Tesla
Achievements: A/C Motor, Tesla Coil (used in the radio), Remote Control, Neon Lights, Incandescent Lights, Particle Weaponry, over 111 US Patents
Born: July 9/10, 1856; Smiljan, Croatia (then Austria-Hungary)
Died: Jan. 7, 1943, New York City. Aged 86
Field & Discipline: Science; Physics; Invention; Electricity; Communications; Electrical Engineer
Language: Russian; English
Education: Technical University at Graz, Austria; University of Prague
Major Work: Alternating Current (A/C) Theory, A/C Motor, Wireless Transmission (communication)
Life & Times:
In Graz, Tesla got his first look at the Gramme dynamo, which could be used both as an electrical generator or an electric engine.
In 1880 he went to the University of Prague to continue his studies, but the death of his father caused him to leave without graduating. Throughout most of his academic life Tesla found that he had such a high degree of verbatim recall and mental mathematical calculation that he was often suspected of cheating.
In 1881 he found a position as a telephone engineer at a telephone company in Budapest. It was here that Nikola thought of the principle of rotating magnetic fields and developed plans for an induction motor that would become his first step toward the successful utilization of alternating current. The next year he found employment in Paris with the Continental Edison Company, and while on assignment to Strasbourg in 1883, he built his first induction motor.
Tesla moved to America in 1884 with a few cents in his pocket and a letter of introduction from Charles Batchelor (one of Thomas Edison's business associates in Europe). He soon found himself working for [worked for] Edison*, but their two contrasting personalities quickly found Tesla working for [worked for] Westinghouse G*.
Westinghouse realized electricity was the next big industry, especially as regarded long-distance power transmission, but he needed technology that could beat Edison's Direct Current system. He contacted Tesla and purchased all of Tesla's alternating-current technology patents for $60,000, which included $5,000 in cash and 150 shares of stock in the Westinghouse Corporation. In short order, AC power became the undisputed standard in long-distance power transmission.
The next great feat of Tesla's life took place with the Niagara Falls Power Project. Even before this point, Tesla had dreamed of harnessing the power of the Falls. Although the power project wasn't a simple task to accomplish, on November 16, 1896, electricity generated by the falls reached Buffalo, New York.
Over the next few years Tesla refined his high-frequency electricity technology. Higher frequency AC was more efficient, safe for people to be exposed to, and might allow Tesla to create a lamp that operated at the same frequency and intensity as the sun. His research next produced the Tesla coil, patented in 1891. The coil took sixty-cycle per second household current and stepped it up to extremely high frequencies, allowing Tesla to develop some of the first neon and fluorescent lighting.
Had an unfortunate fire not burned down his laboratory in 1895, Tesla would be remembered as the man to make the first radio transmission, before Marconi. In early 1900 Tesla patented his basic radio design in the United States, but, in 1904, the US Patent Office reversed itself and awarded the patent to Marconi. The patent wasn't returned to Tesla until 1943 (a month after his death).
Before his death Tesla pioneered wireless radio technology, robotics, and 'wireless energy.'
Extra Connections: He was a friend of [a pal of] Twain*
He was temporarily financed by [financed by] JP Morgan*
He worked with [worked with] Carnegie* and [worked with] Acheson*
His rival was [rival was] Sperry*
He met [met] Tykociner*
Assessment: An innovative genius whose contributions to technology have only recently been fully appreciated.
Oneliner: Nikola Tesla, early electrical and radio pioneer
Bibliography:
- http://www.neuronet.pitt.edu/~bogdan/tesla/.
- http://www.pbs.org/tesla/ll/.
- http://www.eskimo.com/~billb/tesla/tesla.html.
- http://www.parascope.com/en/0996/tesla1.htm.
Multimedia:
Connections II #5: "Something for Nothing"
Father: Milutin
Mother: Djuka
Siblings: Dane
Spouse: None
Children: None