Dozens of children die every year after being left in an automobile –- and one 12-year-old Tennessee boy did his part to end that.
Showing posts with label inventor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label inventor. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 08, 2026
a 12-year-old from outside Nashville, Tennessee, invented the "EZ Baby Saver," in hopes that it would help parents remember that they've left their children strapped in a car seat. The contraption won him a runner-up prize of $500 at the Rubber Band Contest for Young Inventors.
Dozens of children die every year after being left in an automobile –- and one 12-year-old Tennessee boy did his part to end that.
Tuesday, June 09, 2026
Monday, November 17, 2025
John William "Jack" Ryan, was Mattel VP and chief designer until 1977, created Barbie, had about a 1,000 patents, and drove a 1935 Reo fire engine around Bel Air!
He built a bizarre faux castle with drawbridge and moat in Bel Air, where he had a dozen college students trading room and board for estate grounds upkeep/party waiters, etc - and so he installed 144 telephones throughout The Castle and grounds.
The entire phone system was switched through a highly sophisticated communications system that he bought as surplus from a U.S. Navy destroyer and reengineered.
For a short while, he held 300 parties a year
He had a 18 car collection, and owned a vintage 1935 REO fire engine that he would load with party guests and drive around town, and to the Playboy Club where their respective social secretaries arranged a meet and greet, resulting in Hefner and Ryan teaming up for charity events around Hollywood/Beverly Hills/LA
Ryan went to Yale College, where he was active in the Pistol Club, and the Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. He served in the Pacific for a short time during World War II and in 1946 returned to Yale, where he was known as an “engineering genius.”
With a degree from Yale and having studied at Harvard, Jack worked for Raytheon during the early 50s / Cold War, helping to design the ground-to-air Hawk missile and the air-to-air Sparrow III missile, both of which were ordered by the Pentagon.
In 1955, Ryan joined Mattel, by getting a deal where he got 1.5% of the gross on all the toys he designed for them.
Even though he was never an employee of Mattel, he was their head of R&D. Not only did he do the mechanical design of the toys, he studied how children interacted with them. That’s because he was a real engineer, not just a tinkerer, and that means being systematic. He set up play areas with prototypes and had psychologists evaluate them. This became another reason for Mattel’s success.
Jack invented the Hot Wheels car suspension, the bearings, and the plastic wheels. Unlike Matchbox, Ryan put plastic wheels on the cars with a little give for traction and needle bearings for smooth motion
He also came out with the orange track system that let kids build raceways, and invented the battery-powered accelerator (the Supercharger) that would shove the cars along. Mattel sold six billion Hot Wheels cars in their first 50 years, from 1968 to 2018.
He devised a coffee cup that would keep beverages at a constant temperature (probably using a phase change of sodium acetate), and a camera that could develop its own film.
Ryan later engineered the voice mechanism for Chatty Cathy, the first mass-produced talking doll, revolutionizing interactive play for children. He invented the rocking horse with moving legs. He also helped create Hot Wheels, applying automotive and aerospace engineering to design miniature cars with unprecedented speed, style, and performance.
His ideas on blending technical precision with imaginative play were later preserved by Stanford University, where his "Design Philosophy" is archived.
Evidence of his "space-aged savvy" can be seen in the designs of many of the toys he created for the Mattel line. For instance, the V-RROOM! X-15 https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2019/09/did-you-ever-hear-of-this-mattel-x-15.html which was named after the North American X-15 rocket-powered aircraft that were made for the USAF, the NASA, and the USN.
His name also appears on the patent documents of the V-RROOM! bicycles of the 1960s as well as the V-RROOM! toy engines that simulated real motorcycle engine sounds.
He married Zsa Zsa Gabor for a year, 75-76, but near the divorce, disassembled her Rolls-Royce in attempt to make her a custom limousine and, according to court records, refused to put it back together again.
https://nypost.com/2023/03/04/barbie-creator-jack-ryan-once-held-his-own-daughters-hostage/
https://www.facebook.com/DreamHouseJackRyan/posts/i-asked-chatgpt-for-help-what-do-you-think/1074045853936982/
https://www.facebook.com/DreamHouseJackRyan/posts/i-asked-chatgpt-for-help-what-do-you-think/1074045853936982/
Saturday, November 08, 2025
(new to me) Wallace and Gromit Ultimate Cracking Contraptions Fails
the Preston North End Sockamatic
Thursday, September 25, 2025
The Corvette’s T-Tops were so well-liked they were cited as the reason Chevy didn't make Corvette convertibles for '76 through '86
the guy that invented the T Tops, worked at Ford, retired in 1965, sued GM for stealing his patent on the T Top and won.
