a concise chronicle of polish inventions and technical improvements
Inventors’ Day is celebrated in numerous European countries on November 9. On this occasion, we would like to present the profiles of key Polish inventors, innovators and visionaries, and some of their inventions (selected from a large group) that conquered the world. Many of these outstanding designers unjustly sank into oblivion, lived in poverty, emigrated due to a lack of development potential (e.g. during the partitions, Stalinism), or were harassed in communist Poland.
Centre for Maritime Technology Transfer Maritime University of Szczecin November 2020 A chemist and metallurgist, philanthropist, The railway industry inventor, and the most cited Polish scientist in the world. He developed the Czochralski method, i.e. a method for measuring the rate of metal crystallization, which is still used in the production of silicon semiconductors and Jan Józef Baranowski single crystals, basic for the production (1805-1888) of processors in the electronics industry. He studied and initially worked in Germany. He had German citizenship but returned to An economist, financier, polyglot, Poland in 1928 where he was harassed by the inventor, and participant of the representatives of the Polish scientific November Uprising. In 1832, he community. He was also harassed by the emigrated from Poland to France Secret Political Police after World War II. and eventually Great Britain. He He was stripped of his professor’s title was the creator of various Jan Czochralski for allegedly acting to the detriment of inventions such as a gas meter, (1885-1953) Poland and his presumed cooperation with a manual validator for conductors (awarded two medals at the the Third Reich (rehabilitated in 2011). National Exhibition in Paris in In addition to contributing to the development of processors, he 1849), a machine for printing and patented a tin-free bearing alloy that was used in the inspecting tickets (awarded at the production of bushings for railway bearings to increase the Universal Exhibition in London in speed of trains. The alloy, called metal B in Poland, was 1851), a semaphore, i.e. an produced by plants in Ursus and was used by railways in Germany, automatic railway signaling the USA, the USSR, Czechoslovakia, France, and England. system, and the author of the Czochralski died forgotten in his homeland. first English textbook for learning Polish (The Student’s Anglo-Polish Grammar, 1880). Metal science Submarine navigation and aerodynamics
) wiecki (1844-1938 Stefan Drze navigation and pioneer of submarine An engineer, inventor, in 1872, he Vienna Exhibition aviation. At the and sections and a regulator a compass for conical an presented (for which he received hydraulic engines for steam and and a dromograph a train speed recorder award), as well as of a sailing traced the course that automatically the (a device the interest of invention attracted ship). The latter Russian Navy. and was used in the prince Konstantin muscle- Russian first, one-man, presented the world’s Drzewiecki the first electricity-powered in 1887 and and powered submarine by aerodynamics 1888. He was fascinated submarine in in 1909. He lived prototype model presented an airframe abroad and spent most of his life in France. Off-road vehicles
in off- An engineer specializing as the father road vehicles, known served in the of terramechanics. He armies during Polish and Canadian he lived in World War II. Post-war, and he various European countries, immigrated eventually permanently He participated to the USA in 1956. by NASA in a competition organized Motors. employee of General Mieczy as an slaw Bekker Roving Vehicle (190 He built the Lunar 5-1989) in the manned which was used 15, 16, and 17. missions of Apollo honorary He received three Canada, and doctorates in Germany, Italy. Telecommunication
Jó zef Hofmann (1876-1957) A pianist with absolute a ear, composer with interests, technical a fan automotive of the industry. permanently He lived in the patented USA, and he dozens of Józef Kosacki including inventions, (1909-1990) a phonograph recording device), (sound a An electrical engineer, the designer of advanced (inspired paper clip by the telecommunication systems, and a lieutenant of shape of a treble clef), sappers in the Polish Armed Forces during World War (inspired car wipers by the metronome), II. He developed a hand-held electromagnetic mine a height-adjustable pianist detector in 1941, which won first prize in a British stool, a spiral water heater competition that aimed to build a lightweight, a spring bumper , , and portable mine detector to support the allies. He a pneumatic shock absorber also received a congratulatory letter from King . George VI for that invention and voluntarily relinquished the patent for his invention. With time, the mine detector underwent appropriate The automotive modifications and was used by the armies of various countries until the 1990s. industry and music Electronics and electrical engineering Kazimier z Prószyński (1875-1945) An en cinem trepreneur, atographer, enginee director, r, invento An electrical engineer and pioneer r, and inv c of Pol entor, the creator of a He inv inematograph ish seri ented a pl y. es of professional Nagra recordin eograph, i tape re g and play .e. a cam corders used by radio early as ing back f era for and tele 1884) – ilms (pate vision reporters, as a biopleo a more pe nted as well as fi graph (a fi rfect vers lm studios around the synchroni lm projecto ion of world. He e zation). He r with good migrated from Poland called a also cons image to Switzerland kinofon ( tructed a with his parents image an a system f device in 1939 where h d sound or simulta e studied, (a project emission), neous worked, and was bu or shutter an obtu ried. The images from that remo rator winner of four awards a a screen ves flicke from the film), an during the ring American Film Academy: he aeroscope broadcast two Stefan Kudelski ld automat (the world’ of scientific and technica ex ic film c s first ha l awards (1929-2013) peditor (a amera), and nd- of the 2nd category, whi ne device f a univer ch he wspapers a or folding sal received in 1965 and 1977, cou nd their a a series as ld be deli ddresses s of well as two Oscars for his sta vered to s o that th work rted recor ubscribers) ey in the film industry, which he ding short . Prószyńs he constructed films using ki received in 1978 and 1990. H Fra in 1895. T the devic e nciszkańska he films in es was honored with an honorary birb , Ślizgawka cluded Ulic anta, Przyg w Łazienk a doctorate by the Federal Mauth oda dorożk ach, Powrót ausen-Gusen arza. He d Polytechnic University of concentrat ied in the ion camp in Lausanne. Cinematography 1945. Inland navigation and hydraulic engineering
