Although Thomas Edison is credited with inventing the light bulb , he was not the only one who worked to create this revolutionary technology. In fact, other prominent figures are also remembered for their involvement in the development of electric batteries, lamps and even for the manufacture of the first incandescent bulbs.
History and development
The story began long before Thomas Edison patented the first light bulb. In 1800, the Italian inventor Alessandro Volta created the voltaic pile, the first method of generating electricity. Although it is actually a predecessor to the modern battery, it is also considered one of the first manifestations of incandescent lighting.
Shortly after Volta presented his discovery, Humphry Davy , an English chemist and inventor, developed the world’s first electric lamp by connecting voltaic cells to carbon electrodes. This invention was called an electric arc lamp, named for the arc of bright light between its two carbon rods. Although it was an important step, this lamp was impractical as it burned out quickly and was extremely bright.
In 1840 Warren de la Rue, a British scientist, made a more efficient light bulb using platinum filament instead of copper. And, in 1848, William Staite developed arc lamps that were more durable than conventional ones. However, the cost of batteries to power the lamps was so high that companies refused to market them.
On the run for the light bulb
In 1860, the English chemist Joseph Swan developed a much more profitable light bulb using carbonized paper filaments instead of platinum ones. In 1878 he received a patent in the United Kingdom and a year later he proved that the lamp worked properly. However, although the prototype worked well during the demo, the light bulb was not practical in real life.
Edison realized that the problem with Swan’s design lay in the filament in the bulb. A thinner filament with high electrical resistance would make the lamp practical, as it would only need a little current to shine. Thus, Edison introduced his light bulb in 1879, and soon after, Swan created a lighting company using Edison’s improvements.
Although Edison sued, Swan’s patent carried quite a bit of weight in the UK, so the two eventually joined forces and formed Edison Swan United, one of the world’s leading light bulb companies.
Plus, Swan wasn’t the only competitor Edison faced. In 1874, inventors Henry Woodward and Matthew Evans filed a patent to make an electric lamp with different sized carbon rods. However, the couple failed to commercialize their lamps, so they ended up selling the patent to Edison.
Thus, it could be said that Edison’s success was to create a much more practical and economical light bulb than that of the competition.
