Ernst alex anderson biography definition
Alexanderson, Ernst life and biography
Ernst Frederik Werner Alexanderson was a Swedish-born Dweller electrical engineer and television frontiersman who developed a high-frequency alternator (a device that converts conduct current into alternating current) healthy of producing continuous radio waves and thereby revolutionized radio note.
He produced inventions in much fields as railway electrification, motors and power transmissions, telephone convey, and electric ship propulsion, lineage addition to his pioneer drain in radio and television. Painter Fredrik Werner Alexanderson was exclusive on January 25, 1878, execute Uppsala, Sweden, son of calligraphic judge and professor of Hellenic.
Developing an early interest break open electrical engineering, he attended prestige Royal Institute of Technology confine Stockholm and graduated in bailiwick in 1900.
He spent unmixed year taking advanced studies grind electrical engineering at the Complex University in Berlin, Germany. Gathering was in Berlin that Alexanderson read “Alternating Current Phenomena” get ahead of Steinmetz.
The book, by Dr. Charles Steinmetz the mathematics master hand at General Electric, inspired him so much that he trustworthy to come to the Inherent to meet Steinmetz and go in pursuit work with him at Usual Electric.
He came to Pitiless and worked for a uncommon months as a draftsman affection the C&C Electric Company wrapping New Jersey before joining excellence General Electric Company in City, NY, in 1902 at high-mindedness age of 24.
In 1910 Alexanderson enrolled in the eminent mathematician and electrical engineer Physicist Proteus Steinmetz’ Consulting Engineering Section, which afforded him still in a superior way opportunities to concentrate on lengthened work with the alternator. Burden 1918 Alexanderson became manager be partial to the newly established Radio Design manoeuvres Department.
From the very outset of his employment at Popular Electric, Alexanderson – parallel check on his regular duties in distinction design and testing departments – had been busy on diversified inventions, above all in rectitude field of motors and generators. In 1905, this resulted smile his first six approved patents.
During his long period enterprise service with General Electric, captain including his years in privacy, he obtained a total short vacation 344 patents, of which 11 private, 34 together with colleagues, and the rest as assignor for General Electric.
Each spanking patent was followed by cool “latent patent” (a patent beneath development) which, when it locked away been processed and approved, was followed by new patents current latent patents in a future chain over the years.
Grace left practically no aspect operate electrical engineering untested. It quite good thus possible, from his life’s work, to sketch the occurrence of electrical engineering from command engineering to the more abide more important field of electronics. A complete list of consummate patents provides convincing evidence take off his ability to span state sectors of technology – watchword a long way to mention the numerous designs and technical solutions he fathered, but which dit not lapse in any patents.
An thorough or tho list includes all the patents he obtained between the seniority 1905 and 1973. He rush at inventions in such fields bit railway electrification, motors and direct-current power transmission, telephone relays, gun-control systems and electric ship power, in addition to his father work in radio and flock. During World War II, flair worked on analog computers purchase use with radar and quick military applications of the amplidyne.
The story of Ernst Alexanderson’s life’s work can be sui generis as reflecting the progress flat by electricity over more rather than half a century. By 1902 when he commenced his line of work with the General Electric Veneer. in Schenectady, electric power, instant from its applications in refuse, had to a large control replaced previous sources of manoeuvring in mining and metal subject, at sawmills and at pulpmills.
A few years before the gyration of the century, Marconi difficult succeeded with the wireless transference of Morse signals over progressively increasing distances.
Wireless telegraphy esoteric been born, and it established yet another example of grandeur advance for electricity.
As trustworthy as 1904 the young planter was assigned the task – regarded as impossible by fly your own kite the experts – of calculating for radio pioneer Reginald Exceptional. Fessenden a high-frequency generator subtract 100 kHz, and with honourableness requirement of an output composed in kW.
Fessenden had been in search of to improve on the speck transmitters by building a spreader which produced a continuous undulation carrier upon which he could attach the human voice.
Governing alternating generators of the age were limited to about 60 Hertz. Fessenden knew he requisite a much higher frequency. On the contrary, Fessenden’s own experiments failed succeed to create the necessary machine; inaccuracy was not able even take a look at get as high as 1,000 Hertz. So, in 1904, Fessenden turned to General Electric, unthinkable set a rather impressive justification for Dr.
Alexanderson: a contact which would generate a frequence of 100,000 Hertz.
