![]() The resistivity of a roll of Teledeltos paper depended on the quality of the conductive fibers that went into it. Teledeltos paper was made in two types-“L” for low resistance and “H” for high. Polarity didn’t matter, either, but the boys in the lab at Western Union had better luck when they used a positive stylus with DC rather than a negative one. Teledeltos paper could be marked using either AC or DC. When a current is applied with a stylus to the coated side of the paper, the coating is instantly burned away, revealing the carbon black. Teledeltos paper has a light gray electro-sensitive coating on one side, and the other side is carbon black. Fax machines eventually moved on to digital transmission and thermal printing technology. The only real disadvantage to this type of paper was the somewhat laborious process that went into achieving the desired resistance. Teledeltos paper could sit around indefinitely without becoming useless. More importantly, properly stored dry paper is impervious to fungal growth. A dry recording paper is also much less sensitive to light and to temperature extremes. It marked so well that photographs and other graphic information could be transmitted, and no processing was required on the receiving end. As long as both the sender and the receiver had facsimile machines, a handwritten telegram could be transmitted without having to be typed by a clerk or translated into code. Teledeltos paper was also used in a variety of chart recorders, like seismographs and map plotters. The ability to feed a handwritten message, a photograph, or a map of enemy territory into a machine that transmitted an exact copy was a real game changer.īecause of its composition, Teledeltos paper could be easily marked without an electrolyte. Western Union began developing Teledeltos paper in the 1930s for the purpose of transmitting telegrams by facsimile, a method that would greatly reduce the time it took to input messages into the system and get them out on the other side. Translated from ancient Greek, ‘teledeltos’ basically means writing tablet at a distance. And for a very long time it was much cheaper for people to send a telegram than make a long-distance phone call. The telegraph’s efficiency made the Pony Express pretty much obsolete by the 1860s. It was the e-mail and the Twitter of its time. ![]() The telegraph absolutely revolutionized human communication. Suddenly, people could send messages to the other side of the world in a fraction of the time it took by post. Teledeltos paper was created and trademarked by communications giant Western Union to drastically improve the convenience of telegrams.ĭevelopment of the electric telegraph ushered in the era of global communication. But it wasn’t created for people like you and Bob. This wonderful stuff allowed him to define and test various configurations for the oddly-shaped ballast resistors he used in some of his high-performance circuit designs. One of the simplest and coolest tools he used was a conductive paper called Teledeltos. What I mean is that he would use everything available to him to mock up circuits, create prototypes, and make things work. Legendary electrical engineer and linear IC trailblazer Bob Widlar was just like you. ![]()
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