Print Email Facebook Twitter Acts of Invention and Acts of Business in the GPT-Electricity Title Acts of Invention and Acts of Business in the GPT-Electricity: What did Morse, Bell and Marconi have in common? Author van der Kooij, B.J.G. (TU Delft ImPhys/Acoustical Wavefield Imaging) Date 2017 Abstract The General Purpose Technology of Electricity (GPT-E) as a meta-technology has been a driving force of economic growth in the Second Industrial Revolution. Fuelled by inventions (eg the electric motor/dynamo, electric light, telegraph, and telephone), its micro-foundations were the General Purpose Engines (GPE). These GPEs were the basic innovations within their of Clusters of Innovations. These innovations, characterized by their social and economic impact, were the result of the work of single individuals. It was their respective Acts of Invention that created the artefacts that played such an essential role in the spawning of the GPT-E; and it were their Acts of Business that created their patent-based commercial monopolies. Based on extensive case studies, we investigated the individual contributions of Samuel Morse (telegraph), Alexander Bell (telephone) and Guglielmo Marconi (wireless), to find that they had much in common. Their Acts of Invention—the process from idea to prototype and product—and their Acts of Business—the process from prototype to commercial product—are presented and show remarkable similarities. Subject General purpose technologytechnological innovationcluster of innovationsact of inventionact of businesshistory of technology To reference this document use: http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:529b66cb-cc63-474d-ba0f-cc187e5d2fe4 DOI https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.24839.91046 Page numbers 1-24 Part of collection Institutional Repository Document type working paper Rights © 2017 B.J.G. van der Kooij Files PDF Act_of_Invention_in_the_G ... common.pdf 1.63 MB Close viewer /islandora/object/uuid:529b66cb-cc63-474d-ba0f-cc187e5d2fe4/datastream/OBJ/view