John Logie Baird
John Logie Baird (b. August 13 1888, d. June 14 1946) of Scotland (University of Glasgow) was the first to invent a working system of television capable of showing moving images with shades of grey. Baird demonstrated his system to the Royal Institution and a reporter from The Times on January 26 1926 in the Soho district of London.From 1929 onwards, the BBC made broadcasts using the Baird television system, alternating these with broadcasts of electronic scanning system television signals during the 1930s, until it finally discontinued broadcasts of the Baird system in 1937.
Baird's mechanical television system was replaced by the electronic television system described by A.A. Campbell-Swinton and later developed by inventors such as Philo T. Farnsworth and Vladimir Zworykin.
Baird never stopped inventing. His 1928 invention called the Phonodisc was basically a 78rpm record that could play a 30 line video signal. Shortly before his death he demonstrated his own colour television system, which had 1000 lines of definition and good picture quality. It was not compatible with exsisting black and white television so was never adopted.
External Links
- Baird on DigitalCentury.com
- Mechanical TV: Baird Television
- Baird bio on BBC site
- John Logie Baird - Gizmohighway Technology Guide
