Television Patent

Have you ever wondered who invented TV? One day, while perched on my sofa and watching the news, I asked myself, “Who invented this box of moving images and sound before me?” I had no answer; I was clueless. After I finished watching the news, I went about, did some preliminary research, and discovered that television, as we know, it has a long and interesting history harkening back to the first patent in 1930 to a then 20-year-old Philo Taylor Farnsworth. Sure, arguments that TV’s history really began in the mid-19th century with the discoveries of photoconductivity and the scanning disk and they would be valid arguments, but I propose that these are discoveries that led to television and not the product itself. Without a doubt, the first patent for an electromechanical television goes to Farnsworth.

Farnsworth filed a series of television patents for his invention. He filed patents covering many of the mechanical and functional aspects of the television like the way the focusing, contrasting, control, and power work. Farnsworth licensed his invention to several companies who further developed his ideas to make the first successfully commercial television set. After a series of court cases and patent wars between Farnsworth and his main competitors for patent infringement, Farnsworth sold his company and television patents, thus ending the Farnsworth era.

In the early 1930’s, the first commercially successful TVs were manufactured and sold in Germany, followed in quick succession by competitors in the U.S. and Britain. Since that time, the television has proven to be one of the most successful inventions in modern history.

TV has continued to evolve as new technologies emerge that affect the functional mechanics behind the invention. Nowadays, TV sets come in all shapes and sizes. Digitization of broadcast transmission and innovative plasma screen technology are other novel ways TV has changed in recent years. Patents behind the technology and functional mechanics for HDTV, LCD, and digital television further enhance TV-viewing experience and are all the rage in the market.

Numerous innovations use television sets as their base for operation. Video games and DVDs would not be able to function properly or at all without some kind of TV set to display their images. Computer monitors are also a form of TV set, although, with different purpose and functional technology. Computer monitors receive data from localized computer connection. DVD players, TIVO, and video game consoles all use TV sets.