Warren Marrison
Warren A. Marrison | |
|---|---|
| Born | Warren Alvin Marrison[1] 21 May 1896 Inverary, Ontario,Canada |
| Died | 27 March 1980(aged 83) Palo Verdes Estates, California[2] |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Known for | Quartz clock |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Horology |
| Institutions | Bell Labs |
Warren A. Marrison(21 May 1896 – 27 March 1980)[2]was a Canadianengineerandinventor.Marrison was the co-inventor of the firstQuartz clockin 1927.[3]
Early life and education
[edit]Marrison was born in Inverary, Frontenac county, Ontario.[2]He studied at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, where he was part of a new program in engineering physics. He graduated in 1920 with a bachelor's degree in physics engineering;[4]his studies were interrupted by World War I when he served in theRoyal Flying Corpsas a radio technician.[2]
Beginning in 1921, he studied atHarvard University,ultimately receiving a master's degree.[2]He worked at first for Western Electric in New York City, but moved to Bell Laboratories in New York beginning in 1925.[2]
Quartz clock
[edit]AtBell LabsinNew York,Marrison was working on frequency standards using quartz as a reference. It was in 1927 that he developed the first quartz clock while working with J.W. Horton. The clock used a block of crystal, stimulated by electricity, to produce pulses at a frequency of 50,000 cycles per second.[5]A submultiple controlled frequency generator then divided this down to a usable, regular pulse that drove asynchronous motor.[5]While this first version of the clock was crude; Morrison produced a more refined version in 1928.[2]A New York Times headline in October 1929 reported "Electrified Quartz Crystal Displaces Clock Pendulum".[6]
Legacy and awards
[edit]The invention would lead AT&T, the subsequent owners of Bell Labs, to develop a timepiece division calledFrequency Control Products.[7]This would eventually become the company Vectron International.[7]
In 1947 Marrison was awarded a Gold Medal from the British Horological Institute.[8]In 1955 theClockmakers Companyawarded him the Tompion Medal.[2]
In 2011 Marrison was inducted into theInventor's Hall of Fame.[9]
References
[edit]- ^Paul, Larry R. (2005).Made in the Twentieth Century: A Guide to Contemporary Collectibles.Scarecrow Press.ISBN978-0-8108-4563-3.
- ^abcdefghDay, Lance; McNeil, Ian (2002-09-11).Biographical Dictionary of the History of Technology.Routledge.ISBN978-1-134-65019-4.
- ^Johnston, Andrew Kenneth; Connor, Roger; Stephens, Carlene E.; Ceruzzi, Paul E. (2015).Time and Navigation: The Untold Story of Getting from Here to There.Smithsonian Institution.ISBN978-1-58834-491-5.
- ^"History | Department of Physics, Engineering Physics & Astronomy".www.queensu.ca.
- ^abMarrison, W. A."The Evolution of the Quartz Crystal Clock".IEEE UFFC.
- ^"ELECTRIFIED QUARTZ CRYSTAL DISPLACES CLOCK PENDULUM".The New York Times.1929-10-13.
- ^ab"AT&T Archives: Quartz Crystal Growing".techchannel.att.com.
- ^Marrison, Warren A. (1948)."The Evolution of the Quartz Crystal Clock*".Bell System Technical Journal.27(3): 510–588.doi:10.1002/j.1538-7305.1948.tb01343.x.
- ^"NIHF Inductee Warren Marrison Invented the Quartz Clock".www.invent.org.
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