Induction Motor
Nikola Tesla, USA, patents 381,968-9 of 1888. The AC motor powering industry ever since.
Overview
Tesla patented the rotating-field induction motor, selling the patents to Westinghouse for cash plus royalties, later waived to save the company. The 1888 patents anchored the war of currents, AC winning over Edison's DC with the 1895 Niagara powerhouse. Induction motors still run pumps, fans, conveyors, and EV traction. George Ferris's wheel and factory America electrified on them. Tesla's royalty sacrifice made him the patron saint of inventors done wrong.
Related Patents
Watt Steam Engine
Watt's patent, An Invented Method of Lessening the Consumption of Steam and Fuel in Fire Engines, covered the separate condenser. ...
Incandescent Light Bulb
Edison's 1879 high-resistance carbon filament made electric lighting commercially real, patented in 1880 after months of material ...
Diesel Engine
Diesel patented compression ignition, where air heated by squeeze fires the fuel, far exceeding steam efficiency. US patent 542,84...
Solar Cell
Bell Labs' 1954 silicon photovoltaic cell, patented 1957, converted about 6 percent of sunlight, first powering rural telephone re...