Category Archives: Inventions

Pipe Cleaner

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Pipe Cleaner

Pipe cleaners were once a cleaner and now a craft.

  • A pipe cleaner is a long, narrow cleaning utensil that has an abundance of absorbent fibres attached.
  • Pipe cleaners are also know as ‘chenille stems’ and ‘chenille sticks’.
  • Pipe cleaners are most commonly used for cleaning narrow, hollow objects or used in craft projects, and they come in a variety of shapes and thicknesses, with the typical shape being cylindrical.
  • Pipe cleaners are commonly coloured in various bright colours and they can be bicoloured or metallic, while the colours are sometimes used to categorise different things or used for craft purposes.
  • Pipe cleaners are generally made of a few pieces of wire that secure numerous short strands of cotton, viscose, nylon, polyester or polypropylene, that form short bristles.

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  • Pipe cleaners were originally invented to clean tobacco pipes, but they can be adapted and used to clean many other items.
  • Many different pipe cleaners were invented in the 1800s, although most of them do not resemble modern style ones, although a pipe-stem cleaner, as it was called, with similar qualities, was patented in 1896 by Fredrick Frick, from Rochester, New York, in the United States.
  • Pipe cleaners typically range from 15 to 50 centimetres (6 to 20 inches) in length, depending on their purpose, with shorter lengths often used for cleaning, and longer lengths generally used for craft purposes.
  • The invention of the modern, chenille style pipe cleaner, is often credited to Charles Angel and inventor John Stedman, who was also from Rochester, New York, in the United States, in the early 1900s.
  • The BJ Long company was possibly the first to mass-produce modern style pipe cleaners, since the company was sold rights to Angel’s and Stedman’s design.
Bibliography:
Foster G, John Harry Stedman: His Busy Life and Weird Inventions, n.d, University of Rochester, http://www.lib.rochester.edu/IN/RBSCP/Epitaph/ATTACHMENTS/31_3.pdf
Frick, F 1896, ‘Pipe-stem Cleaner’, US566570, 25 August, p. 1, Google Patents, Google
I Raise my Pipe to the Humble Pipe Cleaner, 2013, rebornpipes, http://rebornpipes.com/tag/history-of-pipe-cleaners/
Pipe Cleaner, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipe_cleaner

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Toy Marble

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Toy Marble

Flick the marble down the hill.

  • Marbles are small ball-shaped toys that have a diameter averaging 1.3 to 2.5 centimetres (0.5 to 1 inch), but they can be as big as 7.6 centimetres (3 inches) and as small as 0.1 of a centimetre (0.03 of an inch).
  • Marbles are most commonly made of glass, although steel, ceramic, plastic or clay is sometimes used.
  • Marbles are often used to play games of the same name, with various rules that usually involve rolling or tossing one at a group of others, often to push them out of a boundary.
  • Marbles were invented thousands of years ago, and were a popular item in Ancient Egypt and Rome.
  • Marbles became commercially viable in the 1800s, particularly later in the century, after American Samuel Dyke and others started mass producing them, as the toy was previously individually handmade.

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  • The British and World Marbles Championships has occurred annually in England’s West Sussex, in Europe since 1932, and other competitions are held around the world, including the United States, and Australia.
  • Marbles typically contain brightly coloured patterns including swirls, although solid colours, clear ones, and others with imagery are also available.
  • Marbles are often collected, due to the variety and value of some, and very rare specimens can sell for up to $10,000, although the value of more common examples can be halved if any defects such as chips or cracks are present.
  • Marbles are often made by melting recycled glass, that is then cut into even portions and dropped onto moving rollers that allow the malleable glass to form balls as they cool.
  • Marbles, said to be named due to the stone that they were manufactured from in the past, have been historically made of clay, and they were also produced using glass or stone.
Bibliography:
A Brief History of the Birth of the Modern American Toy Industry in Akron, Ohio, 2008, American Toy Marble Museum, http://www.americantoymarbles.com/akronhist.htm
History of Marbles, 2012, Oh Marbles!, http://www.imarbles.com/historyofmarbles.php
Marble (Toy), 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marble_(toy)

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Playground Slide

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Playground Slide

Don’t you like sliding down playground slides?

  • Playground slides are entertainment constructions often placed in recreational areas or residential backyards, as well as amusement parks.
  • ‘Playground slides’ are also known as ‘slides’, ‘slippery dips’ and ‘slippery slides’.
  • Playground slides are often a slippery, flat or partially curved strip of material, with barriers on the left and right, either perpendicular or sloped.
  • Playground slides are used by people, typically children, by them climbing up a ladder or set of stairs to reach the top of the slide, sitting on their backside at the top; and pushing themselves forward so that they are propelled down the slide’s strip.
  • Playground slides are commonly curved in some form, often around a structure, while some are completely enclosed, and they come in a variety of colours.

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  • Although fun, playground slides can be quite dangerous; injuries such as bruises, scrapes, cuts and broken bones can occur, often due to an unsafe user or slide, such as a high drop.
  • Playground slides are typically made of plastic, wood and/or metal, although the latter often heats up in the sun and can cause burns.
  • Adults often slide down playground slides with their children, although it is a common cause of broken legs in young children, due to the possibility of the child’s foot catching onto the slide and the force of the parent’s movement pushing the child forward with their foot still caught.
  • The origin of playground slides is uncertain, although one of the first slides patented was possibly by James Kirker of Kentucky in the United States in 1893, which was intended as a fire escape, however earlier patents exist for water slide designs, and slides were being constructed by the beginning of the 1900s.
  • Many laws have been passed regarding the legality and guidelines of construction and placement of playground slides, particularly regarding protruding devices and the slide drop.
Bibliography:
Erickson A, The Politics of Playgrounds, a History, 2012, Citylab, http://www.citylab.com/design/2012/03/politics-playgrounds-history/1480/
Kirker, J 1893, ‘Fire-escape’, US506238, 10 October, p. 1, Google Patents, Google
Playground Slide, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playground_slide

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Thumbtack

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Be careful not to drop your thumbtacks.

