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Lee De Forest patented a three-electrode version of the Audion.

Lee De Forest, (August 26, 1873 - June 30, 1961), was an American inventor with over 300 patents to his name. De Forest invented the Audion, a vacuum tube that takes relatively weak electrical signals and amplifies them. De Forest is one of the fathers of the "electronic age," as the Audion helped to usher in the widespread use of electronics.

He was involved in several patent lawsuits (and he spent a fortune from his inventions on legal bills). He had four marriages, several failed companies, was defrauded by business partners, and was once indicted for mail fraud and later acquitted.

Early years

Lee De Forest was born in Iowa to a Congregational minister who hoped that his son would become a minister like himself. His father accepted the position of President of Talladega College (a traditionally Black school) in Alabama where Lee spent most of his youth. Most citizens of the white community resented his father's efforts to educate black students. Nevertheless, Lee De Forest had several friends from among the black children of the town.

De Forest went to Mount Hermon School and then enrolled at the Sheffield School of Science at Yale University in 1893. As an inquisitive inventor, he tapped into the electrical system at Yale one evening and completely blacked out the campus, leading to his suspension. However, he was eventually allowed to complete his studies. He paid some of his tuition with income from mechanical and gaming inventions, and received his Bachelor's degree in 1896.

He remained at Yale for graduate studies, and earned his Ph.D. in 1899 with a doctoral dissertation on radio waves.

De Forest was interested in wireless telegraphy which led to his invention of the Audion tube, in 1906, and he developed an improved wireless telegraph receiver. He filed a patent for a two-electrode device for detecting electromagnetic waves. His Audion tube was a vacuum tube which allowed for amplification for radio reception. De Forest said he didn't know why it worked; it just did.

He was a charter member of the Institute of Radio Engineers, the predecessor of the IEEE.

Middle years

De Forest invented the Audion in 1906 by improving the "diode" vacuum tubes being used at the time. In 1907, he filed a patent for a three-electrode version of the Audion. It was later called the De Forest valve, and is known now as a triode. De Forest's innovation was the insertion of a third electrode, the grid or gate, in between the cathode (filament) (or connected to the filament) and the anode (plate) of the previously invented diode. The resulting triode or three-electrode vacuum tube could be used as an amplifier for electrical signals, and, equally important, as a fast (for its time) electronic switching element, later applicable in digital electronics (such as computers). The triode would be a good candidate for the most important innovation in electronics in the first half of the 20th century, between Nikola Tesla's and Guglielmo Marconi's progress in radio in the 1890s and the invention in 1948 of the transistor. The triode version of the Audion was patented (patent number US879532). [1]

The United States District Attorney sued De Forest (in 1913) for fraud on behalf of his shareholders, stating that his claim of regeneration was an "absurd" promise (he was later acquitted). De Forest filed a patent in 1916 that became the cause of a contentious lawsuit with the prolific inventor Edwin Armstrong, whose patent for the regenerative circuit had been issued in 1914. The lawsuit lasted twelve years, winding its way through the appeals process and ending up at the Supreme Court. The Court ruled in favor of De Forest, although the view of most historians is that the judgement was incorrect. In 1916, De Forest, from his own news radio station, broadcast the first radio advertisement (for his own products) and the first presidential election report by radio. He went on to lead the first radio broadcasts of music (featuring opera star Enrico Caruso) and many other events, but could receive little backing.

In the early 1920s, it was reported that he stole the invention of talking movies from Theodore Willard Case, a colleague of his from Yale. In 1922, De Forest improved on the work of German inventors and developed the Phonofilm process. It recorded sound directly onto film as parallel lines. These lines photographically recorded electrical impulses from a microphone, and were translated back into sound waves when projected. This system, which synchronized sound directly onto film, was used to record stage performances (such as in vaudeville), speeches, and musical acts. De Forest established his "De Forest Phonofilm Corporation", but could interest no one in Hollywood in his invention at that time. Several years after the Phonofilm Company folded, Hollywood decided to use a different method but eventually came back to the methods De Forest originally proposed. Even today, when looking in the Encylopedia Britanica, Lee De Forest is cited as the inventor of sound on film. But it has been speculated that he took these ideas from an old friend.

Later years

File:Lee De Forest.png

Lee De Forest sold one of his business interests to David Sarnoff's RCA (owner of the assets of American Marconi).

