Who invented the first light bulb in the world. Inventor of the light bulb: who invented the incandescent lamp first in the world

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 on 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 amount of preparatory research in different countries of the world by inventors-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 skip electricity 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. Hence , 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 vacuum best quality. 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.

The light bulb was invented by Thomas Edison in 1879, right? Many people know about this and teach it in school. However, behind this important and such necessary subject is worth something more than just the name of its creator, Mr. Edison. The history of the light bulb actually began nearly 70 years earlier. In 1806, Humphry Davy, an Englishman, demonstrated a powerful electric lamp to the royal society. The Davy lamp produced illumination by creating blinding electrical sparks between two carbon rods. This device, known as the "arc lamp", was impractical for widespread use. The light, as if from a welding torch, was too bright for use in living and working areas. The device also required a huge power source and battery, which Davy's model quickly used up.

As time went on, were invented electrical generators, which could feed electric arcs. This has found its application where a bright source of light was simply necessary: ​​in lighthouses and in public institutions. Later, arc lamps were used in war, because powerful searchlights could track enemy aircraft. Today you can see similar lighting near cinemas or at the opening of new stores.

1. Who invented the incandescent light bulb?

Inventors in the 19th century wanted to find a way to use the lamp both at home and at work. A completely new method of creating electric light was needed. This method of generating light is known as "filament".

Scientists knew that if you take some materials and run enough electricity through them, they will heat up. At a certain heating temperature, they begin to glow. The problem with this method was that with prolonged use, the material could burst into flames or melt. If the incandescent lamp were made more practical, these two problems would be solved.

The inventors realized that the only way to keep them from burning was to prevent them from coming into contact with oxygen. Oxygen is a necessary ingredient in the combustion process. Since oxygen is present in the atmosphere, the only way to avoid a fire was to enclose the burner in a glass container, or "lamp". That is to limit contact with air. In 1841, British inventor Frederick de Molains patented a lamp using this technique in combination with platinum filament and carbon. The American John Starr also received a patent in 1845 for a lamp using a vacuum combined with a carbon burner. Many others, including the English chemist Joseph Swan, improved and patented versions of vacuum lamps with burners of various materials and shapes. However, none had a practical application for everyday use. Swan's lamp, for example, used carbon paper, which quickly crumbled after burning.

2. Who invented the light bulb Edison or Yablochkov?

It was obvious that incandescent lamps would bring huge financial success if they were improved. Therefore, many inventors continued to work on finding a solution. Young and brash inventor Thomas Edison entered the race in 1878 to create the best lamp. Edison was already known in the world for the creation of the telephone transmitter and the phonograph. In October of that year, having been working on the project for several months, he declared in the newspapers: "I solved the problem of electric light!" This sweeping statement was enough to drive down the stocks of the gas companies whose lamps provided the lighting of the day.

As it turned out, Edison's announcement was premature. He only had an idea how to solve the problems of electric incandescent lamps. Edison thought he would solve the problem by building a temperature-sensitive switch in the lamp that would turn off when the temperature was too high. It was a good idea, but unfortunately it didn't work. To keep the lamp cool enough, the switches actuated too quickly. This led to a constant flicker, which made the lamps unusable (the same principle is now used in Christmas garlands).

It soon became clear to everyone who worked in Edison's lab that a different approach was needed. Edison decides to hire young physicist Francis Upton from Princeton University to work on the project. Up until this point, Edison lab staff had tried idea after idea. Under Upton's leadership, they also began to pay attention to existing patents and achievements in order to avoid such errors. The team also began doing basic research about the properties of the materials it was working with.

One of the results of testing the properties of materials was the realization that any thread has a high electrical resistance. All materials have some amount of "friction" when electricity passes through it. Materials with high resistance heat up more easily. Edison only needed to test high-resistance materials to find what he was looking for.

The inventor began to think not only about electric light separately, but also about the whole electrical system. How big does a generator need to be to light up a nearby area? What voltage is needed to light the house?

