Edwin Howard Armstrong

Edwin Howard Armstrong was one of great engineers of the 20th century, he was born in 1890, in New York City, and died in 1954, also in New York City. Edwin Armstrong was only eleven when Marconi made the first trans-Atlantic radio transmission. Enthralled, the young Armstrong began studying radio and building homemade wireless equipment, including a 125 foot antenna in his parent's backyard.

FM Radio 1933

Edwin Armstrong is most commonly known for inventing frequency-modulated or FM radio in 1933. Frequency modulation or FM improved the audio signal of radio by controlling the noise static caused by electrical equipment and the earth's atmosphere. Edwin Armstrong received U.S. patent 1,342,885 for a "Method of Receiving High-Frequency Oscillations Radio" for his FM rechnology.

However, Edwin Armstrong should be known for inventing three key innovations: regeneration, superheterodyning, and frequency modulation. Every radio or television set today makes use of one or more of Edwin Armstrong's inventions.

Regeneration Amplification 1913

In 1913, Edwin Armstrong invented the regenerative or feedback circuit. Regeneration amplification worked by feeding the received radio signal through a radio tube 20,000 times per second, that increased the power of the received radio signal and allowed radio broadcasts to have a greater range.

Superhetrodyne Tuner

Edwin Armstrong invented the superhetrodyne tuner that allowed radios to tune into different radio stations.