Francis Robbins Upton

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Francis Robbins Upton

Francis Robbins Upton (born July 26, 1852 in Peabody , Massachusetts , † March 10, 1921 in Orange , New York ) was an American physicist and mathematician who u. a. was involved in the development of the US electrical industry as assistant to Thomas Alva Edison .

biography

Upton grew up in Massachusetts. He studied at Bowdoin College in Brunswick , Maine , Princeton University and Berlin , where he a. a. worked with Hermann von Helmholtz . He was one of the earliest Princeton graduates, receiving his Master of Science degree in 1877 .

In 1878 he joined Thomas A. Edison's laboratory in Menlo Park , New Jersey . There he dealt with mathematical problems in the development of the flicker-free light bulb, the watt-hour meter (device for recording electrical energy consumption) and large dynamos. In October 1879, the first incandescent lamp with carbon filament was finally demonstrated, with which the competition against gas lamps was successfully started after further optimizations. He was partner and general manager of Edison Lamp Works , from 1881 Edison Lamp Co., which he co-founded in 1880. The company became part of Edison General Electric Co. in 1889 , which in turn merged with Thomson-Houston Co. to form General Electric in 1892 . No source is available on the question of whether Upton was paid out or held shares in the successor companies.

Upton published inventions and findings and wrote, among other things, a. for Scribner's Monthly and Scientific American .

In 1958, the Francis Upton Graduate Fellowships were established at Princeton University by a graduate .

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personal data
SURNAME Upton, Francis Robbins
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American physicist and mathematician
DATE OF BIRTH July 26, 1852
PLACE OF BIRTH Peabody , Massachusetts
DATE OF DEATH March 10, 1921
Place of death Orange , New York