By October 1879, Edison's team began to see the first results. On the 22nd, a thin carbon filament burned for 13 hours of the experiment. The longer time was achieved by creating a better vacuum inside the lamp (less oxygen inside the lamp slowed down the burning process). Charcoal organic materials were tested and Japanese bamboo was found to be the best. By the end of 1880, charred bamboo fibers burned for almost 600 hours. Filaments have proven to be the best form to increase the electrical resistance of materials.

Charred bamboo had a high resistance and fit well into the scheme of building an entire electrical system. In 1882, the Edison Electrical Light Company was founded, which had its stations located on Pearl Street, providing New York with light. In 1883 Macy's shop was the first to install new incandescent light bulbs.

3. Edison vs. Swan.

Meanwhile in England, Joseph Swan continued to work on electric light bulbs after seeing that new pumps made better vacuums. Swan created a lamp that was good for display but impractical in actual use. Swan used a thick carbon rod that left soot inside the lamp. Also, the low resistance of the rod meant that the lamp was using too much energy. Seeing the success of Edison lamps, Swan used these advances to create his own lamps. After founding his company in England, Swan was sued by Edison for copyright infringement. In the end, the two inventors decided to end the dispute and join forces. They founded Edison-Swan United, which became one of the world's largest light bulb manufacturers.

So Edison invented the electric lamp? Not really. The incandescent lamp was invented before him. However, he created the first practical lamp along with an electrical system, which is his great achievement.

Edison's name is also associated with the invention of the telephone transmitter, the phonograph, and the mimeograph. And his incandescent lamp is used to this day. This is a testament to how great the work of Edison and his team is. After all, they transferred this invention from the laboratory to the house.

In contact with

It is difficult to meet a person who is not familiar with an incandescent lamp - devices illuminate the premises of houses and city streets for over 100 years. The development of technology is gradually replacing the "light bulbs of Ilyich", but they are still found in life.

Light bulbs for the purpose are:

• General application. Used for decoration and lighting.
• Decorative, the flask in which is made in the form of figures.
• Lamps of low supply voltage - from 2.5 to 42 V. They are used in places of increased danger - in open areas, basements.
• Colored light sources are produced in colored glass flasks. Before the invention of LEDs, they were used in decorative lighting of stages and film sets, organizing presentations.
• Signal. Used to display data in information boards.
• Lamps for vehicles. They are distinguished by strength and resistance to vibration loads.
• Lighting spotlights. Due to the high power, they were used to illuminate open spaces - at stadiums, railway stations, searchlights used by security officials.
• Special lamps for optics - film projectors, measuring and medical devices.

The incandescent lighting lamp was originally invented, it seems that this is a simple device - in fact it is not.

How did you go to the opening?

The history of the incandescent lamp began at the beginning of the 19th century. In a school course in physics, Thomas Edison (1847–1931) is considered to be the inventor of the incandescent lamp, however, the product had ancestors.

In 1803, the Russian inventor Vasily Vladimirovich Petrov (1761–1834), while studying the conductivity of materials, obtained an electric arc between carbon conductors. He suggested using the phenomenon to illuminate the space. However, due to the rapid combustion of coal, the discovery did not receive practical application in those years.

Expert opinion

Alexey Bartosh

More about V.P. Petrov is told in the video:

In 1809, Sir Humphrey Davy (1778–1829), the creator of the English school of electrochemistry, scientifically described the arc discharge between carbon rods. The works became the basis for subsequent discoveries. Only in 1838, the Belgian Jobar created a stable working prototype of a lamp with a carbon core, combustion took place in an air environment, so the destruction of the electrode was completed very quickly.

Soon, in 1840, Corresponding Member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, English-born Warren Delarue (1815–1989), used platinum as the material for the filament. The device successfully illuminated the room, but due to the high cost of the precious metal and its low strength properties, it did not reach industrial use.

The devices of Jobar and Delarue were a breakthrough in science, but were not patented.

The first patent was obtained by the Irishman Frederick de Mollane in 1841. The device was a spiral of platinum, which is in a vacuum - this increased the period of use.

