Who invented the incandescent light bulb. Who Invented the Light Bulb First? Modern varieties of incandescent lamps

Hello everyone, dear fans of interesting facts. I think that none of us can imagine our life without light. Therefore, today we will find out who was the first in the world to invent a light bulb that resembled a modern one, as well as what and who contributed to this.

The invention of the incandescent light bulb, like all others, was carried out by many people in different countries. The first to demonstrate his brainchild was the Englishman Humphrey Davy back in 1806. It was a rather primitive invention. Davy created lighting with electric sparks between a pair of carbon rods. The so-called arc candle was unsuitable for practical widespread use. The device itself did not find support, but the idea of ​​creation, after this demonstration, excited the "bright" heads of many inventors.

Years passed ...

Dozens of people worked on the birth of the light bulb, having picked up Davy's idea:
Year 1840 - Englishman Delarue;
Year 1854 - German Heinrich Goebel;
1860, English chemist and physicist Joseph Wilson Swan showed his work;
Year 1872-1873 - Alexander Lodygin;
Year 1875 - V.F.Didrikhson improved the work of Lodygin;
Year 1875-1876 - Russian electrical engineer Pavel Nikolaevich Yablochkov, worked on the "electric candle";
Thomas Edison in 1879 brought to the end what his predecessors could not do.

Russian engineer and his invention

Many people in different countries created their creations. Many were haunted by failure. But the lamp of Alexander Lodygin was able to withstand all the tests. She shone for thirty whole minutes! This was already an unprecedented achievement. On the streets of St. Petersburg, as many as two pieces of these "miracle candles" shone! Hundreds of people came to see them specially. It was a real sensation, but ... Not everything was so simple. Due to the circumstances, Lodygin could not achieve widespread dissemination of his creation.

The Russian engineer did not manage to finish his job, but Thomas Edison did it. The American scientist learned about the experiments of his Russian colleague. He decided to improve on an existing invention. His work deserves respect - the scientist conducted 1,500 experiments, testing various materials. But this was not the end - 6000 experiments with carbon filaments - this is the contribution that the inventor made to the history of the appearance of the light bulb.

Is the invention so unambiguous?

Without the ideas of all his predecessors and the invention of Alexander Nikolaevich, probably, Thomas Edison would not have succeeded. This fact is obvious, but unprovable. The painstaking persistent work of the American gave mankind a thread that burned for hundreds of hours without burning out. And he was also able to organize the production of light bulbs at the first specialized factory, they were sold all over the world, replacing traditional candles. This is how the Edison Electrical Light Company was born.

No one dares to say unequivocally that Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, but no one has yet been able to refute this either. The incandescent lamp was invented before him. However, he created the first practical model together with an electrical system, which is his undeniable achievement. Well, now you know who was the first in the world to invent a light bulb, without which today's life simply cannot be imagined.

The question is who invented the light bulb first, oddly enough, it worries people in our time. Americans and pro-Western people are sure that the first was T. Edison. Russian patriots prove that the first - A.N. Lodygin. But there were also the Frenchman Delarue, the Belgian Jobar, the Englishman D.U. Swan, German G. Goebel, Russian P. Ya. Yablochkov and other scientists who contributed to this invention.

Ancient predecessors of the light bulb

The history of the study of ancient structures - pyramids, underground paintings, caves, etc. is replete with questions and riddles. One of them - "Under what lighting were the paintings of these structures made in the complete absence of natural light and soot from possible torches inside the premises themselves?" The question haunts researchers for decades.

On the walls of the pyramids themselves there is an answer, which is difficult for historians to believe - the ancient people used lamps, most likely electric ones, powered by powerful batteries.

How the modern light bulb was invented

The emergence of light bulbs on a massive scale was prepared by a number of scientists and inventors. Often they carried out their own research, but there were also those who improved or launched the inventions of their predecessors. Let's name the main milestones in the creation of an electric lamp:

