Laszlo Biro is the inventor of a ballpoint pen

Very often the invention receives the name of its author. There are many examples: "Citroen" and "Porsche", Colt and Nagano, Biro and Parker. However, stop! The word "biro" is not in Russian. But it is in English. In New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom, the word biro is the most common nowadays writing device - a ballpoint pen. And invented her László Bíró. In this article we will present a brief biography of the inventor.

First works

Laszlo Josef Biro was born in 1899 in Budapest. The boy's father, Matiash, worked as a dentist. Everyone thought that László would follow in his footsteps. Indeed, after finishing school, Biro entered the medical faculty. But the young man did not receive the diploma.

For a while, Laszlo practiced hypnosis, and then got a job in a company for the production of petroleum products. Then he moved to a completely new, but then popular sphere - auto racing. Together with a friend, Biro even came up with an automatic transmission. Subsequently, a patent for this invention was acquired by an American company, General Motors, so that no one could implement it. This was a kind of recognition that the young man had a head on his shoulders!

Journalistic Activity

But László Biro continued to search for himself and eventually became a journalist in his hometown. In those days, Budapest was considered the second capital of Austria-Hungary. And he actively joined the race with Vienna for the title of the most beautiful city. Although the competition could not be won, but Budapest benefited greatly.

What happened in the end? In Budapest, there was more provincial warmth, in Vienna - imperial shine and stiffness. In Budapest, there was an operetta, in Vienna - an opera. In the Budapest cafe came to work and chat. In the Viennese - to orderly eat dessert.

The editorial offices of many of the newspapers in Laszlo's hometown hosted the nearest cafes. Here the editors made up a new number, and the journalists wrote articles and discussed topical issues. It was in the cafe that the reporters brought the latest news on the tail.

At first, László Bíro headed the newspaper Hungary. And after its closure - the publication Elôtte. Naturally, the main working tool of the hero of this article was the pen. And its characteristics remained very far from perfect.

Invention

Advanced journalists of that time used parks - capillary fountain pens. These were the most expensive and perfect writing instruments. But the parkers also had shortcomings: either they did not leave a trace on the paper, or proceeded.

Laszlo had a brother named Gyorgy, who received a chemical education. He told the hero of this article that in the parks are too liquid ink. Therefore, they proceed. For the same reason, the ink dries on paper for a long time. According to György, the most optimal liquid for charging the pen is a typographic paint.

Laszlo took the advice of a relative, but the experiment ended in failure. Typographic paint was very thick and did not fall on paper with gravity. Biro thought and decided to make the main knot of the capillary tube. One of its end was opened, and the paint did not flow out because of its viscidity. And on the other side of the capillary was a built-in writing unit in the form of a small steel ball. While moving on paper, he rotated and carried a layer of paint. So Laszlo Biro invented a ballpoint pen. And she wrote excellent!

On the calendar was 1938. The ballpoint pen Laszlo Biro received a patent in Hungary. Right after that the inventor had to leave from there. This was due to the policy pursued by the fascist government of Horthy. It "squeezed" all Jews from the country. Laszlo moved with his family to Paris. It was in the French capital that he sold his first license to produce pens. And this was only the beginning.

Argentine Patent

Maybe this will seem strange, but the first mass production of cheap ball pens was organized by British aviation industry enterprises. At high altitude navigators could not operate pen fountain pens. And to use chemical pencils was somehow untenable. So, mass production made the ballpoint pen the cheapest writing tool.

Laszlo Biro was not long in Paris. After the fascists invaded, his entire family moved to Argentina. In the summer of 1943, the hero of this article received a patent in this country for his invention. And then Laszlo founded the factory for the production of pens Eterpen. In the year, Biro sold 7 million units of his products.

But this commercial success was local. When the inventor decided to enter the US market, he learned about the existence of an analog of his pen. The fact is that one enterprising American visited Argentina. He realized the enormous commercial potential of this invention and, having returned home, immediately patented it in his name. It seemed that the American market was lost to Biro forever.

Marcel Bish and his "Crystal"

But everything turned out differently! After the end of World War II, Laszlo's pen came into the hands of the entrepreneur Marcel Bish. He decided to start writing instruments and built a factory near Paris. In 1950, Marcel acquired the patent of Laszlo Biro. The ballpoint pen was seriously improved by Bish.

The entrepreneur decided to apply the method of metal processing used in Switzerland. There they did it with a high degree of accuracy, down to hundredths of a millimeter. The diameter of the new balls was only 1 mm in size. This allowed the pen to write thinner and not leave dirty spots on the paper.

Bish even invented the name of the improved invention - "Crystal". In 1950, the mass production of pens under this brand began in France. Eight years later, Marcel defended his invention with a US patent and founded the company BiC in America. The firm produced cheap disposable ball pens made of lightweight plastic. Over time, they pushed out of the market many writing devices. Firm BiC and to this day is number one in the production and sales of ballpoint pens all over the world.

Conclusion

As for Laszlo Biro, Argentina became his second home for him. In the Hispanic country, he even changed his Hungarian name to Ladislav. In Buenos Aires, Biro lived until his death in 1985. And September 29 (Laszlo's birthday) became a national holiday in Argentina - the Day of the inventor.