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Charles Proteus Steinmetz

 
Charles Proteus Steinmetz

 
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Charles Proteus Steinmetz
 
 
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Charles Proteus Steinmetz (April 9, 1865 – October 26, 1923) was a German-American mathematician
Mathematician

A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study and/or research is the field of mathematics....
 and electrical engineer. He fostered the development of alternating current
Alternating current

In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. An electric charge would for instance move forward, then backward, then forward, then backward, over and over again....
 that made possible the expansion of the electric power industry in the United States, formulating mathematical theories for engineers.






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Somerset 01
Charles Proteus Steinmetz (April 9, 1865 – October 26, 1923) was a German-American mathematician
Mathematician

A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study and/or research is the field of mathematics....
 and electrical engineer. He fostered the development of alternating current
Alternating current

In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. An electric charge would for instance move forward, then backward, then forward, then backward, over and over again....
 that made possible the expansion of the electric power industry in the United States, formulating mathematical theories for engineers. He made ground-breaking discoveries in the understanding of hysteresis
Hysteresis

A system with hysteresis can be summarized as a system that may be in any number of states, independent of the inputs to the system. To be exact, a system with hysteresis exhibits path-dependence, or "rate-independent memory"....
 that enabled engineers to design better electric motors for use in industry.

Biography

Steinmetz was born as Carl August Rudolph Steinmetz to Carl Heinrich Steinmetz in Breslau, Province of Silesia
Province of Silesia

The Province of Silesia was a Provinces of Prussia of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1919; the territory had been conquered from Habsburg Monarchy during the 18th century Silesian Wars....
, on April 9, 1865. Steinmetz suffered from dwarfism
Dwarfism

Dwarfism is a medical term describing a person of short stature, with the most widely accepted definition of a dwarf being a person with an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches ....
, hunchback
Kyphosis

Kyphosis also called "hunch back" or "hunchbackism" or "hunchbackedness", in general terms, is a common condition of a curvature of the upper spine ....
, and hip dysplasia
Hip dysplasia (human)

Hip dysplasia, developmental dysplasia of the hip or congenital dysplasia of the hip is a congenital or acquired deformation or misalignment of the hip joint....
, as did his father and grandfather.

Steinmetz attended Johannes Gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)

A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English Grammar schools in the United Kingdoms or sixth form colleges and U.S....
 and astonished his teachers with his proficiency in mathematics and physics. He went on to the University of Breslau to begin work on his undergraduate degree in 1883. He was on the verge of finishing his Doctorate in 1888 when he came under investigation by the German police.

Steinmetz drew the attention of the authorities due to his activity in a socialist university group and articles he had written for a local socialist newspaper (socialist meetings and press were outlawed by Otto von Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck

Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Sch?nhausen, Duke of Lauenburg, Prince of Bismarck, , was a Kingdom of Prussia and Germany statesman and aristocrat of the 19th century....
). He fled to Zürich
Zürich

Z?rich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Z?rich. The city is Switzerland's main commercial and cultural centre and sometimes called the Cultural Capital of Switzerland, the political capital of Switzerland being Berne....
 in 1888 to escape possible arrest and when the time remaining on his permit dwindled, emigrated to the United States in 1889. Shortly after arriving, he went to work for Rudolf Eickemeyer in Yonkers, New York
Yonkers, New York

Yonkers is the fourth largest city in the U.S. State of New York , and the largest city in Westchester County, with a population of 196,086 . More recent estimates put the population at 197,234 in 2002, 197,126 in 2004 and 196,425 in 2005....
, and published in the field of magnetic hysteresis. Eickemeyer's firm developed transformer
Transformer

A transformer is a device that transfers electrical energy from one electrical network to another through inductive coupling conductors — the transformer's coils or "windings"....
s for use in the transmission of electrical power among many other mechanical and electrical devices. In 1893 Eickemeyer's company, along with all of his patents and designs, was bought by the newly formed General Electric
General Electric

The General Electric Company, or GE is a multinational corporation United States technology and Service s conglomerate incorporated in the State of New York....
 Company. At the International Electrical Congress, in Chicago he made one of his greatest contributions to the Electrical Engineering community, a lecture and presentation describing the mathematics of alternating current
Alternating current

In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. An electric charge would for instance move forward, then backward, then forward, then backward, over and over again....
 phenomena which had not previously been explained by earlier engineers. Steinmetz used the term phasor for his simplified mathematical representation of an electricity waveform, a property that has greatly simplified the analysis of AC circuits. Since the 1990's, phasor measurement units have been used to measure the health of wide area electrical networks, and are currently revolutionizing the power industry worldwide.

Use of Steinmetz's innovations in the mathematics of electricity enabled engineers to move from designing electric motors by trial and error to designing them with the aid of applicable mathematics to create on paper the best possible motor before actually constructing it. In 1894, General Electric moved to Schenectady, New York
Schenectady, New York

Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2000, the city had a population of 61,821, making it the ninth-largest city in New York....
, and Steinmetz was promoted to head of the calculating department, where his colleagues would bring to him the mathematical problems that were stumbling blocks to their projects. When not freely helping his co-workers, he worked on his own experiments in electrical engineering. One of Steinmetz's great research projects was centered with the phenomena of lightning. He undertook a systematic study of it, resulting in experiments of man-made lightning in the laboratory; this work was published.