• in 1820 Delarue tested a light bulb in which a platinum wire served as a filament. Platinum heated up perfectly and glowed, but the Frenchman's invention remained a prototype, to which the author never returned;
• The year 1838 was marked by the first use in the form of an incandescent element of a coal rod. The study of the possibilities of its luminescence was carried out by the Belgian Jobar;
• in 1854, Gebel experimented with bamboo, which he used instead of filament. He also owns the first application for an evacuated vessel lamp. Gebel was the first to invent an electric light bulb that could be used for lighting;
• in 1860 D.W. Swan patented a lamp in which the luminous element was in a vacuum. This invention was impossible to use in mass application due to the difficulties of obtaining a vacuum;
• The year 1874 was marked by the receipt of a patent for a lamp with a carbon filament placed in a vacuum by the Russian research engineer A.N. Lodygin. This lamp was able to burn for half an hour and was used for street lighting. Therefore, the Russian engineer is considered the one who invented the light bulb first in the world;
• in 1875 V.F. Didrikhson, employee A.N. Lodygin, improved his lamp by installing several independent carbon hairs, thereby extending the glow period of the device. In this lamp, when one hair burned out, the next one immediately lit up;
• Russian electrical engineer P.N. Yablochkov in 1875 - 1876 created a lamp with a kaolin filament, which did not require a vacuum to burn for a long time. The Yablochkov device differed from the previous versions by the need to preheat the conductor, for example, by the flame of a match;
• in 1878 a patent was obtained for a lamp with a filament of carbon fiber immersed in rarefied oxygen. The lamp gave a bright light, but for a very short time. The inventor was D.U. Swan;
• in 1879 in the USA a patent was issued for a lamp with a platinum filament to T. Edison;
• in 1880 T. Edison creates a lamp with a carbon filament with a burning time of 40 hours. Along the way, he invents a switch for the convenience of working with lighting. Among other things, T. Edison belongs to the creation of the base of the light bulb and the holder for it;
• in the 1890s A.N. Lodygin designs several versions of lamps using refractory metals for the filament. He proposes for the first time to spirally the filament and concludes that the best options for filament are tungsten and molybdenum. The first tungsten-filament incandescent lamps, mass-produced in America, were produced under the patent of a Russian inventor;
• filling the flask with an inert gas to prolong the working capacity of the filament and increase the brightness of the illumination was first applied by General Electric in 1909 at the initiative of I. Langmuir.

From the chronology of events, it can be seen that many scientists and inventors had a hand in the invention of the incandescent lamp.

The main merit of T. Edison lies in the fact that he, having orientated himself in time, being a researcher and a businessman, patented the devices invented before him, improved and began their mass production. Therefore, he cannot be considered the first who invented the incandescent lamp. , but T. Edison is the one who began the mass industrial introduction of the light bulb into everyday life. The first inventor of the incandescent lamp used for lighting was and remains A.N. Lodygin.

Svoboda Igor Nikolaevich

Reading time: 3 minutes

A A

The controversy over who was the true inventor of the incandescent lamp continues to this day. Basically, two names appear - Thomas Edison and Alexander Lodygin. In fact, the great discovery took place thanks to the hard work of many scientists.

Since ancient times, people have looked for ways to illuminate at night. For example, in Ancient Egypt and the Mediterranean, analogues of a kerosene lamp were used. For this purpose, a cotton wick was inserted into special earthen vessels and olive oil was poured.

The inhabitants of the coast of the Caspian Sea used a similar device, but instead of oil, oil was poured into the vessel. In the Middle Ages, clay lamps were replaced by candles made of beeswax and lard.

But at all times, scientists and inventors have been looking for an opportunity to create a durable and safe lighting device.

After humanity learned about electricity, research went to a qualitatively new level.

For the invention of the first electric lamps suitable for commercial use, we must thank three scientists from different countries. Independently of each other, they conducted their experiments and in the end achieved a result that turned the world upside down.

IMPORTANT! In the 70s of the XIX century, three patents were obtained for the latest devices - carbon incandescent lamps in vacuum flasks.

In 1874, the outstanding scientist Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin patented his incandescent lamp in Russia.

In 1878, Joseph Wilson Swan applied for a British patent.

In 1879, the inventor Thomas Edison received a US patent.

It was Edison who created the first industrial company for the production of incandescent lamps. It is a great merit that he was able to achieve a long runtime - more than 1200 hours - thanks to the use of carbonized bamboo fiber.

In the early 1880s, Edison and Swan formed a joint venture in Britain. She was called "Edison and Swan". At that time, it became the largest manufacturer of electric lamps.

In the 90s, Alexander Lodygin moved to America, where he proposed using a tungsten or molybdenum coil. This was another technological breakthrough. Lodygin sold his patent to General Electric, which began producing electric lamps with a tungsten filament.

And already in 1920, one of the company's employees, William David Coolidge, told the world how you can produce tungsten filament on an industrial scale. That same year, another General Electric scientist named Irving Langmuir proposed filling the bulb of a light bulb with an inert gas.

It is this that significantly increased the operating period of the incandescent lamp, and also increased the light output.

Mankind uses these devices to this day.

The history of the creation of the light bulb

Of course, the history of the creation of the lamp is inseparable from the development of such a science as electrical engineering. It dates back to the discovery of electric current in the 18th century. This discovery contributed to the fact that outstanding scientists from all over the world began to study and develop electrical engineering, which by that time had emerged as an independent science.