American John W. Starr in 1844 received an American, and the following year, a British patent for carbon filament light bulbs. Work stopped, the lamp series did not go due to the death of the inventor.

The great French scientist Jean Bernard Foucault did not pass by the study of the electric arc. Replacing charcoal with retort carbon electrodes in 1844, he achieved an increase in the life of the device, inventing the "first dimmer" along the way - the light intensity was regulated by changing the length of the electric arc.

The next step was taken by Heinrich G e belem from Germany. He conducted experiments using charred bamboo sticks in the vacuum of the flask as electrodes. Goebel's device is considered the prototype of the first light bulb.

From 1860 to 1878, the Englishman Joseph Wilson Swan (Swan) worked on the use of carbon fiber and eventually received a patent for the invention of the lamp. A feature of the device was a rarefied oxygen atmosphere, in which it heated and radiated visible light carbon fibre. The technology allowed to increase the visible glow.

In parallel with Swan, he conducted experiments and in 1874 received a patent for a filament lamp by the Russian scientist A.N. Lodygin. Vasily Fedorovich Didrikhson, a Russian scientist, improved the design of his compatriot. The air was evacuated from the flask and several electrodes were placed. After burning one, the next electrode began to glow - the service time increased.

In 1976, the Russian physicist Pavel Nikolayevich Yablochkov, while studying insulating materials, applied white clay (kaolin) to the thread. The lamp glowed in air without the need for a vacuum. To start, you had to heat the threads with matches. The inventor himself was skeptical about electric lighting and stopped working in this direction. However, for some time Yablochkov's lamps were produced on an industrial scale, but in the end they were replaced by incandescent lamps. Such devices illuminated Paris, London, St. Petersburg, lamps were installed on steam locomotives and ships.

Thomas Edison (USA) managed to improve the inventions of Lodygin and Yablochkov. In 1880, a patent was obtained for a lamp with carbon electrodes.

The invention made by A.N. Lodygin

The scientist began his work with the development of a lamp with carbon electrodes. For the results achieved, he received an award from the Academy of Sciences, but continued the experiments. In 1874, Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin patented a lamp with a filament incandescent body. The essence of the invention was the heating of a platinum (tungsten) filament in a vacuum flask.

Combustion is a chemical oxidative reaction involving oxygen. Vacuum implies the absence of oxygen, hence the rate of oxidation is drastically reduced. Thanks to this property, Lodygin's lamps received an increased resource. By 1890, similar to today's lamps were developed with coiled filaments made from tungsten or molybdenum, which reduced their cost compared to platinum.

Contribution of Thomas Edison

In the late 1870s, the world-famous scientist from America, Thomas Edison, took up the improvement of electric lamps.

In order to extend the life of the thread, attempts were made to turn off the voltage after heating the spiral to the maximum allowable temperatures. To do this, I built into the flask circuit breaker. However, this path did not lead to an acceptable result - blinking was visible.

The focus of research has shifted to experimentation with filament material. About 2000 experiments were carried out.

As a result, in 1879, Edison received a patent for a light bulb with a platinum spiral and a burning time of up to 40 hours.

Expert opinion

Alexey Bartosh

Specialist in the repair, maintenance of electrical equipment and industrial electronics.

Important! It is worth noting that Lodygin simply did not have enough money to obtain a patent in America. Therefore, the invention is attributed to Edison.

The main difference from Lodygin's devices is the creation of a vacuum with a smaller amount of air remaining in the flask. In 1880, Edison's lamps with bamboo electrodes burned for about 600 hours. Of no small importance in the distribution of Edison lamps was the screw base design invented by him, which made it possible to quickly and safely change failed devices.

Patent wars led to the formation of a joint venture between Swans and Edison, which eventually grew into the world leader in the sale of electric lamps. The increase in production has affected the reduction in the cost of the product and even greater distribution.

Thus, the development of technology for the manufacture of incandescent lamps was carried out by scientists from Russia, Germany, USA, Belgium, Great Britain. Combining the best, in practice, Thomas Edison organized the mass production of devices. Therefore, he is credited with authorship.