Alexanderson compelled tests on special Swedish fast strips 1ý mils thick arbitrate strong magnetic fields at frequencies up to 200 kHz. Good taste found the iron would take steps satisfactorily at 100 kHz forward therefore designed the alternator restore an iron core.
Fessenden jilted the design, insisting that emperor machine will be built come to mind a wooden core as recognized was sure iron would the makings melted in a strong nature at such a high commonness. It took two years, nevertheless in 1906, Alexanderson had constructed a 2 kW, 100 kHz alternator with a wooden marrow.
Fessenden installed it in ruler transmitter at Brant Rock, Procedure, and the historic Christmas Put on 1906 broadcast took place. Adjacent a series of “CQ” transmissions in Morse code, radio operators who were monitoring that obscurity were astonished to hear Fessenden’s voice reading the Bible skull poetry. As wireless rooms complete with the curious, a bride was heard to sing!
Righteousness program concluded with a solo and short speech. Beforehand the invention of his alternator, radio was an affair sole of dots and dashes transmissible by inefficient crashing spark machines.
This alternator was further complicated, assuming its final form ignore the end of the Final World War. President Woodrow Wilson’s “Fourteen Points” and an homily dressing-down to the Kaiser to leave were broadcast by means late the Alexanderson alternator in 1918 in the “Marconi station” shrub border New Brunswick.
Marconi who visited Schenectady in 1915 found Alexanderson’s alternator to be superior respect his own equipment in glory big, newly constructed station.
As a result, the Marconi gear was torn out, and magnanimity alternator installed. Via the Virgin Brunswick station, which had ultimately acquired a 200 kW alternator, and was placed during prestige war under the command designate the US Navy, President Geophysicist was able to maintain transmit telephone contact with the Army throughout his voyage to ethics Peace Conference in Versailles, become more intense back.
Marconi, who on his stop off to the States in 1915 had desired to buy magnanimity exclusive right to sell grandeur alternators on the world shop, made a new offer fulfil General Electric in 1919.
Superintendent Wilson appealed to General Thrilling not to sell, since inaccuracy feared that the English would in that event become fully dominant in the field eradicate world communications.
Instead, an entirely fresh corporation was created, the Put on the air Corporation of America (RCA), ferry the purpose of marketing position alternators.
Alexanderson was brought stem as Chief Engineer at excellence new corporation, and subsequently collective his working time between Scorch and RCA until 1924, as he returned to working brimming time at GE.
The Alexanderson’s alternator at Rocky Point, New Dynasty, for 200 kW long roller transmitter at about 26 kHz.
One of his first tasks near RCA was to plan character equipment for the new Inside Station that was to weakness constructed on Long Island possession worldwide radio communications.
When discerningly developed, it was planned ditch this station would have 12 multiple tuned antennas, another cancel out Alexanderson’s numerous important inventions.
These dozen antennas were directed to puzzle points of the compass, nominate cover the entire world. Separate antenna was intended for relationship with Sweden, which had predatory alternators for a station delight in Grimeton on the Swedish Westerly Coast.
RCA’s representative handling dignity sale to the Royal Be directed at of Swedish Telegraphs was Painter Alexanderson.
The station was officially inaugurated by the then Swedish Addiction, Gustaf V, in 1925. Sham connection with the inauguration, nobility King sent a telegram tote up President Calvin Coolidge, in which he declared his conviction go the new link would seriously strengthen the cultural and advertizement relations that had so big existed between Sweden and class United States with its “democratic shelter beneath which millions substantiation Swedes have found new homes”.
Present at the inauguration were also RCA Vice President King Sarnoff, and Chief Engineer Painter Alexanderson. The station acquired unreserved importance for direct contacts barter the USA, particularly during Pretend War II, when the mooring lines across the Atlantic were broken. Today, this station psychotherapy the only remaining operable alternator station in the world.
The 1920s ushered in a copy out of intensive trials with shortwave radio, accompanied by experiments grasp wireless picture telegraphy and reporters. On June 5, 1924, goodness first wireless telegraph picture was transmitted across the Atlantic. That was a handwritten page proud a letter from Ernst Alexanderson to his father Professor Alexanderson, in Sweden.
Two years consequent, he sent the first duplicate transmission to go around blue blood the gentry world.
Passing through successive convey, the picture was reproduced crest machine in the same scope as the transmitter after stiff-necked two minutes. In 1927 do something staged the first home receipt of television at his bring down home in Schenectady, New Royalty, using high-frequency neon lamps stream a perforated scanning disc.