ON A NOTE! A distinctive feature of the "Yablochkov candle" was that it did not require a vacuum. The filament made of kaolin did not burn out or lose its properties in the open air.

And, of course, speaking about the history of electrical engineering, one cannot but recall the scientists who turned the world upside down - Alexandra Lodygina and Thomas Edison. It was they who, conducting experiments independently of each other, created an electric lamp in the 70s of the 19th century.

Alexander Lodygin is an inventor from Russia

In 1872, in St. Petersburg, Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin began experiments in electric lighting.

His first lamps were a thin carbon stick sandwiched between voluminous copper rods. All this was in a closed glass ball.

It was still an imperfect device, however, they began to be actively used to illuminate buildings and streets of St. Petersburg.

In 1875, an improved electric lamp was released in partnership with Cohn. In it, the coals were replaced automatically, in addition, they were located in a vacuum. This development belongs to the electrical engineer Vasily Fedorovich Dietrikhson.

In 1876, another researcher, Bulygin, also made adjustments. In its development, the coal was put forward as it burned.

In the late 70s, the incandescent lamp created by Lodygin and patented in Russia, France, Great Britain, Austria and Belgium, finally got to the USA. Lieutenant Khotinsky went to the American coast to receive ships built for the Russian fleet. It was Khotinsky who visited the laboratory and showed the "Lodygin lamp" and "Yablochkov's candle" to the American researcher Thomas Edison.

It is not known for certain how this influenced the train of thought of Edison, who himself at that time was working on the creation of artificial lighting. Be that as it may, it was Edison who brought the design of the incandescent lamp to a qualitatively new level, and also popularized it by organizing mass production. This helped to significantly reduce the cost, which made it possible for even the poor to buy the lamp.

Alexander Lodygin also did not stop in his zeal to improve the incandescent lamp. After moving to the United States, in 1890, Lodygin received another patent - for a lamp with a metal thread made of refractory metals - octmium, iridium, rhodium, molybdenum and tungsten. It was a real breakthrough in the field of electrical engineering. The invention was a resounding success, and in 1906, the patern was bought by General Electric. By the way, this company belonged to Thomas Edison.

Edison's creation of the light bulb

All over the world it is believed that the scientist Thomas Alva Edison invented the light bulb.

Over the years, Edison experimented with electrical engineering. For almost two years, he has been looking for the perfect filament.

A large number of scientists worked on the source of artificial light over several decades of the 19th century. Their efforts were crowned with success, and the development serves humanity to this day. The history of the creation of the light bulb is not unambiguous. Some consider it to be Lodygin's invention, others as Edison's invention. These two researchers left a significant mark on the world of electrical engineering, but were only one of many inventors who experimented with electric lighting.

Coal monsters

Carbon arc lamps have been created by various specialists since the early 50s of the 19th century. Initially they were used in searchlights on ships and lighthouses, as well as, in the form of experiments, in street lighting. Due to the high wear and tear and low durability of coal rods, as well as the need for a large amount of supplied electricity, they are not currently used. Then, at the dawn of the electric era, they were created as a replacement for oil, kerosene and gas lamps.

All combustion-based devices had a lower resource and were a fire hazardous device with a low efficiency. All projectors based on kerosene lamps gave a very weak light at a very short distance from the source. Against their background, even primitive coal lamps seemed a real miracle, and their creators were sorcerers and shamans.

Incandescent lamps: the beginning of the journey

Historians know that the first to create a lamp was managed by the Englishman Delary back in 1809. It had a platinum spiral and was worth fabulous money, which interfered with the practical application of the discovery. Many scientists independently conducted experiments to improve the device. In 1838, the Belgian Jobar made the lamp design cheaper by using cheap coal instead of expensive platinum as a filament. However, such a device was unreliable and short-lived, since in the atmosphere the thread in the flask instantly burned out.

Carrying out experiments with the improvement of the carbon lamp, the German inventor Heinrich Goebel was able to evacuate some of the air from the lamp bulb, creating the first vacuum lamp in which the filament burned much longer. However, the carbon conductor was an unreliable source of glow, and many scientists have focused on improving it.

In the early 1870s, Russian scientist Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin invented an electric light bulb with a tungsten filament. He began, like everyone else, with experiments on carbon filaments, but over time he came to use tungsten.

Lodygin's experiments

Lodygin managed to partially evacuate air from the flasks of his lamps, which made it possible to significantly increase their service life. A little later, the brilliant Russian scientist proposed filling the cylinders with inert gases, which made them even more efficient and durable.

For his practical discovery, Lodygin was awarded the prestigious Lomonosov Prize of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

To protect the rights to his invention, he patented it in the Russian, Austro-Hungarian, British Empires, Portugal, France, Italy, Belgium, Sweden.

Alexander Nikolaevich was never an altruist and understood that the production of lamps promises great profits, so he organized the company "Russian Association of Electric Lighting Lodygin and Co." However, already in 1906, he sold his patent for a tungsten incandescent lamp to the American company General Electric. At that time, tungsten was an extremely rare and expensive material, therefore, Lodygin lamps did not receive widespread distribution.

The legacy of the Russian genius

Only since 1910, when William David Coolidge invents a relatively cheap method of producing tungsten in industrial production, Lodygin's tungsten lamps are becoming relevant again. They turned out to be more durable and practical, having a higher efficiency in comparison with coal products.

Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin meanwhile traveled for a long time in the West, getting acquainted with technical innovations. On his return to Russia, while working in the construction department of the Petersburg railway, he tried to introduce foreign inventions. Teaching at the Electrotechnical Institute allowed him to disseminate his knowledge. The scientist conceived the idea of ​​electrifying all of Russia, but the First World War and the revolution that followed did not allow his undertakings to come true. After the Bolsheviks came to power, Lodygin emigrated to the United States, but his ideas also did not find a response abroad. In 1923 he died suddenly in New York.

Meanwhile, the American Thomas Edison is actively introducing the incandescent lamp into everyday life. He also receives the laurels of the "sole inventor" and "electric genius" in the United States.

Edison Lighting Fixtures

When asked who invented the light bulb, every American will give an unambiguous answer: Thomas Alva Edison.

After visiting his friend William Valas in 1878, Thomas Edison begins work on electric incandescent lamps (he was given a dynamo and several arc lamps).

Edison spent a whole year perfecting the lamp, establishing the critical importance of the vacuum in the bulb. He did not come up with anything revolutionary, but he was able to reduce the cost of the lamp and make it a truly mass product. Already at the end of 1883, his company was producing ¾ incandescent lamps in the United States. Starting at 110 cents per lamp, Edison was able to reduce that figure by a factor of 5.... And, although the American conducted thousands of experiments with different materials, the future was with tungsten.

To the merits of Edison in the field of lighting, it is worth attributing the development of the shape of the glass bulb for the lamp, which has remained unchanged to this day. He also created a screw base with a socket, a plug with a socket and fuses. The inventor did not have a special education and did not believe in theoretical knowledge and scientific methods, but in the promotion of electric lighting he created and did more than all scientists of the 19th century.

Rebuttals and facts

Some newspapermen and unscrupulous scholars substitute historical facts by referring to fiction or advertising literature from the past. So, there are legends that Thomas Edison never made any inventions himself, but only stole other people's ideas. The thread he invented and the lamp holder itself was supposedly invented not by him, but by his employee Steriger. Some also say that even a plug with an outlet is not his merit.

Edison's notoriety was fixed due to his excessive passion for patents and profits from inventions. His conflict with a young engineer from Serbia, Nikola Tesla, is known. Edison also sued the Lumière brothers for the right to a movie camera. This is despite the fact that the great American had neither higher nor specialized technical education.

However, Edison's merit in promoting various technical means is great. He lived in a rather conservative 19th century and, nevertheless, was able to introduce electricity to illuminate streets and houses, reduced its cost, and was able to establish the production of cheap and relatively durable lamps. We still see his decorative lamps in restaurants.

Despite the obsolescence of incandescent lamps, their distant cousins, vacuum radio tubes, are still used in sound reproducing equipment. Incandescent lamps for lighting are used only in everyday life (with low energy consumption), in other areas they are being actively replaced by more economical models.

Although the inventor of the light bulb did not even envision such a massive use of an artificial lighting device, with his discovery he completely changed the world. Incandescent lamps went both into distant space and into the deepest places of the world's oceans.

Incandescent lamps are produced less and less in the world, in developed countries they are replaced both in production and in everyday life. However, due to their widespread popularity for over a century, they still remain in demand.

In recent years, vintage Edison incandescent bulbs have been available in lighting stores. They have a retro look and can become excellent decorative elements both in a residential building and in a public place (restaurant, cafe), and become a stylish addition to the original interior. Some of the models do not even have filaments, and LEDs are inserted into the housing from a conventional lamp.

American inventor and businessman Thomas Edison is credited with developing the first practical light bulb in 1879. However, the history of the invention of the light bulb is not so simple, as it was attended by many scientists, each of whom made their own contribution, which ultimately led to this achievement - an affordable, durable and safe incandescent lamp that generates light over time.