He started teaching at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena in 1965 and was there until 1970
Sunday, September 21, 2025
California's contributions to the automotive world - nope, I didn't get on the list, (I am adding myself to it) but Don did with his Garage Style Magazine! So, congrats Don!
Creative Californians lead the world in entertainment, aerospace and automotive, particularly around Southern California, the car culture capital
Notable car-related firsts and founders:
Notable car-related firsts and founders:
1919: Car Styling — Harley Earl, Los Angeles (incl. use of clay models.)
1925: Motel — Milestone Mo-Tel, San Luis Obispo.
1926: Kelley Blue Book — Les Kelley, Los Angeles.
1931: Drive In Take Out Restaurant — Pig Stand, Los Angeles.
1930s: Hot Rods — developed around Los Angeles, tested on nearby dry lake beds.
1930: Art Center College of Design as the Art Center School.
1936: Maurice Schwatz — custom cars. He made the Topper Car.
1948: Road and Track magazine — John Bond, Burbank.
1948: Hot Rod magazine — Robert Petersen, Wally Parks, Los Angeles.
1948: Drive-Through Restaurant — In-N-Out Burger, Baldwin Park.
1949: Motor Trend magazine — Robert Petersen, Los Angeles.
1950: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance — Sterling Edwards, Beverly Hills.
1951: National Hot Rod Association — Wally Parks, Glendora.
1951: Custom Cars — George Barris Hollywood custom cars for tv shows, Los Angeles.
1953: Pinewood Derby — Don Murphy, Manhattan Beach.
1956: Go Kart — Art Ingels, Echo Park, Los Angeles
1948: Hot Rod magazine — Robert Petersen, Wally Parks, Los Angeles.
1948: Drive-Through Restaurant — In-N-Out Burger, Baldwin Park.
1949: Motor Trend magazine — Robert Petersen, Los Angeles.
1950: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance — Sterling Edwards, Beverly Hills.
1951: National Hot Rod Association — Wally Parks, Glendora.
1951: Custom Cars — George Barris Hollywood custom cars for tv shows, Los Angeles.
1953: Pinewood Derby — Don Murphy, Manhattan Beach.
1956: Go Kart — Art Ingels, Echo Park, Los Angeles
1957: T Bucket — Norm Grabowski, Hollywood
1963: Dune Buggy — Bruce Meyers, Newport Beach
1963: Dune Buggy — Bruce Meyers, Newport Beach
1968: Hot Wheels — Mattel introduces kids to cool cars via toys
1973: Toyota Satellite Design Studio, El Segundo.
1983: Automotive Fine Arts Society — Ken Eberts, Temecula.
1984: Motor Press Guild — Matt DeLorenzo, San Pedro.
1986: Automobile magazine — David E. Davis, Los Angeles.
2003: Cars and Coffee — Marc Greeley, Bob Cheatley, Newport Beach
1973: Toyota Satellite Design Studio, El Segundo.
1983: Automotive Fine Arts Society — Ken Eberts, Temecula.
1984: Motor Press Guild — Matt DeLorenzo, San Pedro.
1986: Automobile magazine — David E. Davis, Los Angeles.
2003: Cars and Coffee — Marc Greeley, Bob Cheatley, Newport Beach
2004: Tv reality shows about custom cars — Boyd Coddington
2006: Just a Car Guy blog — me, San Diego
2008: Garage Style magazine — Don Weberg, La Habra.
2020: Modern Rodding magazine — Tim Foss, Brian Brennan, Fullerton.
Peter Aylett (Laguna Nigel) founded Car Art in 2002 in Southern California he is the great-grandson of a London carriage maker, and during his 25-year career as an automotive design engineer with Ford, Lotus, Mercedes, GM, Nissan, and Mazda, he helped create concepts like the Corvette Stingray III and production cars like the Esprit, De Lorean and RX-8.