Stanisław Ignacy Łaszczyński (1872-1939)
A chemical sciences Ph.D., industrialist, and inventor, the creator of a method for obtaining copper and zinc Stanisław Janicki using electrolysis. The (1836-1888) inventor of rock-breaking explosive material called A civil engineer, hydrologist, designer, and miedziankit. He was shot in inventor. He presented his concept for Kielce by German soldiers in a floating dock for ship repair (patented in 1939. Great Britain and then in the USA) in 1871. The floating dock was later used in the production of ships. He designed floodgates and river flows. He also developed a system for pulling barges upstream with steel ropes placed at the bottom of a river and supervised construction work on the northern section of the Suez Canal. He was the creator of a modern concept of river regulation (1882), in which the degree of regulation depends on the type of soil. The usefulness of that concept was confirmed Metallurgy when it was put into practice. Electronics and IT An electronics engineer, IT scientist inv , and entor. He was the constructor of the mach AAH ine for meteorological analyses, the wor first ld’s transistor-based differential equat analyz ion er AKAT-1, and the Perceptron – the fir compute st r for analyzing external environments. Th most i e nteresting invention was the K-202 minicomputer, whose central unit, equip p ped with ermanent and operational memory, had the a size of suitcase and could perform one mi oper llion ations per second. Karpiński’s computer ahead was of the American computer development about a by decade – the memory of the K-202 coul theoreti d cally be extended to 8 megabytes, while the memory Jacek Karpiński (1927-2010) of American personal computers was 64 kilobytes. Unfortunately, the development of the K-202 computer was limited b preva y the iling socialist system in Pol and th and, e inventor himself was harassed that sy by stem, mainly for belonging to t Home Arm he y and participating in the Warsa Uprising. w Poland failed to make the most of this inventor’s potential Organic
Antoni Patek (1812-1877) chemistry A talented painter and a participant of the November Uprising, decorated with the Virtuti Militari Cross twice. He emigrated to Switzerland where he took up watchmaking after a failed Ignacy Łukasiewicz uprising. First, he formed a partnership (1822-1882) with a Czech watchmaker and then with a French designer of precision devices. Patek A ph Philippe watches were very innovative armacist, en found trepreneur, because they could be worn on a wrist er of the wo the mine, rld’s first thanks to a special bracelet. The watches a philanthro oil pioneer pist, and a had a special winding mechanism that of the oil industry and refining eliminated the need to use a key to wind . He distill from crud ed paraffin them up. The watches were equipped with a e oil and co oil oil lamp t nstructed an second hand, and they showed time in hat used it. a revolutio He was also different time zones, the day of the week, nary and an activist. independence the month and year, the phases of the moon, and the position of celestial bodies. The Patek Philippe Company still exists and produces the best and most expensive mechanical watches in the world. Watchmaking Metallurgy
A mechanical engineer, metallurgist, the Antoni Szczerbowski (1859-1912) creator of three technological processes: continuous hot-dip galvanization, metal sheet cold-rolling, and metal sheet hot- A teacher, editor, and a Tadeu member of the Volunteer rolling. He was the inventor of sz Sędzimir a planetary rolling mill for producing (1894-1989) Fire Department. He thin and wide steel sheets. He built a constructed a universal galvanizing plant in Poland in 1933 that fire ladder consisting of used the world’s first technological line two separate, wooden spans for the industrial-scale production of that could be used as two annealed and galvanized steel sheets. shorter ladders or joined The Sędzimir method protected steel together using the steel against corrosion, was relatively cheap, ends at a right angle to and not very toxic (it did not generate form a long roof ladder or poisonous vapors or acid fumes). a pyramid with different Galvanized sheets began to be used in the opening angles. The production of car bodies, roofing, invention is still used gutters, and window sills. When Sędzimir today, although it is now was on his way to the USA, World War II made of aluminum. broke out, so he remained in exile and died there. He was the holder of numerous medals and decorations from foreign countries for his achievements in metallurgy. Firefighting Weaving, photography, and television
2-1926) an Szczepanik (187 J elf-taught d a versatile s by education, an rring and A teacher inly on transfe hat focused ma presented inventor t In 1897, he color images. sound images preserving for reproducing oscope – a device pe of the TV a telectr icity (a prototy tance via electr lor-sensitive at a dis creator of co He was the on by Kodak and set). h was improved up raphic paper whic 0s. He was also photog ompany in the 192 produced by the c for photographic mass- electric method reator of the ion. He developed the c g fabric product d rn copying durin dense weave an patte c" (silk with a f ulletproof fabri reate bulletproo a "b was used to c r strength) that eriors (the latte high for carriage int an ts and coverings lfonso XIII from ves he Spanish King A ved plication saved t he inventor recei ap mpt, for which t g ). ssassination atte tion from the kin a e decora an important stat source of photos, page 1: Apollo 17- Lunar Roving Vehicle and Eugene Cernan.jpg: NASA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons AKAT-1.JPG: Topory, CC BY-SA 3.0