The first ever electronic device
invented is the relay.
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| Relay |
The American scientist Joseph Henry is often claimed to have
invented a relay in 1835 in order to improve his version of the electrical
telegraph, developed earlier in 1831. However, there is little in the way of
official documentation to suggest he had made the discovery prior to 1837.
It is claimed that the English inventor Edward Davy "certainly invented
the electric relay” in his electric telegraph c.1835.
A simple device, which we now call a
relay, was included in the original 1840 telegraph patent of Samuel Morse. The
mechanism described acted as a digital amplifier, repeating the telegraph
signal, and thus allowing signals to be propagated as far as desired. This
overcame the problem of limited range of earlier telegraphy schemes.
See also The world's first power station
Tags:
Electronics