What does it represent?

An incandescent lamp is an electrical appliance in which light is emitted by an incandescent body heated by an electric current passing through it. Oxidation (combustion) of the filament is excluded by placing it in a vacuum created in a sealed glass flask. Voltage is supplied to the thread through the contacts placed in the base.

Filling the interior of the flask with halogen gas. Iodine and bromine are added to the remains of oxygen. Under natural conditions, bromine is a liquid, and iodine is a crystal. This reduces wear on the filament, allowing it to be heated to a higher temperature. All this allows to increase the service life of the product. The material of the spiral in modern light sources is tungsten, rhenium, rarely osmium.

Design features

The designs of modern lamps differ in various indicators:

• Flask shape.
• Basement construction.
• Gas filler.
• The presence of a fuse inside the structure.
• The material of the heating body.
• Purpose-specific features.

Manufacturers offer a choice of lamp bulbs of various designs. Some varieties are shown in the figure. The consumer chooses the appropriate shape based on the allowable power and size of the luminaires. To create a directivity of the light flux, the inside of the flask is covered with a layer of aluminum.

There are lamps with and without a base.

The classic threaded connection was first proposed by Soane, creatively developed the idea of ​​​​Edison - hence the letter marking of the screw base E, according to the first letter of the inventor's surname.

Some models of socles are shown in the figure:

In countries with a different level of voltage in the power grid, they sell lamps with sockets that exclude screwing into cartridges designed for other voltages. For example, in the USA, where the voltage level is 110–127 V, it will not be possible to screw in a light bulb for Europe (220–240V).

The luminosity and durability of the lamp depends on the composition of the gas with which the flask is filled. For example, halogen gas helps to heat the filament to high temperatures, while maintaining the service life. Due to the effect, halogen lamps appeared, with the same luminosity, they are smaller in size and power consumption compared to vacuum models.

Today, lamps with bulb filling are common:

• Vacuum.
• Argon or nitrogen-argon.
• Xenon.
• Krypton.

A fuse protects the flask from an explosion when the coil burns out. When the filament broke, hot drops of tungsten fell on the walls of the flask, it burned through, an explosion occurred with a scattering of fragments. The fuse is a part of the supply conductor, located in the atmospheric air inside the base. A spark that occurs in a vacuum is quickly extinguished. A black “smoke” may appear in the lamp, but the bulb remains intact.

Large-scale appearance of lamps on the market

The appearance of lamps on the market is associated with low cost, ease of use in comparison with gas, gasoline and oil lamps. Humanity continues to improve the device throughout history after their appearance. Developments have led to the emergence of products that perform a variety of functions:

• Projection lamps of high luminosity. The design of the device eliminates the appearance of shaded areas at the edges of the zone to eliminate poor-quality image display on the screen.
• Light bulbs for illuminating buttons and switches in radio equipment.
• Photo lamps - flashes and pilot lamps (constant glow at low power) are designed for instant or long-term illumination of the photographic area.
• The headlight lamp is made in one housing with a reflector and a focusing glass.
• Models with two threads are designed for use in car headlights (dipped beam and high beam), car taillights (dimensions and brake light). They are installed in such light sources in places where there may be a need for redundancy. In the event of a burnout of one of the spirals, the backup one was ignited.
• Heat lamps are used in laser printers.
• Lamps with a special emission spectrum for scientific instruments.

Incandescent lamps have come a long way of evolution. In lighting, they are being replaced by LEDs, but in many areas of technology, such devices are indispensable.

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 developments are still serving humanity. The history of the light bulb is not unambiguous. Some consider it an invention of Lodygin, others - an invention of Edison. 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

Arc carbon lamps have been created by various specialists since the early 1950s. 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 low durability of carbon rods, as well as the need for in large numbers 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 searchlights based on kerosene lamps gave a very weak light for a very long time. short distance from the source. Against their background, even primitive coal lamps seemed like a real miracle, and their creators - sorcerers and shamans.