2006: Just a Car Guy blog — me, San Diego
2008: Garage Style magazine — Don Weberg, La Habra.
2020: Modern Rodding magazine — Tim Foss, Brian Brennan, Fullerton.
Peter Aylett (Laguna Nigel) founded Car Art in 2002 in Southern California he is the great-grandson of a London carriage maker, and during his 25-year career as an automotive design engineer with Ford, Lotus, Mercedes, GM, Nissan, and Mazda, he helped create concepts like the Corvette Stingray III and production cars like the Esprit, De Lorean and RX-8.
Von Dutch and Ed Roth, maybe they should be included, selectively then based on your first comes makes the list for one category, unless you categorize them differently.
For all I know you might think Ed Roth and Barris are the same category, but when I think of Roth, he was not in a category because of the monster shirts, and comic book marketing, and airbrushing the shirts and sweaters at car shows, plus the Choppers Magazine, and not just the singular focus on wacky custom cars.
Barris started as a reporter for Hot Rod, then customized cars for celebs - unlike Roth who made cars, for car show wins.
Who invented flame jobs for hot rods? Two Red Lion Special sprint cars in 1934
Von Dutch certainly was not in a category with anyone else, though he did teach others like Jeffries to pinstripe, he was certainly the originator, and his contributions to hot rodding include the invention of lace paint - though Watson took that and popularized it, and Von Dutch got to working with helmets and did the design for the stars and stripes that was copied for the tank of Easy Rider's Capt America bike.
Also, Norm Grabowski who invented the T Bucket was also the one that created custom shifter knobs. But, that T Bucket - that was pioneering a trend.
Mr Jalopy invented blogging about car stuff.
Max Bulchowsky for putting hot rods into GP racing with Ol Yaller
Gene Winfield, not just for the fade paintjob, but also for making Hollywood movie vehicles
Pete Chapouris hot rodding revival in the 70s
Bruce Crower
Cal Club plates
Joe Bailon for inventing candy apple red paint
Friday, August 01, 2025
Bob Braverman helped invent the slot car, in 67 became the tech editor for the new magazine, Cycle Guide, then in '69, the editor and publisher, then started Street Rider and Custom Chopper magazines, and was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, and the National Motorcycle Museum Hall of Fame.
and supposedly, built this in 1969, and it's now on facebook marketplace for 20k.
No, I don't think it's worth that, also, it's been listed there since March, the pieces were pulled out of storage in Nov 94
No, I don't think it's worth that, also, it's been listed there since March, the pieces were pulled out of storage in Nov 94
https://www.facebook.com/groups/536900379719797/posts/9512364975506581/
http://hof.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.aspx?RacerID=133
http://hof.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.aspx?RacerID=133
Sunday, June 29, 2025
what does the A10 Warthog have to do with photography?
the Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II
it's that Fairchild part that is the key factor,
Fairchild Aviation Corporation was created in Long Island, New York, in 1925 to address a specific need for aircraft designed as aerial photography platforms.Led by Sherman Mills Fairchild, who enjoyed both wealth and talent, Fairchild and its iterative companies fast became a reliable part of American aviation industry.
Sherman Fairchild invented a synchronized camera shutter and flash mechanism when he was a freshman at Harvard. A troubling bout with tuberculosis made Sherman ineligible to serve in the U.S. military during World War I, but he endeavored to be of value with his lens shutter inventions, particularly suited to aerial photography.
Fairchild’s use of existing generic aircraft as camera platforms disappointed him, and the bright inventor went to several aircraft manufacturers with his ideas for a photographic survey aircraft.
The responses Fairchild received for building such an airplane sounded too expensive to him, so Sherman created the Fairchild Aviation Corporation in Long Island, New York, in 1925 to build his FC-1.
And the long term result, the Fairchild Republic Warthog.
Tuesday, June 24, 2025
Thursday, February 27, 2025
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Thursday, January 16, 2025
Wednesday, May 15, 2024
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
finally cops are using something effective to stop car chases.... the Grappler. Invented a decade ago, first used by law enforcement in 2018. Chasing car thieves isn't a good idea, it's rarely uneventful, often causes crashes, etc
Grappler's inventor, Leonard Stock. Stock, who lives in Peoria, was a roofer for three decades before coming up with the idea, in a dream, as a way to safely end police pursuits.
https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/grappler-arizona-made-device-seeing-more-use-by-law-enforcement
Friday, January 26, 2024
finally, something fun to share... Farbs. Mattel / Hot Wheels was selling these in 1971, and Kellogs even had one if kids mailed away for it
While the series was manufactured by Mattel and feature wheels also used on Hot Wheels products these were not officially branded as Hot Wheels products.
