-
Radio-Transmitted Voice
Inventor - Reginald Fessenden
Radios were not as commonly used in the first world war, but they were in the second. Reginald has always wanted to speak without wires and he travelled to the States to do so. Someone beat him to the first one-way telegraph transmission but Fessenden and his team sent the first two-way signal (Philips). -
Robertson Screw
Inventor - Lymburner Robertson
The Robertson screw was created by Canadian Inventor Peter L. Robertson as he wanted to create a screw that was new and safer. This screw was more commonly used in boats for the World Wars (Robertson Inc.). -
Ross Rifle
Inventor - Charles Ross
The Ross rifle was a Canadian made infantry weapon that earned a bad reputation in the first World War. It made this reputation for itself as it was unreliable when in combat (Foulds). It was invented before this time period, but this was when it was most commonly used. -
Gas Mask
Inventor - Cluny Macpherson
The Germans used poison gas in Ypres, Belgium during World War 1, so Macpherson decided to find protection. The first model was made of fabric and metal. This mask did not provide the best protection as it was a prototype (Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Website). The soldiers still used it as it was superior to urinating on a rag and covering their mouths. -
Huot Automatic Rifle
Inventor - Joseph Alphonse Huot
Huot (former employee of the Ross Rifle Company) was disappointed in the performance of the ross rifle and had hopes to improve it. He transformed the Ross rifle but they only got to the prototype stage and were never widely available (Canadian War Museum). -
Zipper
Inventor - Gideon Sundback
The zipper was used in many uniforms for the men at war. It was originally founded in 1851, but Gideon Sundback created a design with interlocking teeth. The name was originally “Hookless No. 2” but was renamed in 1923 (Smit & Van Wyk). -
Variable Pitch Propeller
Inventor - Wallace Rupert Turnbull
Airplanes were an important vehicle during WW1 even though to control it was difficult. A pilot would not be able to maneuver the plane freely or accurately. Turnbull opened a property for experiments on aerodynamics and airfoils in 1905. In 1918, the variable pitch propeller was created and it was a game-changer coming into WW2 (Montgomery). -
Fathometer
Inventor - Reginald Fessenden
Although sonar was not much use in WW1 it was still an innovative technology that was being developed at the time. Fessenden sent his first two-way signal in January 1906 and they kept developing this technology until they could use it in 1918 to receive a submarine echo during the war ("Dosits"). -
Insulin
Inventor - Fredrick Banting
Insulin was not of major use in the World War but it was around the same time period that it was invented. In 1921 a team of scientists at the University of Toronto began experimenting. Later on in the spring of 1922, they officially discovered insulin (Bliss). -
Snowmobile
Inventor - Joseph-Armand Bombardier
Bombardier was one of the first mechanics that developed a vehicle that can drive over snow. The propeller-driven sled was created in 1922 and was the beginning of snowmobiles. Later models like the B-7, were used in WW2 (Debresson).