De Forest sold one of his radio manufacturing firms to RCA in 1931. In 1934, the courts sided with De Forest against Armstrong (although the technical community did not agree with the courts). De Forest won the court battle, but he lost the battle for public opinion. His peers would not take him seriously as an inventor or trust him as a colleague. For De Forest's initially rejected (but later adopted) movie sound method, he was given an Academy Award (Oscar) in 1959/1960 for "his pioneering inventions which brought sound to the motion picture", and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

He died in Hollywood in 1961 and was interred in San Fernando Mission Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.

Patent

U.S. patent 879,532

External links and references

IEEE History Center Lee De Forest
National Inventors Hall of Fame's Lee De Forest
Complete Lee De Forest
Eugenii Katz's Lee De Forest
Cole, A. B., "Practical Pointers on the Audion: Sales Manager - De Forest Radio Tel. & Tel. Co.", QST, March, 1916, pages 41-44:
Hong, Sungook, "A History of the Regeneration Circuit: From Invention to Patent Litigation" University, Seoul, Korea (PDF)
PBS, "Monkeys"; a film on the Audion operation (Quicktime movie)

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 [[Image:Deforest.jpg|right|thumb|150px|Lee De Forest patented a [[triode|three-electrode]] version of the [[Audion tube|Audion]].]]
-'''Lee De Forest''', ([[August 26]], [[1873]] - [[June 30]], [[1961]]), was an [[United States|American]] [[inventor]] with over 300 patents to his name. De Forest invented the [[audion]], a [[vacuum tube]] that takes weak [[electric]]al signals and amplifies them.  De Forest is one of the fathers of the "electronic age," as the audion helped to usher in the widespread use of [[electronic]]s.
+'''Lee De Forest''', ([[August 26]], [[1873]] - [[June 30]], [[1961]]), was an [[United States|American]] [[inventor]] with over 300 patents to his name. De Forest invented the [[Audion]], a [[vacuum tube]] that takes relatively weak [[electric]]al signals and amplifies them.  De Forest is one of the fathers of the "electronic age," as the Audion helped to usher in the widespread use of [[electronic]]s.
-He was involved in several patent lawsuits (and he spent his fortune from his [[invent]]ions on legal bills).  He had four marriages, several failed companies, was defrauded (by business partners), and once indicted for mail fraud (later acquitted). He had a brother and a sister.
+He was involved in several patent lawsuits (and he spent a fortune from his [[invent]]ions on legal bills).  He had four marriages, several failed companies, was defrauded by business partners, and was once indicted for mail fraud and later acquitted.
 ==Early years==
-Born in [[Iowa]] to a Congregational minister (who hoped that his son would become a minister like himself ). Lee De Forest's father accepted the position of President of [[Talladega College]] (a Black school) in [[Alabama]], where Lee spent most of his young life. Most citizens of the white community resented his father's efforts to educate blacks.  De Forest had several friends from among the black children of the town.
+Lee De Forest was born in [[Iowa]] to a Congregational minister who hoped that his son would become a minister like himself. His father accepted the position of President of [[Talladega College]] (a traditionally Black school) in [[Alabama]] where Lee spent most of his youth. Most citizens of the white community resented his father's efforts to educate black students.  Nevertheless, Lee De Forest had several friends from among the black children of the town.
-De Forest went to [[Mount Hermon School]] and then enrolled at the Sheffield School of Science at [[Yale University]] in [[1893]]. As an inquisitive inventor, he tapped into the electrical system at Yale one evening and completely blacked out the campus, leading to his suspension. However, he was eventually allowed to complete his studies. He paid some of his tuition with mechanical and gaming inventions, and  received  his [[Bachelor's degree]]  in [[1896]].
+De Forest went to [[Mount Hermon School]] and then enrolled at the Sheffield School of Science at [[Yale University]] in [[1893]]. As an inquisitive inventor, he tapped into the electrical system at Yale one evening and completely blacked out the campus, leading to his suspension. However, he was eventually allowed to complete his studies. He paid some of his tuition with income from mechanical and gaming inventions, and  received  his [[Bachelor's degree]] in [[1896]].
-He remained at Yale for graduate studies, and earned his  [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] in [[1899]] with a doctoral dissertation on radio waves.
+He remained at Yale for graduate studies, and earned his [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] in [[1899]] with a doctoral dissertation on radio waves.
