, 1,600 years.
- At the same time, a unique Pollanta lantern was discovered in another tomb in Rome. It shone for an average of 2,000 years.
- The "progenitor" of the light bulb was known to the Egyptians and the inhabitants of the Mediterranean. They were the first to use olive oil to illuminate their dwellings. It was poured into special earthenware vessels with inserted cotton wicks. The image of an object, very reminiscent in its structure of an incandescent lamp, was found in the temple of Hathor built by the ancient Egyptians.
- But the inhabitants of the coast of the Caspian Sea poured into clay vessels not olive oil, but oil.
- Data on the existence of intense and durable lamps are found in well-known authors of various eras. In particular, Aurelius Augustine, Plutarch, Lucian, Pausanias and many others wrote about them. Cyrano de Bergerac also wrote about the "eternal lamp" in his writings.
In the Middle Ages, clay vessels were replaced by the first candles, which included natural beeswax and lard. Further, for centuries, many of the greatest scientists, geniuses and inventors of our Earth worked on the invention of a lighting device that was safe for humans.
Nevertheless, the first safe design suitable for mass production appeared approximately in the middle of the 19th century.At this time, a wave of various discoveries closely related to electricity swept the world. It can be said that a kind of chain reaction began: one relatively small discovery paved the way for even larger plans and grandiose ideas.
"Authors" of light bulbs from different countries
Vasily Petrov (Russia)
In 1803, he obtained an electric arc using a capacitive battery. Having designed this huge and very powerful battery, he was the first in the world to declare that it is possible to illuminate objects and rooms at night with an electric voltaic arc. It was difficult for the discoverer to conduct experiments, since the charcoal used as an electrode burned out in a matter of minutes.
British inventor Delarue
Work on the creation and improvement of the light bulb continued. In 1809, a Briton designed the world's first incandescent filament lamp, which was made of platinum. But the platinum coil was too fragile and too expensive. Therefore, it has not received recognition and active distribution.
Belgian scientist Jobar
Given the shortcomings of previous light bulb designs, he set about optimizing and introduced the carbon incandescent lamp to light in 1938. But his lamp was also flawed: it contained oxygen, so the carbon rod burned out rather quickly.
Jean Bernard Foucault (France)
Having intercepted the "relay baton", a scientist from France in 1844 replaced charcoal electrodes in an arc lamp with retort charcoal electrodes. He also equipped the lamp with manual adjustment of the arc length, while a fairly powerful battery for that time served as a source of electricity.
Heinrich Goebel (Germany)
The light bulb continued to change. The "author" of the first modern lamp was a scientist from Germany, who in 1855 placed a charred bamboo thread in a vacuum container. The lamp was still far from perfect, but it has become more practical.
Alexander Lodygin (Russia)
In 1874 he patented a unique filament lamp. The scientist placed a stick of coal in an evacuated flask. Tungsten served as the material for the filaments. Thanks to this, it was possible to significantly extend the life of these lamps.
Vasily Didrikhson (Russia)
Having improved the design of his compatriot, in 1875 he pumped air out of the lamp. In addition, this time the scientist used several hairs so that if one of them burns out, the next hair starts working automatically.
Pavel Yablochkov (Russia)
Through his efforts, long and fruitful experiments grew into mass electric lighting. In 1875, he came up with the idea of creating a simple yet highly reliable arc lamp. In 1876 and 1877, he received several patents: for the design of the arc light bulb itself, as well as for their power systems.
Production was soon put on an industrial basis, but gradually the "Yablochkov Candle" was replaced by a more durable, modern and economical incandescent lamp.
Joseph Wilson Swan (England)
Against the backdrop of these discoveries, in 1878 an Englishman patented a slightly different lamp. In his invention, he placed carbon fiber in a rather rarefied oxygen atmosphere. Thanks to this, the light from the lamp became noticeably brighter.
Thomas Edison (USA)
He finalized and optimized the technologies already existing at that time. In 1880, he patented a charcoal lamp that could shine for about 40 hours. He also managed to significantly reduce the cost of the lamp. His lamps soon replaced gas lighting.
Thus, several hardworking scientists-inventors from Germany, Russia, Belgium, the USA, France, England and other countries made a significant contribution to the development of the technology. That is why some attribute authorship directly to Thomas Edison, while others are firmly convinced that Alexander Lodygin is right.
Undoubtedly, the lamp was invented long before it was patented by an American. However, it is his great and indisputable merit that, by combining all the best, he opened up to the world a practical lamp along with an electrical system. It is for this achievement that he is usually credited with the role of the first author of the light bulb.
And finally, an interesting video where a girl “investigates” the invention of lamps.
