Thomas Edison
Inventor of many devices that greatly influenced the modern world
IP Hall of Fame inductee in 2006
One of the greatest inventors and industrial leaders in history, he obtained 1,093 US patents, the most issued to any individual. Edison’s greatest contribution was the first practical electric lighting. He invented the first successful electric light bulb and set up the first electrical power distribution company. He invented the phonograph, made improvements to the telegraph, telephone and motion picture technology, and also founded the first modern research laboratory. He remains today the outstanding example of the use of the patent system to enable industrial and economic development. “The Wizard of Menlo Park” was one of the first inventors to apply the principles of mass production to the process of invention. He is also credited as pioneering the first fully fledged R&D laboratory. Through his inventions and entrepreneurial business use of IP, he is often considered to be one of the most influential persons in shaping the modern world.