-De Forest was interested in wireless telegraphy which led to his invention of the [[Audion tube]], in [[1906]], and he developed an improved wireless telegraph receiver. He filed a patent for a two-electrode device for detecting electromagnetic waves. The audion tube is a [[vacuum tube]] which allowed for voice [[amplification]] for radio reception. De Forest said he didn't know why it worked; it just did.
+De Forest was interested in wireless telegraphy which led to his invention of the [[Audion tube]], in [[1906]], and he developed an improved wireless telegraph receiver. He filed a patent for a two-electrode device for detecting electromagnetic waves. His Audion tube was a [[vacuum tube]] which allowed for [[amplification]] for radio reception. De Forest said he didn't know why it worked; it just did.
 He was a charter member of the [[Institute of Radio Engineers]], the predecessor of the [[IEEE]].
@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 ==Middle years==
-De Forest invented the audion in [[1906]] improving the "diode" vacuum tubes being used at the time. In [[1907]], he filed a patent for a three-electrode version of the Audion, known now as a [[triode]].  It was later called the [[De Forest valve]]. De Forest's innovation was the insertion of a third [[electrode]], the [[grid]] or [[gate]], in between the [[cathode]] ([[filament]] or connected to the filament) and the [[anode]] ([[plate]]) of the already invented [[diode]]. The resulting [[triode]] or three-electrode [[vacuum tube]] could be used as an [[amplifier]] for audio signals, and, equally important, as a fast (for its time) electronic switching element, applicable in [[digital]] electronics (such as [[computer]]s).  The triode would be a good candidate for the most important innovation in [[electronics]] in the first half of the 20th century, between [[Nikola Tesla]]'s and [[Guglielmo Marconi]]'s progress in radio in the 1890s and the invention in 1948 of the [[transistor]].  The triode version of the Audion was patented with [[Patent]] number US879532. <sub>[http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=879532.WKU.&OS=PN/879532&RS=PN/879532]</sub>
+De Forest invented the Audion in [[1906]] by improving the "diode" vacuum tubes being used at the time. In [[1907]], he filed a patent for a three-electrode version of the Audion.  It was later called the [[De Forest valve]], and is  known now as a [[triode]]. De Forest's innovation was the insertion of a third [[electrode]], the [[grid]] or [[gate]], in between the [[cathode]] ([[filament]]) (or connected to the filament) and the [[anode]] ([[plate]]) of the previously invented [[diode]]. The resulting [[triode]] or three-electrode [[vacuum tube]] could be used as an [[amplifier]] for electrical signals, and, equally important, as a fast (for its time) electronic switching element, later applicable in [[digital]] electronics (such as [[computer]]s).  The triode would be a good candidate for the most important innovation in [[electronics]] in the first half of the 20th century, between [[Nikola Tesla]]'s and [[Guglielmo Marconi]]'s progress in radio in the 1890s and the invention in 1948 of the [[transistor]].  The triode version of the Audion was patented ([[patent]] number US879532). [http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=879532.WKU.&OS=PN/879532&RS=PN/879532]
-The [[United States]] [[District Attorney]] sued De Forest (in [[1913]]) for fraud on behalf of his shareholders, stating that regeneration was an "absurd" promises (later he was acquitted). De Forest filed a patent in [[1916]] that became the cause of a contentious lawsuit with the prolific inventor [[Edwin Armstrong]], whose patent for the [[regenerative circuit]] had been issued in [[1914]].  The lawsuit lasted twelve years, winding its way through the appeals process and ending up at the [[Supreme Court]]. The Court ruled in favor of De Forest, although the view of most historians is that the judgement was incorrect. In [[1916]], De Forest, from his own news radio station, had the first [[radio]] [[advertisement]] (for his products) and the first [[president]]ial [[election]] reported by radio. He went on to lead the first [[radio]] broadcasts of music (featuring opera star [[Enrico Caruso]]) and many other events but could receive little backing.
+The [[United States]] [[District Attorney]] sued De Forest (in [[1913]]) for fraud on behalf of his shareholders, stating that his claim of regeneration was an "absurd" promise (he was later acquitted). De Forest filed a patent in [[1916]] that became the cause of a contentious lawsuit with the prolific inventor [[Edwin Armstrong]], whose patent for the [[regenerative circuit]] had been issued in [[1914]].  The lawsuit lasted twelve years, winding its way through the appeals process and ending up at the [[Supreme Court]]. The Court ruled in favor of De Forest, although the view of most historians is that the judgement was incorrect. In [[1916]], De Forest, from his own news radio station, broadcast the first [[radio]] [[advertisement]] (for his own products) and the first [[president]]ial [[election]] report by radio. He went on to lead the first [[radio]] broadcasts of music (featuring opera star [[Enrico Caruso]]) and many other events, but could receive little backing.
