naked-science 134 years ago
science and technology #Technology

Let There Be Light | Edison vs Tesla (1889)

Celebrated inventor Thomas Edison, goes to war with former assistant, Nikola Tesla, to determine who will power the world with electric light.

Thomas Edison is the most famous inventor in the world. What he lacks in formal education, he makes up for in tireless perseverance. With backing from some of the world's wealthiest financiers, Edison sets out to expand upon his invention of the light bulb by building an electric empire, using the power of Direct Current.

 

Nikola Tesla is an eccentric math genius obsessed with electricity. He's invented a motor that can use the largely unexplored – and far more complex power – of Alternating Current. His invention, he realizes, could change the world. He also believes there's only one man with the vision and power to make his dream a reality: Thomas Edison.

 

The two men could not be more different. At first, Edison gives the strange young foreigner, Tesla, a shot. But it soon becomes clear Tesla’s idea will never see the light of day if Edison can help it. When Edison reneges on a $50,000 bonus, Tesla storms off, determined to prove he’s right.


But Tesla finds a powerful ally in mogul and fellow inventor George Westinghouse. And now, the "War of the Currents" is on. AV vs DC.


LIGHTBULB PATENT

On October 14, 1878, Edison filed his first patent application for "Improvement In Electric Lights".


However, he continued to test several types of material for metal filaments to improve upon his original design and by Nov 4, 1879, he filed another U.S. patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected to platina contact wires"


DC PATENT

On  22-10-1889 Nicola Tesla filed his patent on "Method Of Obtaining Direct From Alternating Currents"








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