Inventors
Electric
Blanket
By
Mary
Bellis
The electric blanket was invented
sometime in the early 1900s. The heated bed coverings bore
little resemblance to the electric blankets we are familiar with today.
They were big and bulky heating devices that were dangerous to use and
the blankets were really considered an oddity.
In 1921, electric blankets started
receiving more attention, after being regularly used in tuberculosis
sanitariums. Tuberculosis patents were routinely prescribed lots of fresh
air, which included sleeping outdoors. The blankets were used to keep the
patients warm. When any product comes to public attention, attempts to
improve design begins and the electric blanket was no exception.
In 1936, the first automatic, electric
blanket was invented. It had a separate thermostat control which automatically
turned on and off, in response to room temperature. The thermostat also
served as a safety device, turning off if hot spots in the blanket occurred.
Later, thermostats were wired into the blankets and multiple thermostats
were used. This basic design remained until 1984, when thermostats-free
electric blankets were introduced. The term "electric blanket" was not
used until the 1950s, blankets used to be called "warming pads" or "heated
quilts"
Today's electric blankets can respond
to both room and body temperatures. The blankets can even send more heat
to your cold feet and less to your hot head (that is if you cover your
head with the blanket.)
Automatic
Electric Blankets
History of electric blankets and how electric blankets work.
More Trivia...
These are unsubstantiated facts;
I am still researching the following.
That in 1946, the first automatic,
electric blanket, went on sale in the US, for $39.50, in Petersburg, Virginia.
That S. I. Russell patented an electric
blanket, and some people consider him the inventor of the electric blanket.
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