  • Thumbtacks are small items that have a ‘head’ attached to a sharp tip, or body, which can be inserted into a board to hold items in place or used as a marker.
  • ‘Thumbtacks’ are also known as ‘map tacks’, ‘push pins’, ‘drawing pins’, and ‘chart pins’, with various word combinations, sometimes without spaces or with hyphens.
  • Thumbtacks bodies are typically made of metal such as brass, tin, stainless steel or iron, and the head is usually plastic, wood or metal.
  • Thumbtacks are typically pushed into a softer solid, like cork, using one’s fingers and arm strength.
  • Thumbtacks traditionally have a circular or cylindrical head, although they can be other shapes, and the head can be raised, flat, bevelled or indented.

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  • Swallowing thumbtacks can cause great internal damage, including choking and tissue damage.
  • Contrary to popular belief, the thumbtack was invented as early as the mid 1870s, although the British term ‘drawing pin’ was in use sometime in the 1850s or 1860s, and patents exist for the item as early as the 1890s.
  • Thumbtacks can be dangerous if dropped and left unnoticed on the floor, as upward facing pins can be easily stepped on, although some designs are more likely to face downwards if dropped.
  • Thumbtacks were historically used by draftsmen for the purpose of attaching paper to a drawing board, hence the name ‘drawing pin’.
  • Thumbtacks come in a variety of sizes, colours and shapes, that are often used for different purposes, such as in art or as markers, and they are generally considered as stationery items.
Bibliography:
Drawing Pin, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drawing_pin
The Invention of the Push Pin and Its Usages Today, n.d, Answers, http://invent.answers.com/clothing/the-invention-of-the-push-pin-and-its-usages-today

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Napkin

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How would you politely wipe your face without a napkin?

  • Napkins are pieces of material used to politely remove food from one’s face and hands.
  • ‘Napkins’ are also known as ‘face towels’ and ‘serviettes’, and are most commonly manufactured white, as the colour symbolises cleanliness and gives a fresh feel.
  • Napkins are typically made from fabric, that can be washed and reused; or paper, that are usually disposed of after use.
  • Napkins are often square or rectangular in shape; often patterned in design; and are commonly folded for aesthetic purposes.
  • ‘Napkin’ derives from the word ‘nape’, the Old French word for a tablecloth or towel, that originally comes from the Latin word for map, ‘mappa’, and ‘kin’ is the word for ‘little’ in Middle English.

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  • For table settings, napkins are generally placed to the left of the fork on the table; in the middle of a plate; wrapped around cutlery; grouped together in a specially designed holder; or placed in a ring usually to the left of the fork.
  • Early napkins are believed to have originated as slices of a type of bread, used by those from ancient Greece; ancient Chinese used paper; while ancient Romans are said to have used cloth, that eventually became popular by the 1500s.
  • Napkins normally range in sizes of 13 by 13 centimetres (5 by 5 inches), up to 51 by 56 centimetres (20 by 22 inches).
  • Napkins come in a variety of colours and patterns, can be customised with text and imagery, and are not always strictly a rectangular or square shape.
  • Napkins are often folded into triangles, but also many other shapes, often utilising origami methods to create flowers. cranes and other designs, and paper ones are often purchased already folded in quarters.
Bibliography:
Napkin, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napkin
Napkins, 2014, Napkin Folding Styles, http://www.napkinfoldingstyles.com/napkins/

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Hair Dryer

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Hair Dryer

Be careful not to mess up your hair with a hair dryer.

  • Hair dryers are electrical machines used to dry and evaporate water molecules in hair or other materials, using air flow.
  • A ‘hair dryer’ is also known as a ‘blowdryer’ and a ‘blow dryer’.
  • Hair dryers typically contain a motor that runs a fan, that blows air across hot, electricity-powered wires to produce a warm flow of air.
  • Hair dryers were first invented in 1888 by French hairstylist Alexandre Godefroy, and although his invention produced heat, it did not blow air.
  • Hair dryers are often made with attachments that may spread air, that helps to maintain hair shape; or focus air, which allows quicker drying.

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  • Early hair dryers were typically large and long, in an upside-down bowl shape, and were used by placing one’s head underneath the air-blowing opening.
  • Vacuum cleaners are said to have been used for hair drying purposes, before the introduction of hair dryers.
  • Hair dryers were originally designed from heavy materials including metal, but they became more practical and lightweight with the introduction of plastic.
  • A handheld hair dryer was invented by Gabriel Kazanjian, an inventor from America, in 1908, that used heated air flow with a fan, which is the basis of our modern devices.
  • Hair dryers resulted in hundreds of annual electrocutions up until significant legislation was set up in the 1970s and the 1990s, and due to the safety regulations, they are now considered a safe appliance to use with very few related deaths occurring.

 

Bibliography:
Gross J, Who made that hair dryer?, 2013, The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/21/magazine/who-made-that-hair-dryer.html?_r=0
Hair Dryer, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_dryer

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