History of electric lighting

To find out who invented the light bulb, we first need to travel more than 200 years ago to the laboratory. Humphrey Davy, an outstanding English chemist and inventor. In 1800, Davy attached two wires with carbon sticks to a battery, allowing a bright arc of light to be shown between the carbon electrodes. This led to the development of the electric arc lamp, the first widely used type of electric light and the first commercially successful form of the electric lamp. Of course, various inventors improved Davy's design by adding spring systems as well as rare earth salts to the electrodes, which increased the brightness of the arc.

Arc lamps have been popular for decades for their high brightness, capable of illuminating huge factory interiors or entire streets. For most of the 19th century, it was the only type of electric lighting for large areas and was the cheapest option for street lighting compared to gas or oil lamps. However, the carbon rods had to be replaced so often that it turned into a full-time job. Moreover, the lamps emitted dangerous ultraviolet radiation, generated noise and flicker when the light burned, and posed a serious fire hazard. Many buildings, such as theaters, have burned out as a result of excessive heat and sparks from electric arc lamps. Although these lamps were suitable for streets and large halls, they were completely impractical for lighting homes and small spaces.

The world needed better lighting technology, and many inventors have worked hard to find the perfect solution. Fame and fortune have surely been promised to those who succeed. But the path turned out to be riddled with many problems.

Vacuum

In 1840 a British physicist Warren de la Rue proposed a new light bulb design that involved starting a platinum coil inside a vacuum tube to minimize exposure to oxygen. However, the high cost of platinum prevented this design from gaining commercial success. In 1841 Frederic de Molayens submitted the first patent for a vacuum incandescent lamp.

Then, in 1850, sir Joseph Wilson Swan started working on a light bulb using carbonized paper filaments instead of platinum in a vacuum glass flask. By 1860, the British inventor had received a patent for a partial vacuum incandescent lamp with a carbon filament. The problem with this device was that it lacked a vacuum and an adequate electrical source, which made it ineffective, the lamp burned out too quickly.

Later, Joseph Swan made some improvements. At first he worked with carbon paper filaments, but found that they burned out quickly. Finally, in 1878, Swan demonstrated a new electric lamp in Newcastle, England, which used a carbon fiber made from cotton. Swan's light bulb could last 13.5 hours, making his home the first home in the world to be lit with electric light. In November 1880, Swan received a British patent for his invention.

American inventor and businessman Thomas Edison closely followed the development of events. He realized that the main problem with Swan's original design was the use of thick carbon filament. Edison believed that it should be thin and have high electrical resistance. He adapted designs from an 1875 patent he acquired from inventors Henry Woodward and Matthew Evans, demonstrating his incandescent lamp in December 1879, which could last 40 hours. Edison's use of finer filaments and better vacuum gave him the edge in the race. He then sued Swan for patent infringement.

By 1880, Edison's bulbs had run for 1,200 hours and were reasonably reliable. However, this breakthrough required extensive testing, for which more than 3,000 incandescent lamps were used between 1878 and 1880. What's more, Edison's engineers at Menlo Park tested over 6,000 plants to determine which type of carbon would last longer, and finally settled on carbonized bamboo strand.

However, as we know, most modern incandescent bulbs use tungsten filaments. And here the merit belongs to the Russian inventor Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin... In 1893 he was the first to use tungsten in his incandescent lamps. In the future, replacing the carbonized bamboo filament with this refractory metal made it possible to significantly increase the service life and brightness of the bulbs.

However, back to Edison. Its researchers have gradually improved the design and manufacture of threads. In the early 20th century, Edison's team introduced filament enhancers that stopped the darkening of the inner surfaces of glass bulbs.

Unfortunately for Edison, Swan's patent proved to be a strong claim - at least in the United Kingdom. In the end, they joined forces and created Edison-Swan United, which later became the world's largest light bulb manufacturer.

Edison also founded Edison Electric Illuminating in New York in 1880, funded by JP Morgan. This company built the first power plants that powered new proprietary light bulbs. Edison Electric would later merge with the companies of two other inventors, William Sawyer and Albon Maine, and even later with the Thomson-Houston Company, eventually becoming the General Electric Company, which to this day is one of the largest corporations in the world.

Who invented the light bulb

Edison was not the first inventor to work on light bulbs. In fact, by the time he started working on his first projects, the light bulb was already in existence and about 20 different inventors around the world were preparing / holding their patents. Edison's merit was that he bought out several patents from other inventors and tested various versions of the filament until he achieved the practicality of the device. Having achieved the practicality of light bulbs, he was able to put their production on stream and supply customers with electricity.