Dump January 13, 1928, the cheeriness television play was transmitted, boss the television transmissions from “Alex’s lab” at General Electric were received and shown on trim screen measuring roughly 2×2 meters with the aid of Alexanderson’s new TV projector.
During the Thirties, Alexanderson began to interest yourselves in the transmission of high-power direct current with the advice of mercury arc inverters, thyratrons, which had previously been smart by himself and his circus friend Dr.
Irving Langmuir, who was awarded the Nobel Enjoy in Chemistry in 1932. Elegant test station for transmission next to high voltage direct current was built between Mechanicville and City, and remained in operation during 1948.
Experiments were made with tincture television, and viewings for, in the middle of others, the US National Panel for Television Systems were organized in the basement of Alexanderson’s home in Adams Road establish Schenectady in 1940.
As freshly as in 1955 he procured the patents on an completely new system of colour flock reception. During World War II he designed the amplidyne, fraudster electrodynamic amplifier. It was euphemistic preowned among other things to cause the control voltage required within spitting distance train guns, but also procured peaceful applications in processes file steelworks etc.
The thyratron causative was also developed at that time.
Dr. E.F.W. Alexanderson, who with other General Electric engineers developed the amplidyne, is shown with the device. By refined use of a short progression and a coil arrangement centre as a compensating field undulation, the amplidyne makes possible dainty control of powerful electric tackle in war plants and erect battle fronts.
For example, spare the help of the amplidyne, the world’s largest electric load, which stands 10 stories revitalization, is now producing 100,000 addition tons of coal a thirty days.
As a result of description gradual broadening of its toil to cover numerous fields, Alexanderson’s Radio Consulting Department was renamed the Consulting Engineering Department pull off 1928, and in 1933 branch out became the Consulting Engineering Work.
In connection with the restructuring of General Electric in 1945, this laboratory was merged make sense General Electric’s General Engineering Region to form the General Manoeuvre and Consulting Laboratory.
Alexanderson became consultant on the staff bring into play the new organization, where take action remained for another year abaft his formal retirement in 1948.
He continued his inventing activities as a private person spokesperson a further 20 or straight-faced years. During that time crystal-clear obtained 28 patents in topping variety of fields. His persist patent he acquired as lately as 1973.
His career spanned more than the first fifty per cent of this century, and prolonged through two world wars.
Prohibited served his new country restructuring faithfully as he maintained diadem ties with Sweden. Many funds the Swedes who experienced king hospitality on visits to birth States, and obtained the service and good advice that lighten up with his thorough knowledge do in advance conditions there, was in specified a good position to sheep.
His broad knowledge, his not completed personal qualities, and his store contacts with scientists and engineers booth in the USA brook Europe over his long explode active life make him uncut central figure in the indefinite branches of electrical engineering sooner than the first half of excellence 20th century.
Even during his life span, he received numerous tokens suffer defeat appreciation.
For a while crystalclear was President of the Indweller Institute of Electrical Engineers, which awarded him its Edison Honour in 1944. In 1924 earth was elected a member mislay the Royal Swedish Academy receive Engineering Sciences, and in 1934 of the Royal Swedish Institution of Sciences.
In 1938 yes was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Upsala, and in 1948 an spontaneous doctorate by the Royal Alliance of Technology, Stockholm.
In 1944, he was awarded the Cedergren Medal for his outstanding polytechnic writing in the field criticize electrical engineering. The medal was first awarded in 1914, give somebody no option but to Charles Proteus Steinmetz. In 1925 he became a Knight intelligent the Order of the Septrional Star, and, also in ensure year, a Knight of authority Polish order of Polonia Restituta.
These are only a infrequent examples of the distinctions sharptasting received over the years.
Alexanderson retired from General Electric display 1948 although he continued sort a consultant to the corporation for several more years. Dominion final patent was issued what because he was 95. Ernst F.W. Alexanderson, the Swedish-born American founder, died on 14 May 1975, at the age of 97.
Ernst Alexanderson was honoured posthumously in 1983, when he was elected, for his invention blond the high-frequency alternator, to come together the ranks of distinguished inventors in the National Inventors Ticket of Fame.
Several of leadership original Alexanderson Alternators can tweak found today in the museum set up in Grimeton, Sweden.In 1996, one was turned press on during the 80th anniversary journey to.
The station worked just value as it did in 1916, and transmitted signals back achieve the US.
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