The Evolution of Lighting

THE EVOLUTION OF LIGHTING Fire was the initial source of light with kindle wood being burned to bring light as well as warmth. 70,000 BC The first man made lamps were made from hollowed-out rocks and shells. These were then filled with a combustible material, sprinkled with animal fat and then ignited. 1780 From the open dish, design changed to closed with a spout that gave better quality and enabled decoration of the lamps. Reign of the oil lamp lasted until the middle of the 19th century when kerosene lamp appeared on the scene. 1792 William Murdoch introduced gas lighting as a replacement for oil and tallow produced light. Murdoch's house at Redruth was the first domestic residence to be lit by gas. 1846 Medical doctor and geologist Abraham Gesner produced Kerosene, a clear fluid made by distilling coal. When kerosene is placed in a lamp with a wick it burns with a bright yellow flame, much brighter than burning oil. Kerosene lamps were easily portable with a much better light. 1809 Sir Humphry Davy created the first incandescent light by passing electricity through a strip of platinum. This was developed into the Miner's safety lamp that was able to provide light in the presence of flammable gas. 1850 Joseph Swan was an English scientist who started to develop a glass bulb using carbonised paper filaments but it was to be another decade before he had a working prototype. 1879 Thomas Edison created the first commercially practical incandescent lamp. It was to become a very popular high quality light but due to the inefficiency of the lamp it has since been banned in Europe. 1959 Halogen lamps were an evolution of the incandescent light bulb. Also known as a tungsten halogen, quartz-halogen or quartz iodine lamp, the addition of halogen gas and the tungsten filament produces a halogen cycle that increases its life and allows a higher luminous efficacy giving a better light. 1973 Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLS) are also known as energy saving light. Ed Hammer, an engineer with General Electric, developed the modern CFL. Compact Fluorescent Lamps are energy efficient but there are increasing environmental concerns due to the mercury content. 1993 Shuji Nakamura from Japan developed the first blue LED, essential for producing white LEDS - which he later designed too. 1995 The first white light emitting diode (LED) went on sale. 2006 LEDS with more than 100 lumens per watt were produced. 2014 Professor Nakamura, along with Professors Isamu Akasaki and Hiroshi Amano won the Nobel prize for physics in recognition of their breakthrough work on the blue LED. 2015 Sensor technology is rapidly advancing and getting smaller; sensors are being integrated into an increasing number of objects. It is predicted that by 2022 half of the residential market will be replaced by LEDS. Sucketstore www.socketstore.co.uk