Nov 24, 2008

Nov. 24, 1903: Starting Your Car Gets a Bit Easier



1903 (Wired): Clyde J. Coleman is issued a patent for an electric automobile starter.
Coleman originally applied for the patent in 1899, but his early designs proved impractical. The need for this kind of starter for an internal combustion engine was obvious. Automobiles were getting larger, and hand-cranking — the method used to get the pistons moving in order to make ignition possible — was not only cumbersome, but physically demanding and potentially injurious. Continued


Photo: Ben Shahn FSA/OWI/LoC

0 comments: