They say if you’re going to tell a story right you have to start at the beginning so let’s go back to February 2nd, 1839 when a young man named Edmond Berger, an immigrant of Togo West Africa, invented the spark plug.
MECHANIC BY TRADE:
A spark plug is a device for delivering electric current from an ignition system to the combustion chamber. It is the reason your engine fires up and burns off fuel.
Even though Mr. Berger did not patent his invention initially, he still received credit for the technology and design that is still used to this day.
That same year a man named Granville T Woods from Cincinnati, Ohio invented what came to be known as the auto cut off switch, and later in 1887 the induction telegraph which was eventually developed into the telephone.
ELECTRICAL ENGINEER BY TRADE:
An auto cut-off switch cuts off the supply of electricity also known as a kill switch. There are multiple applications for this device and are used in everyday life. If you have anything plugged into a surge protector you can thank Mr. Woods for protecting your equipment.
Mr. Woods held over 60 patents and 15 appliance inventions before passing away in 1910.
Things are starting to get interesting as years go by and it becomes a necessity to have legitimate safety concerns. In 1880 we meet a Barton, Alabama man named Powell Johnson who blessed us with eye protectors aka safety glasses.
SKILLED TRADESPERSON BY TRADE:
Safety glasses have become a must-have for anyone who works with their hands. I can speak from personal experience about how this particular invention has literally saved my eyesight. Whether they are protecting you from flames while welding or preventing a projectile from entering your eye, you can’t leave home without them.
Fun Fact: In 1986 another black man named Kenneth J Dunkley invented what came to be known as 3D glasses.
Since we are about halfway in at this point seems like a good place to break for lunch and join James Robinson in 1887 when he invented the lunch pail. Who doesn’t look forward to lunch?!
Make sure you clean up after yourself don’t want to attract any unwanted guests. However, if you did then you would want to know a Frankfort, Michigan named Albert Richardson who invented the insect destroyer gun in February of 1899.
PEST CONTROL TECHNICIAN BY TRADE:
The insect destroyer gun was actually quite large in size and was designed to eliminate pesky crop-eating bugs. Although, it was not the greatest invention it was later revised into a bottle by Mr. Richardson which later became known as pesticide.
I do not envy the extermination profession but I bet you are grateful for Mr. Richardson’s contribution to being able to keep the spiders at bay.
Today’s pesticides are very toxic and in some cases just as deadly to humans as well as bugs. It’s a good thing that a man from Paris, Kentucky named Garret Morgan invented the gas mask. Coincidentally, he also invented the traffic light in 1923 creating the gateway to electronic logic systems.
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING BY TRADE:
The logic behind traffic lights involves programming timing sequences using PLC inputs/output commands. The system is set on conditions that each input controls an output for a specific amount of time or a particular moment in the program.
The timing of the traffic light becomes most imperative when it comes to driver safety during rush hour traffic.
So now 110 years later we come to the person who invented the foundation of my trade industry, Fredrick Jones, who invented the refrigeration system in 1949.
HVAC & REFRIGERATION BY TRADE:
A refrigeration system removes moisture and humidity from the air expelling it to the outer atmosphere. This is the reason your food can stay cool and dry inside of your refrigerator.
Mr. Jones initially used these systems to transport food during war times to feed troops. In 1960 he went on to invent the thermostat in order to control the temperature of the food being stored inside the trucks. Eventually, he was able to build a system efficient enough to spot cool areas of the home which later became known as air conditioning. Now isn’t that cool?
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