|
|
|
Charles Franklin
Kettering invented the first electrical ignition system and the self-starter
for automobile engines and the first practical engine-driven generator.
|
|
Born in an Ohio
farmhouse, Kettering graduated from Ohio State University in 1904 as an
engineer then joined the National Cash Register Company, where he oversaw
development of the electrically operated cash register, among other products.
|
|
In 1909 he left
NCR and, with businessman Edward A. Deeds, set up the Dayton Engineering
Laboratories Company or Delco, where he invented his most significant engine
devices. Kettering's engine-driven generator, named the 'Delco,' provided
electricity on millions of farms.
|
|
In 1916
Kettering sold his company to General Motors. At G.M. he set up and directed
a central research laboratory and stayed for 31 years, until his retirement
in 1947. The lab developed the lightweight diesel engine that made the diesel
locomotive possible, the refrigerant Freon, four-wheel brakes, safety glass,
and many other items.
|
|
Kettering was
the holder of some 140 patents. Along with G.M. President Alfred Sloan, he
established the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research.
|
