The incandescent light bulb fundamentally transformed human civilisation. The introduction of light bulbs enabled individuals to work and engage in leisure activities late into the night without depending on open flames, which posed heat, smoke, and safety hazards for illumination.
The influence of the electric light bulb is indisputable, however the roots of its development remain subject to discussion. Common belief attributes the early patents for incandescent light bulbs to American Thomas Alva Edison, with the first patent granted in 1879 and the second in 1880.
However, other historians contend that it is too simplistic to credit the invention only to Edison. They assert that Edison invented the light bulb, however it was just one among several such innovations.
Some assert that although Edison's electric light bulbs were distinctive compared to their predecessors, greater recognition should be attributed to British inventor Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, who concurrently developed incandescent lights and subsequently collaborated with Edison. Conversely, another group of historians contends that this revisionist narrative is an overcorrection, asserting that Edison is the legitimate creator of the light bulb.
To evaluate the extent of Edison's credit for the creation of the incandescent light bulb, it is essential to analyse the contributions of preceding innovators.
Who really invented the light bulb?
It's simple to claim that Thomas Edison or Joseph Swan invented the light bulb, but in actuality, they built upon earlier research from the turn of the 19th century. Warren de la Rue, William Staite, James Bowman Lindsay, Humphrey Davy, and Alessandro Volta all contributed.
Therefore, it is possible to refer to the light bulb as a cumulative effort, as a number of important figures contributed to the process before Swan and Edison produced the useful bulbs that led to what we have today.
Thomas Edison experimented with the work of others before him to address many of the early issues with the electric lamp. He was the first to create a lightbulb that was actually commercially feasible by figuring out the ideal combination of thin carbon filament design and using improved vacuum pump technology.
Alessandro Volta
At the onset of the 19th century, Italian inventor Alessandro Volta advanced the principles of electrical current regulation, resulting in his "voltaic pile," which essentially operated as a battery. Volta's name may be recognisable as the electrical unit "volt" is named after him.
Humphry Davy, incandescent lamp
Humphry Davy (1778–1829) devised an early variant of the arc lamp, generating illumination using an electric arc, sometimes referred to as a voltaic arc.
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The voltaic pile motivated British scientist Humphry Davy to create his own battery and utilise it to energise an arc light. The arc lamp really generated visible light within a bulb, and given its introduction in 1806, Davy's innovation preceded Edison's by more than seventy years.
Davy's arc lamp produced an intensely brilliant light, was difficult to regulate, necessitated substantial electric current, and had a limited lifespan for practical domestic application. Although it proved useful as an outside streetlight, the electric arc lamp was unsuitable as a domestic lighting fixture.
James Bowman Lindsay and Warren de la Rue,
chemists following Davy, recognised that the essential element for a sustainable incandescent lamp was selecting a filament capable of emitting a continuous light under electrical current without incinerating. In 1835, Scottish scientist James Bowman Lindsay introduced a copper-filament light bulb, and in 1840, British scientist Warren de la Rue unveiled a platinum-filament bulb.
These light bulbs predated Edison's inventions, although they remained impractical. Lindsay's copper deteriorated rapidly, whilst de la Rue's platinum was prohibitively costly, despite platinum's elevated melting point being a significant advancement.
These designs were also hindered by inadequate vacuum tube technology, resulting in gas becoming trapped within the glass bulbs. This undesirable gas may disrupt the filament, complicating the production of light.
Edison's Advancement to the Functional Light Bulb
Thomas Edison was the innovator who ultimately developed a genuinely functional light bulb, although this achievement followed years of testing. While employed at the Edison Electric Light Company, Edison designed a high-resistance cotton filament that sustained combustion for almost 14 hours during testing. It utilised far less electricity than rival designs.
Furthermore, Edison profited from the Sprengel air pump, devised in 1877, which significantly enhanced vacuum pump technology and enabled manufacturers to evacuate external gases from a glass bulb. The high electrical resistance of cotton, in conjunction with this factor, enabled filaments to endure combustion for a much extended duration. Edison submitted his initial patent application in 1879, which the U.S. Patent Office approved in January 1880. Edison subsequently established the Edison Illuminating Company.
Edison Illuminating Company was never affiliated with General Electric, another enterprise started by Edison. The Edison Illuminating Company established the inaugural electricity generating stations in America, functioning under the designation Edison Electric Ill.
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