Belief in technological progress at the end of the 19th century was inexorable - anesthesia was invented, a pneumatic tire, a steam engine, and much more of what seems simple and familiar to us today. Separately, I would like to focus on the incandescent lamp. At the end of January 1880, Thomas Edison received one of more than 1000 of his patents, but perhaps the most important one was a patent for an incandescent lamp, which then shone for more than 14 hours, which was a very good start.
Having actively served people for more than 100 years, making their life brighter in the literal sense of the word, incandescent lamps gradually begin to fade into oblivion. So, at the end of 2013, CNN devoted some time of its air to an obituary for an incandescent lamp - this was the ban on the production and sale of 40- and 60-watt incandescent lamps in the United States. The obituary quoted Thomas Edison's great-grandson as saying that the famous ancestor was all for progress and would certainly welcome a general shift to greener and more durable LED lighting.
Did Edison invent?
At the end of the 19th century, the ideas of great discoveries were right in the air, and almost simultaneously the same revolutionary products were invented by people of different nationalities in different parts of the world. So now they are arguing - in each country the palm is assigned to compatriots or citizens of the most friendly countries.
To begin with, it must be said that the history of lighting with electricity began with an arc lamp (where the glow occurs due to the arc that forms between two electrodes). This very arc was invented at the beginning of the 19th century by the Russian scientist Vasily Petrov, but the first light bulb with this lighting principle was introduced in Britain by Gemri Defi. This prototype was not suitable for lighting small rooms, as it was too bright and highly flammable, but it was quite suitable for street lighting and auditorium lighting. Such a lamp was already much cheaper than gas lighting, which was used at that time.
One of the most famous lamps that glow due to the carbon arc was the “Yablochkov candle”. Engineer Pavel Yablochkov presented it at the World Exhibition in France in 1878, where it made a splash and was immediately "taken into service".
But 40 years before Yablochkov, such a lamp was already presented to the public by the Scotsman Bowman Lindsey, however, he then did not improve it and protect his rights to it, and the invention was forgotten.
Another pioneer from Russia, Alexander Lodygin, was the first to guess to pump air out of a glass flask so that the carbon thread burns out more slowly. He received his patent in the Russian Empire in the summer of 1874.
In the same year, overseas in Canada, fellow inventors Henry Woodward and Matthew Evans received a similar patent, but due to total poverty, they stopped doing science and sold their patent to Thomas Edison.
If you wish, you can recruit a dozen more bright minds from different parts of the world, who at about the same time thought of an incandescent lamp and even received a patent for it.
Lifetime issues
There is a legend that incandescent bulbs are specially created in such a way that their service life does not exceed 1000 hours. Allegedly in the 20-30s of the last century, representatives of the Phoebus cartel (an association of incandescent lamp manufacturers) decided to specifically produce lamps with a limited service life in order to artificially create demand.
Now a large-scale campaign against incandescent lamps is unfolding in the world. The governments of the United States, almost all countries of South America, almost all countries of Europe, China, South Africa, India and a number of other countries are engaged in the transition to alternative light sources (mainly LEDs). As for Russia, our government is also trying to keep up with the advanced countries, so by 2020 the Ministry of Energy has planned to replace all street lighting fixtures with LEDs. Also, we have already banned the circulation of 100-watt light bulbs, and a ban on the circulation of 40- and 60-watt bulbs is being discussed.
It is important to note that it is not for nothing that countries have taken care of this issue - LED lamps serve several tens of thousands of hours of light, and they consume about 10% of the electricity consumed by an incandescent lamp at the same level of illumination.
living legend
Today, when obituaries are being actively written for the incandescent light bulb, in the United States in the small town of Livermore in California, the fire station is still lit by a lamp that was first screwed in 1901! Then there was Edison. For more than a million hours of burning, the long-liver moved several times and by 2018 outlived everyone who screwed her in, 20 US presidents, World Wars 2 and three webcams that were installed in turn so that everyone could watch how the centennial lamp.
People who have studied this phenomenon have come to the conclusion that in order for the lamp to burn for such a long time, an especially thick and durable filament is needed. Also, this light bulb was very rarely turned off - this has a positive effect on the life of incandescent lamps.
The representative of the site that is engaged in the online broadcast of this wonder of the world said that, in his opinion, the lamp will work for another couple of centuries, and then people will screw in another, spare light bulb, which is the same age as it, and presumably, it will also last for a couple of hundred years .
Does the incandescent lamp have a future?
No matter how wonderful it is that a light bulb can burn continuously for 117 years, incandescent lamps still lose a lot to LEDs in terms of efficiency and lifespan.
True, scientists recently published an article that talked about how they managed to significantly increase the efficiency of an incandescent lamp. The heat that each light bulb gives off to the external environment was redirected inside with the help of photonic crystals.
Thus, in theory, efficiency can be increased from 2% to 40%, which will already be comparable to energy-saving competitors. At the same time, scientists emphasize that they simply wanted to experiment, and did not set themselves the goal of modernizing the incandescent lamp.