Incandescent lamps: the beginning of the journey

Historians know that the first to create a lamp was the Englishman Delarue back in 1809. It had a platinum spiral and cost fabulous money, which prevented the practical application of the discovery. Many scientists independently conducted experiments to improve the device. In 1838, the Belgian Jobar reduced the cost of lamp design by using cheap charcoal rather than expensive platinum as a filament. However, such a device was unreliable and short-lived, since the filament in the flask instantly burned out in the atmosphere.

While experimenting with improving the carbon lamp, the German inventor Heinrich Goebel was able to pump out some of the air from the bulb of the lamp, creating the first vacuum lamp in which the filament burned for much longer. However, the carbon conductor was an unreliable source of luminescence, and many scientists concentrated their efforts on its improvement.

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

Lodygin's experiments

Lodygin managed to partially pump out the air from the flasks of his lamps, which made it possible to significantly increase their service life. A little later, a brilliant Russian scientist suggested 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 promised big profits, so he organized the Russian Association of Electric Lighting Lodygin and Co. company. 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, so Lodygin's lamps were not widely used.

The legacy of the Russian genius

Only since 1910, when William David Coolidge invented a relatively cheap way to produce tungsten in industrial production, did Lodygin's tungsten lamps become 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 around the West for a long time, getting acquainted with technical innovations. Upon his return to Russia, working in the construction department of the St. Petersburg Railway, he tried to introduce foreign inventions. Teaching at the Electrotechnical Institute allowed him to disseminate his knowledge. The scientist planned to electrify the whole of Russia, but the First World War and the revolution that followed it did not allow his initiatives 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 incandescent lamp is actively introduced into everyday life by the American Thomas Edison. He also receives the laurels of the "sole inventor" and "electrical genius" in the United States.

Edison lighting fixtures

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

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

Edison spent a whole year perfecting the lamp, establishing the crucial 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 commodity. Already at the end of 1883, his company produced ¾ of incandescent lamps in the USA. Starting with a cost of 110 cents per lamp, Edison was able to reduce this figure by 5 times. And, although the American conducted thousands of experiments with different materials, the future was with tungsten.

The merits of Edison in the field of lighting include the development of the shape of a glass bulb for a lamp, which has survived unchanged to this day. He also created a screw base with a cartridge, a plug with a socket and fuses. The inventor had no 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 the scientists of the 19th century.

Denials 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 carving invented by him and the cartridge for lighting lamps were supposedly invented not by him, but by his employee Strigier. Some also say that even a plug with an outlet is not his merit.

Edison gained notoriety due to his excessive passion for patents and the profits from inventions. Known for his conflict with a young engineer from Serbia, Nikola Tesla. Edison also sued the Lumiere brothers for the right to a movie camera. This despite the fact that the great American had neither higher nor special technical education.

However, the merit of Edison in the promotion of various technical means great. He lived in a rather conservative 19th century and, nevertheless, was able to introduce electricity for lighting 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 today.

Despite the obsolescence of incandescent lamps, their distant relatives, vacuum 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 actively replaced by more economical models.

Although the inventor of the light bulb did not even imagine such a massive use of artificial lighting, with his discovery he completely changed the world. Incandescent lamps went to outer space, and to the deepest places in the world's oceans.

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

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

Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin (10/18/1847-03/16/1923)

Magic light was invented in Russia

Svetlana Makarova, Pensioner and Society newspaper, No. 11, 2007

Dear editor! First, thank you for being you. Secondly, I wish that the Pensioner and Society newspaper continues to stick to its line. Rather, our common line is to revive in our boundless country the national pride of the great and indestructible Russian people. It is bitter and painful to watch how poorly educated scumbags and frankly random people who have received television channels at their disposal cripple the generations growing up in Russia. It's not a secret for anyone that systemic lies from a microscopic state are spreading throughout the world, global lies are spreading from. Through the mouths of preschool children, TV screenwriters who grovel before the West report that the first plane was built by the Americans, the Wright brothers, and not ours. Mozhaisky! By the way, long before them. And about the light bulb, back in Soviet times, they lied that it was invented by the American Edison. As if it wasn't Yablochkova and Lodygin, and half a century before them! - Petrova. I want to cry when my grandchildren repeat the nonsense that the producer Gurevich What pays him? - issues from the so-called "children's TV channel" "Bibigon". Or did Gurevich have bad grades in history during his school years? Do we really have no one left who is able to resist these liars?