It turns out, Eddy, was a WW2 submariner, a radar and sonar operator on the USS Batfish, SS 310 from 43 to 45!
Eddy enlisted in 1942, and is the last surviving crewmember of the Batfish. In its seven war patrols, the Batfish is credited with sinking nine Japanese ships, including three Imperial Japanese Navy submarines in a 76-hour period, in February 1945 — a feat unsurpassed to this day
AND Eddy is most famous for inventing the Yakity Yak Talking Teeth! (plus 795 other toys!)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/movies-and-tv/2023/12/1/23984756/eddy-goldfarb-102-year-old-toy-inventor-documentary-yakity-yak-talking-teeth-kerplunk-games
https://hotwheels.fandom.com/wiki/Bye-A-Nose says this was a prototype, and didn't make it to production
One Farbs track set Mattel produced with the cars was actually a Kellogg's Cereal promotion featuring the Hy Gear model and a short piece of Hot Wheels track, along with a green plastic boot that would "kick" the car down the track. It was called the "Booter Booster Set".
Monday, September 04, 2023
Thursday, April 06, 2023
Did you know you can browse through the patents, by description, and see if there's stuff in there that you're interested in? Thanks to Google for scanning them, and putting them all in a database, with an image viewer!
Just an example at random, above, of the patents issued in August of 1916 https://www.google.com/patents/sitemap/en/Sitemap/Unknown_Category/1916_164.html
and the example of one I found interesting, a spring actuated wheel.
Just looking through the descriptions I found a girdle, a pop-gun, a submarine whistle, a hog oiler, etc
Monday, March 13, 2023
Anthony Fokker with Harley Davidson
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sdasmarchives/33942308480/in/album-72157679929160534/
Anthony Fokker,
Dutch aircraft manufacturer born 1890, on his father's coffee plantation on Java, Netherlands East Indies [now Indonesia]—died 1939, New York City Dutch airman and pioneer aircraft manufacturer who during World War I produced more than 40 types of airplanes (designed by Reinhold Platz) for the German High Command. Initially he offered his designs to both combatants, but the Allies turned him down.
Fokker built his first plane in 1910 and taught himself to fly. In 1912 he established a small aircraft factory at Johannisthal, near Berlin. During World War I he introduced the gear system that made it possible to fire a machine gun through the propeller arc without hitting the blades
in 1922 he established the Atlantic Aircraft Corp. in New Jersey. He also maintained a large aircraft factory in the Netherlands. The first nonstop flight across the United States was made in the Fokker T-2 transport. Richard Byrd and Floyd Bennett flew over the North Pole (May 9, 1926) in one of Fokker’s trimotor planes. During the 1920s and the 1930s Fokker concentrated on the design and development of commercial aircraft that were widely used in the fledgling U.S. commercial aviation industry.
Platz, you probably don't know, designed gliders, as they were a fad brought on by the Versailles Treaty forbidding powered aircraft, and one of his designs is my favorite, and you probably haven't ever heard of the Platz Glider either, but the pilot sat on top of the wing, and used two levers to change the canard design wing sides for direction and elevation, if I recall correctly how to describe it's design. http://all-aero.com/index.php/60-gliders/7983-platz-glider-
Thursday, March 09, 2023
Back in the 1950's, a man who ran an excavating company wanted to make a portable backhoe on a truck. He got one of the first FC trucks in 1957, added a excavator on the back and modified the cab to remove the passenger side of the roof. (thanks Marc!)
read all about it's development and eventual neglect, in 2012 article, as it only had 2600 miles on it in 2009, at https://thefcconnection.com/Historical%20Literature/Custom%20Built%20Vehicles/The%20Lafian%20Powerhoe/FCaaca/FCaaca.pdf
and the more recent website, https://thefcconnection.com/the_lafian_powerhoe.htm with new photos
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