Introduction
It is hard to imagine our modern life without its usual things. Fax machines, barcodes, cordless phones, even talking thermometers, all these casual items make the world around look like we got used to. Due to Jerome Lemelson, there are so many comforts surrounding us. Lemelson is one of the most remarkable American inventors. On his account, there are more than 600 patents. He believed in America and the American dream in his own way: the key to the country’s success lies in innovations and genius inventions (“The Lemelson Foundation”, par. 1). The most incredible is that all the inventions were made independently from development departments. For forty years, Lemelson was devising approximately one invention per month. He “ranks just behind Thomas Alva Edison as the most prolific patent holder of all times” (Foreman & Welytok 108). The inventor went down in American history as one of the most creative and productive contrivers.
The Life of the Inventor
Jerome Lemelson, the oldest of three sons, was born on 18 July 1923 in Staten Island (Hall 132). His father, a respectful physician, was a decent Austrian Jewish family. Even during World War II they always had food on the plate, as for the payments from his grateful patients. From the early years, Jerome showed outstanding technical ingenuity. “He once devised an illuminated tongue depressor for his father to use in his medical practice” (“Lemelson Center” par. 5). While peers were fond of comic strips, Jerome with his two years younger brother, Howard, were already reading specialized magazines on aerodynamics. Being teenagers, Jerome and Howard started the first business together. Their gas-powered aircraft models had great success on local weekend completions. Thus, they began constructing and selling them to the public. The obvious influence of Lemelson’s intentions became clear.
After school, Jerome went to New York University. Unfortunately, “his college years were interrupted by World War II and served in the Army Air Corps engineering department” (“Lemelson Center” par. 6). Being partially Jewish, he keenly felt the discrimination and racism manifestations. This experience he carried through his entire life. That is why he became a dedicated philanthropist.
Lemelson managed to graduate from the New York University only in 1951, after ending the military service. He got master’s degrees in aeronautical and industrial engineering fields. Sharing a flat together with Howard, Jerome was often waking him up in the middle of the night. His inventive brain did not stop working even during his sleep. By the morning, the elder Lemelson usually had several inventions ready for realization. The younger brother had a separate mission of witnessing and signing these ideas. (“Lemelson Center” par. 8). Considering his future countless patent disputes, and millions of dollars wasted in courts, this was an essential habit. Although at that time he still did not record any patents, Jerome was getting ready to do it, accurately reflecting, dating, and reassuring all his ideas.
In 1951, Lemelson invented machine vision. That was an invention to be proud of because “machine vision used computers to analyze digitized images from the video camera” (“Lemelson Center” par. 9). However, his invention creativity spread not only on industrial machinery but also on casual things. After the war, the baby boom became a gold mine for manufacturers of children’s toys. Jerome’s ability to divine the human’s needs suggested working on them. By the way, the famous crying baby doll is Lemelson’s invention.
After a while, the engineer figured out that the only way to be free is to work on yourself. He became an independent inventor. Hard to believe that all these patents as “automated manufacturing systems and bar code readers, automatic teller machines and cordless phones, cassette players and camcorders, fax machines and personal computers” (“The Lemelson Foundation”, par. 2) were created by one person. Jerome Lemelson died in 1997, from liver cancer. Nevertheless, his heritage will live forever. Almost everything surrounding us exists due to the irrefutable genius of this prominent man.
Obstacles that Jerome Lemelson Faced
Lemelson used obstacles in the way gymnasts use springboards. He was “always looking for problems to solve. I cannot look at a new technology without asking: How can it be improved?” (qtd. in “The Lemelson Foundation”, par. 4). Any problem stimulated him to find a way of solving it. Referring to the technical issue, there was nothing that could make him stuck in the deadlock. But there was an obstacle which he could barely overcome.
The first experience of patent infringement involved one of his early creations. It was a cut-out mask, a toy for children. He filled out the patent application before sharing his idea with the major cereal producer. The producer refused to use Lemelson’s idea. But in several years, Jerome found a box of cereal with the cut-out mask printed on the side. He first faced patent infringement and was shocked. The cheat was so obvious that the creator immediately submitted the claim to the court. Nevertheless, the case was lost. It was the first legal issue but definitely not the last one. Eventually, court cases and other legal aspects began taking up most of his time and income. For the rest of his life engineer was fighting with patent infringements. For example, his patent of barcode reader was declared “unenforceable on the basis of unreasonable delay” (Foreman & Welytok 108). But, the ability to turn every obstacle into innovation allocated this engineer from all the others.
