Canada because of its healthy university system and a durable industrial base, has seen its inventors flourish in areas ranging from electronics to agriculture. We have put together a list of some very important canadian inventions that come from the land of the Maple Leaf. Check out the list below and do let us know what you think of it;
The Walkie-Talkie – A Famous Canadian Invention
Donald L. Hings was working for the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company during the late 1930s. The company relied on ‘bush pilots’ for flying between the remote mining outposts, and these pilots were in need of a lightweight radio for the sake of communicating with remote ground towers for obtaining current weather and ground conditions. Hings is the person who designed and developed a ‘two-way field radio’ that weighed less enough to be used in aviation.
Canada declared war on Germany in 1939, and it was during this time that Donald worked under the military for refining his two-way field radio. The term walkie-talkie was coined by reporters during World War II.
IMAX Movie System Is A Canadian Invention!
Back in the 1960s, Canadian filmmaker Graeme Ferguson came up with a new format for his documentary film, Polar Life. Instead of being projected on a single screen, it was projected on numerous screens at once thus forming an immersive and bigger than life experience for the viewers. Working with his production partners, Robert Kerr, Roman Kroitor, and William Shaw, Ferguson expanded on this new format giving birth to what is today known as IMAX.
Ferguson and his partners came up with a new type of film called the 15/70 film format. It is 10 times larger than the conventional 35-millimeter film.
The Electric Wheelchair
Canadian George Klein and his inventions are not as well-known as Alexander Graham Bell. However, his inventions greatly helped to sculpt the twentieth century. His innovations vary from defense systems, aviation, and space technology. However, he is best known for inventing the electric wheelchair.
Klein was working as a mechanical engineer at the National Research Council of Canada when soldiers were returning from second world war. Most of these soldiers had spinal injuries. He designed the wheelchair so that the veterans could move about easily. The wheelchair featured individual wheel drives for providing a small turning radius and had joystick controls for operating it easily.
The Telephone
Alexander Graham Bell is a name that you are well aware of on account of the invention of the telephone. He was born in Scotland, but the family relocated to Brantford, Ontario when Bell was in his early twenties. He was fascinated by sound and electricity. In fact, he even altered a kind of pump organ that is known as ‘Melodeon’ for transmitting sounds over a larger distance by making use of electricity.
He created the first telephone in 1875 by working along with his assistant Thomas A. Watson. Bell and Watson continued working on the gadget until on 10th March 1876; Bell spoke these words, ‘Mr. Watson – Come here – I want to see you’, and Thomas Watson was able to hear them on the other end!
