TY - UNPB
T1 - Acts of Invention and Acts of Business in the GPT-Electricity
T2 - What did Morse, Bell and Marconi have in common?
AU - van der Kooij, Bauke
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - The General Purpose Technology of Electricity (GPT-E) as a meta-technology has been a driving force of economic growth in the Second Industrial Revolution. Fuelled by inventions (eg the electric motor/dynamo, electric light, telegraph, and telephone), its micro-foundations were the General Purpose Engines (GPE). These GPEs were the basic innovations within their of Clusters of Innovations. These innovations, characterized by their social and economic impact, were the result of the work of single individuals. It was their respective Acts of Invention that created the artefacts that played such an essential role in the spawning of the GPT-E; and it were their Acts of Business that created their patent-based commercial monopolies. Based on extensive case studies, we investigated the individual contributions of Samuel Morse (telegraph), Alexander Bell (telephone) and Guglielmo Marconi (wireless), to find that they had much in common. Their Acts of Invention—the process from idea to prototype and product—and their Acts of Business—the process from prototype to commercial product—are presented and show remarkable similarities.
AB - The General Purpose Technology of Electricity (GPT-E) as a meta-technology has been a driving force of economic growth in the Second Industrial Revolution. Fuelled by inventions (eg the electric motor/dynamo, electric light, telegraph, and telephone), its micro-foundations were the General Purpose Engines (GPE). These GPEs were the basic innovations within their of Clusters of Innovations. These innovations, characterized by their social and economic impact, were the result of the work of single individuals. It was their respective Acts of Invention that created the artefacts that played such an essential role in the spawning of the GPT-E; and it were their Acts of Business that created their patent-based commercial monopolies. Based on extensive case studies, we investigated the individual contributions of Samuel Morse (telegraph), Alexander Bell (telephone) and Guglielmo Marconi (wireless), to find that they had much in common. Their Acts of Invention—the process from idea to prototype and product—and their Acts of Business—the process from prototype to commercial product—are presented and show remarkable similarities.
KW - General purpose technology
KW - technological innovation
KW - cluster of innovations
KW - act of invention
KW - act of business
KW - history of technology
UR - http://resolver.tudelft.nl/529b66cb-cc63-474d-ba0f-cc187e5d2fe4
U2 - 10.13140/RG.2.2.24839.91046
DO - 10.13140/RG.2.2.24839.91046
M3 - Working paper
SP - 1
EP - 24
BT - Acts of Invention and Acts of Business in the GPT-Electricity
ER -