Tatyana Vasilievna Poltavets, Moscow region.

Why are there cunning historians in the USA?

Before turning to the given topic, we note that there are many such letters in our editorial office. More phone calls and emails. However, we, unlike some readers, are categorically opposed to treating all TV journalists with the same brush. In recent years, well-educated and responsible young employees have appeared on domestic television, who did not grow up on the notorious textbooks. Therefore, they understand what happened and sometimes still happens in our country.

And we will start the fight for restoration of historical justice not from the aircraft manufacturer Mozhaisky, who is hushed up by cunning US historians, but from an electric light bulb. To do this, let's look at the wonderful book by Leonid Borisovich Repin "Discoverers". Here is what he writes about the famous Lodygin.

In one old book published at the beginning of the twentieth century by the publishing house of Mauritius Wolf, the following is written in an essay about the great Russian inventor: “ Lodygin This surname is not known to many. Meanwhile, this name is associated with great importance improvement in the field of electric lighting, which marked the beginning of the widespread distribution of electric light.

And indeed, even in the excellent dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron, not a word can be found about him. There is one Lodygin - a well-known expert in horse breeding, who developed the genealogy of the trotting breed, and Alexander Nikolaevich, the inventor of the incandescent lamp, far ahead of the well-known to everyone - no! Newspapermen in the States did their best, advertising did their best, American volatility, not sparing big money for the sake of even greater profits, and all the glory, success - to Edison. At home, they kept quiet about Lodygin, although an official patent document confirming Russian priority existed undeniably. We don't value ours. Decades after they pass away - then it happens, we catch ourselves. Afterwards, we can lament ...

After triumphal flashes "Russian world", which lit up the streets of a number of European capitals, and after the early death of his exhausted struggle for the life of the Russian inventor Yablochkova it became clear what the next step would be. It became clear that some kind of magic lamp was about to appear, which would turn electric lighting from an amazing, extraordinary phenomenon into a ubiquitous one. Economical, reliable, efficient. But from whom can we expect such an accomplishment, capable of presenting it in a new light - from the American Edison, who has already stunned his contemporaries with a cascade of remarkable inventions, or from Russians, doing their business slowly, but very brightly, in their own way and always - unexpectedly?

Let's digress a bit. The inventor Lodygin did not immediately take shape. And he did not immediately take up the problem of electric light. He was the same age as Pavel Nikolaevich Yablochkova, and their fates were in many ways similar. True, Lodygin survived much Yablochkov. But here, to whom that is released ...

Lodygin first invented the electric plane!

In September 1870, on the table of the general of infantry and cavalier Milyutin, Minister of War, lay down a curious document that should have played a crucial role in the history of technology, but, nevertheless, remained in vain, since the minister showed no interest in him. Retired twenty-three-year-old cadet Alexander Nikolaev son Lodygin, who served in the Voronezh Cadet Corps as a laboratory assistant physical office and an observer of the weather station, as well as a blacksmith's assistant at the Tula Arms Plant, wrote in a petition: “The experiments carried out by the commission on the use of balloons in military affairs give me the courage to turn to Your Excellency with a request to draw your attention to the electric aircraft invented by me - an aeronautic machine that can move freely at various heights and in various directions and, serving as a means of transporting cargo and people, can satisfy at the same time specially military requirements ... "

The minister, as we have already noted, did not pay attention, although, for the sake of curiosity alone, he should have summoned the inventor of the electric aircraft. The authorities did not want to get acquainted with Lodygin's theory, not to mention the fact that they did not even think of allocating him the necessary funds to set up a test machine. And he, without wasting time, began to invent an electric lamp necessary for night flight. And, judging by the available information, he even managed to conduct some experiments with her.