-In the early [[1920s]], it is reported that he stole the invention of talking movies from Theodore Willard Case, a colleage of his from Yale.  In [[1922]], De Forest improved on the work of German inventors and developed the Phonofilm. Phonofilm process recorded sound directly onto the film stock as parallel lines. Lines [[photograph]]ically record electrical impulses from a [[microphone]] and are translated back into [[sound]] waves when projected. The Phonofilm system of recording synchronized sound directly onto film stock was used to record stage performances (such as in vaudeville), speeches, and musical acts. He started the "''De Forest Phonofilm Corporation''", but could interest no one in [[Hollywood]] in his invention at the time. Several years after the Phonofilm Company folded, Hollywood decided to use a different method but eventually came back to the methods De Forest originally proposed. Even today, when looking in the Encylopedia Britanica, Lee De Forest is named the inventor of sound on film. But it has been debated that he took these ideas from an old friend.
+In the early [[1920s]], it was reported that he stole the invention of talking movies from Theodore Willard Case, a colleague of his from Yale.  In [[1922]], De Forest improved on the work of German inventors and developed the Phonofilm process. It recorded sound directly onto film as parallel lines. These lines [[photograph]]ically recorded electrical impulses from a [[microphone]], and were translated back into [[sound]] waves when projected. This system, which synchronized sound directly onto film, was used to record stage performances (such as in vaudeville), speeches, and musical acts. De Forest established his "''De Forest Phonofilm Corporation''", but could interest no one in [[Hollywood]] in his invention at that time. Several years after the Phonofilm Company folded, Hollywood decided to use a different method but eventually came back to the methods De Forest originally proposed. Even today, when looking in the Encylopedia Britanica, Lee De Forest is cited as the inventor of sound on film. But it has been speculated that he took these ideas from an old friend.
 ==Later years==
@@ Line 29: / Line 29: @@
 [[Image:Lee De Forest.png|thumb|150px|Lee De Forest sold one of his business interests to [[David Sarnoff]]'s RCA (owner of the assets of American Marconi).]]
-He sold one of his radio manufacturing firms in [[1931]] to [[RCA]]. In [[1934]], the courts sided with de Forest against Armstrong (though the technical community did not agree with the courts). De Forest won the court battle, but public opinion he lost (as Armstrong committed suicide in [[1954]]). Public opinion would not take him seriously as an inventor or trust him as a colleague. For the initially rejected (but later adopted) movie sound method, de Forest was given an [[Academy Honorary Award|Academy Award]] (Oscar) in 1959/1960 for "his pioneering inventions which brought sound to the motion picture" and a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]].
+De Forest sold one of his radio manufacturing firms to [[RCA]] in [[1931]].  In [[1934]], the courts sided with De Forest against Armstrong (although the technical community did not agree with the courts). De Forest won the court battle, but he lost the battle for public opinion. His peers would not take him seriously as an inventor or trust him as a colleague. For De Forest's initially rejected (but later adopted) movie sound method, he was given an [[Academy Honorary Award|Academy Award]] (Oscar) in 1959/1960 for "his pioneering inventions which brought sound to the motion picture", and a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]].
 He died in Hollywood in [[1961]] and was interred in [[San Fernando Mission Cemetery]] in [[Los Angeles, California]].
@@ Line 45: / Line 45: @@
 * Cole, A. B., "''[http://earlyradiohistory.us/audi1916.htm Practical Pointers on the Audion]: Sales Manager - De Forest Radio Tel. & Tel. Co.''", QST, March, 1916, pages 41-44:
 * Hong, Sungook, "''[http://www.ieee.org/organizations/history_center/Che2004/Hong.pdf A History of the Regeneration Circuit: From Invention to Patent Litigation]''" University, Seoul, Korea (PDF)
-* [[PBS]], "''[http://www.pbs.org/transistor/quicktimes/movieclips/monkeysVIDEO/monkeysVIDEO_MSTR.mov Monkeys]''"; a film on the audion operation ([[Quicktime]] movie)
+* [[PBS]], "''[http://www.pbs.org/transistor/quicktimes/movieclips/monkeysVIDEO/monkeysVIDEO_MSTR.mov Monkeys]''"; a film on the Audion operation ([[Quicktime]] movie)