Steinmetz was called the "forger of thunderbolts", being the first to create artificial lightning in his GE football field-sized laboratory and high towers, using 120,000 volt generators. He also erected a lightning tower to attract lightning and studied the patterns and effects of lightning hits on tree bark and in a broken mirror--resulting in several theories and ideas (like the effect of lightning on plant growth and ac electric poles).

Later years

Steinmetz served as president of the Board of Education
Board of education

A board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....
 of Schenectady, and as president of the Schenectady city council. He was also president of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers
American Institute of Electrical Engineers

The American Institute of Electrical Engineers was a United States based organization of electrical engineers that existed between 1884 and 1963 ....
 (AIEE) from 1901 to 1902 and a part-time professor at Union College
Union College

Union College is a private, non-denominational Liberal arts colleges in the United States located in Schenectady, New York. In 1795, Union became the first college chartered by the Regents of the State of New York....
 from 1902 to 1923, while still employed by General Electric
General Electric

The General Electric Company, or GE is a multinational corporation United States technology and Service s conglomerate incorporated in the State of New York....
 Company. Steinmetz had written 13 books and 60 articles, not all about science. Steinmetz was an honorary member and advisor to the fraternity Phi Gamma Delta
Phi Gamma Delta

Phi Gamma Delta is a collegiate social Fraternities and sororities with 107 chapters and 7 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Washington & Jefferson College, Pennsylvania in 1848 and its headquarters are located in Lexington, Kentucky, Kentucky, USA....
 at Union (one of the first electrified houses ever was the Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity house). He was also a member of the Technical Alliance
Technical Alliance

The Technical Alliance formed at the end of World War I was one of America's first think tanks. Their main task was the Energy Survey of North America....
 and contributed to their research on the Energy Survey of North America
Energy Survey of North America

The Energy Survey of North America was done by the Technical Alliance, the leader of which was Howard Scott. This survey was composed of data from government and private sources....
.

Steinmetz died on October 26, 1923 and was buried in Vale Cemetery, Schenectady.

Patents

At the time of his death, Steinmetz held over 200 patent
Patent

A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to an inventor or his assignee for a term of patent in exchange for a disclosure of an invention....
s:
  • Steinmetz, , "System of distribution by alternating current." January 29, 1895.
  • Steinmetz, , "Inductor dynamo."
  • Steinmetz, , "Three phase induction meter."
  • Steinmetz, , "Inductor dynamo."
  • Steinmetz, , "Induction motor."
  • Steinmetz, , "System of electrical distribution."
  • Steinmetz, , "Induction motor."
  • Steinmetz, , "Means for producing light." May 7, 1912.
  • Steinmetz, , "Induction furnace."
  • Steinmetz, , "Protective device."
  • Steinmetz, , "Inductor dynamo."


Awards

  • Cedergren Medal (1914).


Works

  • Theory and calculation of alternating current phenomena", with the assistance of Ernst J. Berg, 1897. Information from this book has been reprinted in many subsequent engineering texts.
  • "The Natural Period of a Transmission Line and the Frequency of lightning Discharge Therefrom", The Electrical World, August 27, 1898. Pg. 203 - 205.
  • Theoretical elements of electrical engineering, McGraw, 1902.
  • Future of Electricity, Transcript of lecture to the New York Electrical Trade School, 1908.
  • General lectures on electrical engineering, edited by Joseph Le Roy Hayden, Robson & Adee, 1908.
  • Radiation, light and illumination : a series of engineering lectures delivered at Union college, ed. by Joseph Le Roy Hayden, McGraw-Hill, 1909
  • Elementary lectures on electric discharges, waves and impulses, and other transients, 1911.
  • Theory and calculation of transient electric phenomena and oscillations, McGraw publishing company, 1911.
  • America and the new epoch, Harper, c. 1916.
  • Engineering mathematics; a series of lectures delivered at Union College, 1917.
  • Theory and calculation of electric apparatus, 1917.
  • at Project Gutenberg. Homer Heath Nugent, 1922.
  • Four lectures on relativity and space, McGraw-Hill book co. inc., 1923.


External links

  • November, 1998.
  • compiled from various sources on the Internet. April, 2003.
  • U.S. Supreme Court, "". Steimetz v. Allen, Commissioner of Patents. No. 383. Argued January 12, 13, 1904. Decided February 23, 1904.


Further reading

  • Charles Proteus Steinmetz: A Biography, John Winthrop Hammond, New York Century Co., 1924.
  • Steinmetz and his discoverer, John Thomas Broderick, 1924.
  • Loki: The Life of Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Jonathan Norton Leonard, Doubleday, 1929.
  • The Little Giant Of Schenectady, Dorothy Markey, Aladdin Books, 1936.
  • , Sigmund Lavine, Dodd & Mead, 1955.
  • Modern Jupiter, John Anderson Miller, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1958.
(aka The Man Who Tamed Lightning), Floyd Miller, McGraw-Hill, 1962.
  • Steinmetz the Philosopher, Ernest Caldecott, Philip Alger, 1965.
  • Charles Steinmetz: Scientist and Socialist (1865-1923) Including the complete Steinmetz-Lenin correspondence, Sender Garlin, American Institute for Marxist Studies, 1977 (reprinted in Sender Garlin's 1991 Three Radicals).
  • Recollections of Steinmetz - A Visit to the Workshops of Dr. Charles Proteus Steinmetz,Emil J. Remscheid, General Electric Hall of History Foundation, 1977.
  • Steinmetz in Schenectady - A Picture History of Three Memorable Decades, Larry Hart, Old Dorp Books, 1978.
  • Steinmetz: Engineer and Socialist, Ronald Kline, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998.