Without waiting for an answer, Lodygin, with considerable difficulty, scraped together money for a trip to and, without taking care of his wardrobe in the least, as he was in an army coat, in a loose shirt, and boots, went to a country that is a recognized trendsetter. Not in order, of course, to dress there in a European way, in accordance with the time. And to implement their technical ideas. Since he couldn’t move at home, maybe in France he will be able to achieve at least something ... Moreover, the St. Petersburg professor, with whom the young inventor managed to contact, having familiarized himself with the calculations and drawings, confirmed their solidity in theory.

Lodygin's electric plane miraculously anticipated the idea and main design features helicopter. At that time, projects of controlled balloons were already appearing, but the Lodygin machine was the next stage of engineering and essentially had nothing to do with them. She was conceived by the designer in the form of an elongated cylinder, cone-shaped in front and spherical at the end behind. The screw, located in the stern, was supposed to tell the device movement in the horizontal direction, and the screw on top, with a vertically standing axis, depending on the angle at which the blades were turned, gave different speeds in both the vertical and horizontal directions. This machine was not destined to be embodied in metal - the Russian inventor Lodygin was too ahead of his time…

The electric plane needed a light bulb.

There is one truly amazing page in the history of the electric plane. From the idea of ​​electric lighting in night flight, a creature arose, which was destined to glorify the name Lodygin. It was the electric lamp, and not the wonderful electric plane, for which he was ready for any hardships, that first brought him success, fame, and then, alas, unfair oblivion.

But how did Alexander Lodygin come to his great? How did you manage to do what many aspired to? After all, such minds, such talents tried to achieve the same! Maybe chance turned the wheel of luck in his direction and helped him achieve success? A momentary flash of conjecture - and everything subsided, did the decision come?

Anything but the occasion. There were a great many cases, but such that only hindered him. There must have been a moment of insight. Only after all, one must take into account that not everyone is given the opportunity to evoke in himself, to experience the illumination of a happily found thought. Solutions.

Already seventy years in the world after the experience of the Russian genius Vasily Vladimirovich Petrov knew: if you pass a sufficiently strong current through two closely spaced carbon rods, connect them, and then separate them, a blinding light appears between their ends - an electric arc. Duga Petrov. It will shine until the electrodes burn out. Petrov immediately realized how important a discovery he managed to make: "... from which the dark peace is quite illuminated, perhaps". And he turned out to be right. In the main: the arc has found application. But it was not possible to get a reliable source of light from it. Lodygin decided to choose a different path: not an arc lamp will illuminate the world, but.

Through experiments, endless experiments, Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin advanced towards his historical goal. Not every conductor was suitable as a source of glow. Glow is the result of heating, and when heated, transformations of the conductor substance will certainly occur - either it burns out, or, as the inventor put it, "chemically decomposes." This means that there is only one way out: to pass current through the conductor in empty space or in nitrogen. Although, of course, you can try to replace nitrogen with some other gas that does not combine with the substance of the conductor.

Here is the solution: a neutral gas is required in a glass flask, where a conductor is inserted through a hermetically sealed end.

Lodygin made several lamps according to this principle, and each gave an example of different solutions. The biggest difficulty was that there was no reliable pump that could pump out air to the required degree of rarefaction. Moreover, Lodygin and looked for all sorts of ways to seal. In the end, he chose a lamp with an open base immersed in an oil bath. Insulated wires ran through the bath to the carbon rods. There were two of them: as soon as the first burned out, another one was connected. Two and a half hours of continuous light is a victory!

The demonstration of the lamp caused delight and admiration. Crowds of people went to watch Lodygin's electric light. It was world's first experience electric street. The confession has come. The St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences awards Lodygin the most honorable Lomonosov Prize. In addition to recognition and fame, this is a thousand rubles - a lot of money that can be used for further research. On July 11, 1874, the inventor receives a patent for "Method and Apparatus for Cheap Electric Lighting". A certain Floran, the owner of a fashionable lingerie store in St. Petersburg, installs three Lodygin vacuum tubes in his salon. Engineer Struve proposes to use Lodygin's lamps for underwater lighting during caisson work during the construction of the Alexander Bridge.