The Barcode Readers Invention
Despite the fact that Lemelson’s invention of a barcode reader is arguable, no one argues about his machine vision creation that formed the basis of some barcode reader types. A barcode reader or scanner “is an optical reader that uses laser beams to read bar codes by using light patterns that pass through the bar code lines” (Shelly & Vermaat 280). The barcode is a product’s identifier and it looks like a set of lines or a small pattern. Inside the code, there is all information about the product and its manufacturer. Barcode reader used to scan the price at the grocery shop is one of the most popular readers. “A hand-held or stationary input device” (“What Is Barcode Reader” par. 1) consists of a scanner itself, a decoder, and a cable that connects the scanner with the processing machine. An operating principle is quite simple. The barcode reader measures the light reflection of a code. It is obvious that a darker part of a code reflects less light than the white one. When the reader converts the light into an electrical wave, a processing machine or computer decodes it.
Lemelson’s invention of machine vision formed the basis of so-called image scanners. The camera identifies the barcode pattern and the computer decrypts the code using digital methods. The invention of barcode readers served as an impetus for the development of more complicated readers. One of them is known as radio frequency identification or RFID. RFID uses radio waves to read the information encrypted in the code. RFID tags have different sizes and forms. The most popular ways of using RFID tags “include tracking times of runners in a marathon, tracking the location of soldiers, employee wardrobes, airline baggage, and misplaced of stolen goods; checking lift tickets of skiers; managing inventory; gauging pressure and temperature of tires on a vehicle” (Shelly & Vermaat 280) and many others.
Another reader is often used in the bank’s cash boxes or ATMs. It is a magnetic stripe card reader (MSCR). This kind of reader decodes the information contained in the magnetic stripes of credit cards, sales cards, or any other similar cards. And the last one is a magnetic ink character recognition reader which decrypts the information “printed with magnetized ink” (Shelly & Vermaat 281) and converts it into the form which the processing machine can identify.
The Cordless Phones Invention
The invention of the cordless phone goes back to the 1950s when the first prototype was made. However, the first handset was presented only in 1970 (“The Lemelson Foundation”, par. 2). Essentially, portative phones almost entirely replaced the landline phone.
The cordless phone consists of two parts: the base station and the handset. The base station is connected to the line so it receives calls in the same way as the landline does. The only difference is in the comfort of using it. However, the range of a signal is restricted, the farther speakers are going, the worse connection they get.
In 1980, Sony started the commercial production of cordless phones. By the way, Jerome Lemelson developed an “audio cassette drive mechanism” for Sony (“Lemelson Center” par. 26), and its Walkman became a bestseller among players. Despite a number of issues, such as low range and poor battery capacity, these portative phones worked.
Towards the mid of the 1990s, the first digital cordless phones were introduced. The digital handset was safer in comparison with its predecessor. Its dimensions allowed the user to move freely and farther as the range was far better. The development of the cordless phone still continues, but without Lemelson’s invention, we could be still living in the era of stationary phones.
Conclusion. The Impact on Society
Jerome Lemelson brought countless inventions into our lives. Even though some people deny his contribution, he will stay in industrial history as “one of the most prolific American inventors of all time” (“Lemelson Center” par. 1). His inventions, such as the barcode reader or the cordless phone, had a great impact on society. Barcode scanners increased the efficiency and productivity of manufacturers. The whole American economy reached the highest level since the industrial revolution made by his invention. Now customers do not need to spend hours at the checkout waiting to pay for the purchases. Instead, they can spend more time enjoying shopping. The use of barcodes helps to control line managers, maintain the business, and prevent robberies. Airplane companies print barcodes on their boarding passes, significantly reducing the time for boarding. Finally, the banking system is fully dependent on the innovated barcode readers.
The invention of cordless phones eased the conversation for people. All businesses and many families are using them in their everyday life. Without exaggeration, Lemelson’s invention helped people to communicate freely and securely. It is hard to overestimate this genius inventor. His restless mind was working for the benefit of all American people. His heritage is still alive and will always live in his inventions, the Lemelson Foundation, and in the memory of Americans.
Works Cited
Foreman, Louis J., and Jill Gilbert Welytok. The Independent Inventor’s Handbook. New York: Workman Pub., 2009. Print.
Hall, Carl W. A Biographical Dictionary of People in Engineering from Earliest Records until 2000. West Lafayette: Purdue UP, 2008. Print.
Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. n.d. Web. 2015.
Shelly, Gary B., and Misty Vermaat. Discovering Computers 2011: Living in a Digital World. Boston: Course Technology, Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.
The Lemelson Foundation. n.d. Web. 2015.
“What Is Barcode Reader (POS Scanner, Bar Code Reader, Price Scanner)? – Definition from WhatIs.com.” WhatIs.com. n.d. Web. 2015.