In Russia, inventors do not compete, but are friends!

The fame of new, unprecedented Russian lamps spread abroad. V 1873 year Lodygin receives patents in Austria, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Spain and even in such distant countries as Australia, India. In Germany, patents have been issued in his name in a number of individual principalities. Received privileges in the name of the company founded by Lodygin and in France. Western newspapers vied with each other to publish reports about the new Russian invention. But neither in Russia itself, nor abroad, no one undertook the serial production of Lodygin lamps. It's a new thing, and how do you know where everything can turn ... And the other "Russian world" - Yablochkov's candle? Will she win? The theaters and shops of Paris and other cities highlighted by her - isn't this the best, most convincing evidence of her capabilities and bright electric future?

And what about myself Yablochkov? They are friends with Lodygin, and Yablochkov, continuing to work on improving his candle, gives public lectures in support of electric lighting, in support of Lodygin, and even gives him the opportunity to experiment at a factory that produces "electric candles" - Yablochkov's arc lamps. And, without restraint, it also falls on the precocious followers of Lodygin. Hurrying to cash in on his invention, including Edison. On the energetic Edison, who rushed to develop the idea of ​​the Russian engineer Alexander Lodygin without any reference. That Edison knew about the new Russian miracle is indisputable.

Thomas Edison - a scientific and technical thief?

Only in spring 1879 years, six years after Lodygin, the shameless American puts his first experience with, and, moreover, unsuccessful: Edison lamp explodes. Only thirteen months later, having spent a huge amount of money, Edison comes to success. But Petersburg had already been illuminated by Lodygin's lamp six years earlier!

Meanwhile, already injustice is done. Russian newspapers, forgetting about their own admiration for the Lodygin lamp, they praise in every way Edison! Lodygin, on the other hand, is not indignant, does not speak either publicly or in print with evidence of his irrefutable priority. What, he doesn't care? Or, perhaps, he is busy with something and does not consider it possible, necessary to interrupt for verbal disputes?

Well, of course he's busy. Lodygin moves further: from a lamp with a carbon filament filament - to a lamp with a filament of refractory metals. He dreams of giving his lamp eternity. And people - unfading light. And he creates such a lamp - with a tungsten filament, and a patent for it is bought by one of the world's largest companies - an American "General Electric". Let's make a note in passing: now the world-famous American company buys a patent Russian Lodygin and not an American Edison! It is clear why: with a tungsten and molybdenum filament, these lamps, exhibited at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1900 year, literally eclipsed other achievements of science and technology.

The recognition has come. After death...

The fate of Lodygin abandoned. For some time he worked as a senior chemist at a battery factory - he had to leave Russia for a while. Apparently, somehow he was connected with the people of the People's Will and, together with those who managed to escape from arrest, at the end of December 1884, he left for Paris in obvious haste. Then he worked on the construction of the New York subway - an electric lighting engineer, built an electric car of his own design, made a number of other inventions and, after twenty-three years of absence, again set foot on Russian soil.

He brought with him drawings and calculations of several new inventions, including military ones - special alloys for armor plates and shells, an electrochemical method for separating aluminum and lead from ore, a light and strong engine suitable for aircraft, "an air torpedo for attacking enemy airplanes, airships and other things (like a rocket). A brought no savings. On the contrary, everything that was available was wasted. He did not know how, like Edison, to earn money greedily. What was left for him, besides how to look for a job ... But already sixty ... The Electrotechnical Institute offered a course on the design of electrochemical plants, and Lodygin happily agreed.

In 1910, the fortieth anniversary of the incandescent lamp was celebrated. Now, after, where the successful Edison was glorified at every step, bitterness broke through Alexander Nikolayevich, resentment for injustice. He wrote in the New Times newspaper: “An inventor in Russia is almost a pariah ... I know this in my own way personal experience, and from the experience of many others ... "