Document 7: Job-seeking letter and list of 64 inventions, New York, 12 September 1923

E. M. C. Tigerstedt, Electr. Engineer.

337 Riverside Drive, New York City.

The undersigned is born in Finland, 14 August 1887, is a Fin[n]ish subject and Swedish descendent. My technical education was obtained at the ‘Technische Hochschule Cöthen in Anhalt’, in Germany, where I specialised in weak current technik. My experience consists of:

1 year mechanical shop work at Helsingfors, 1 year erection work at Helsingfors Telephon Central Station, 1 year as erector at the firm of L.M. Ericsson & Co. at Stockholm, and some months as division engineer with Siemens-Halske, Wernerwerk at Helsingfors.

In the year 1913 I formed a company for the developing some of my patents principally the ‘Speaking Film’. For this Speaking Film I made use of a Phonogram which I placed on a band of film in the form of light intensity changes over the whole breadth of the film. The Line-Curves thus brought [o]ut spoke over a ‘Antimonit-cell’ much stronger and clearer than the ‘Notch-Curves’ previously used. Because the amplifying-tubes (Lieben-tubes) used by me were not satisfactory in the motion (impulses) I constructed a new tube, a High-vacuum tube with cylindrical electrodes and asked for patent in Germany in 1914. On account of the world war, I was obliged to move my place of residence and my laboratory to Copenhagen and when it became difficult to obtain the necessary parts for my speaking film, I constructed a new apparatus for this purpose with the assistance of Waldemar Poulsens ‘Telegraphone’. After experimenting with this for a time I succeeded, by means of a special construction of the Telegraphone to eliminate all interfering noises from the steel wires, and obtained a reproducing that cannot be criticised. At the same time, I worked on the improvement of the L[o]udspeaking telephone and the microphone, and was successful by the introduction of organic dia[ph]ragms, which I produced by dipping rings in a specially prepared liquid, which when dry developed a diaphragm, which was 0.05 m/m thick and whose own number of vibrations was considerably higher than the diaphragms known earlier. Besides the speaking film I worked also on my ‘Cylinder Microphone’ (a carbon powder Microphone with cylindrical diaphragm), a submarine telephone and telegraph, miniature listening telephone (Audiphone), Gramophones, Biographer, Secret Telephon and Telegraph, etc. In 1922 I had about 400 applications for patents in various countries. 1919 I signed a contract with ‘Telefunken’ for the use of my ‘Electron-Relais’ German patent No. 314 805, but the low value of German currency and other conditions made it so that I have had but little turnover from this contract. In the beginning of February, 1918 I was called by telegram from Copenhagen to Finland to the war of independence in order to place myself at the disposal of the General Staff, and acted as technical inspector for the radio stations in Finland. 1921 my first ‘Cryptographons’ were ready (Secret Telephones and Telegraphs) and at an exhibition made before Dr. Waldemar Poulsen, Mr. Poulsen applied for the first apparatus for the Bordeaux station. Later on the Finnish Government ordered two apparatus.

On the grounds of the depressed business conditions which exist now in Europe, I have been obliged to stop my private researches and have come to U.S.A., looking for some connection with a large firm.

I enclose a list of 64 different applications for patents.

New York, 12 September 1923

List of 64 applications for patents

Projectile counter which is operated by the recoil of the firearm caused by the firing. German Pat. Nr. 267617.
T[h]umb-trigger for guns. Finland Pat. Nr. 5046.
Telephone plant. Finland Pat. Nr. 5732.
Ray relay for amplifying undulated currents. German Pat. Application.
Arrangement for reducing flimmering in cinematograph pictures. German Pat. Nr. 310351.
Method of reproducing sound records. German Pat. Nr. 309834.
Arrangement for Intensifying Sounds. German Pat. Application.
Arrangement for Recording Sound Waves. German Pat. Application.
Biograph. German Pat. Application.
Arrangement for recording sounds on image bands. German Pat. Application.
Arrangement for intermittently advancing a film in cinematographs. German Pat. Application.
Submarian transmission of Sound Waves of high frequency. German Pat. 309534.
Arrangement for recording sounds. German Pat. Application.
Resonance carrier for Telephones. German Pat. Application.
Microphone. German Pat. Nr. 310319.
Dia[ph]ragm. German Pat. Application.
Grammophone. German Pat. Application.
Sound-directing Appliances for use with Telephones and Microphones. English Pat. Nr. 6647/15.
Arrangement for spooling film bands. German Pat. Application
Arrangement for recording sounds on film bands. German Pat. Application.
Arrangement for reproducing sound records and the like. German Pat. 309535.
Method of recording sound waves. German Pat. Application.
Arrangement for intensifying the sound effect of diaphragms. German Pat. Application.
Relays for Undulatory Currents. German Pat. Nr. 314805.
Method and arrangement for synchronising the drive of photographs and the like and cinematographs. German Pat. Application.
Talking machine with cinematograph. French Pat. Nr. 520066.
Arrangement for recording sound waves on film bands and the like. German Pat. Nr. 309536.
Arrangement for recording sound waves on film bands and the like. German Pat. Application.
Device for recording waves of sound. French Pat. Nr. 520067.
Method and Diagram of Connections for the Transmission of undulating Currents. German Pat. Application.
Device for transmitting waves of sound in electrical way. German Pat. 342841.
Arrangement for electrically transmitting sound-waves. German Pat. Application.
Switch device for inserting current-consumers especially lamps, at a distance. Finnish Pat. Nr. 6565.
Correspondence-Interruptor for electric plants. Danish Pat. Nr. 22143.
Method of recording Sound waves. German Pat. Application.
Improvements relating to the Combined use of Cinematographs and Talkingmachines. English Pat. Nr. 100748.
Arrangement for the reproduction of Spoken Words and Images. German Pat. Application.
Pocket-telephone and microphone. Danish Pat. Nr. 22091.
Apparatus for recording moving-pictures on steel wire or steel band either simultaneously with or without the recording of sound waves. Danish Pat. Application.
Microphone. Danish Pat. Nr. 22247.
Detector for wave of sound. Danish Pat. Nr. 21911.
Regulating-apparatus for detectors for taking up submarines sound signals. Danish Pat. Nr. 21912.
Method of transmitting signals by means of waves of sound with a high of oscillations. Danish Pat. Nr. 22008.
Loud talking Telephone. Finnish Pat. Nr. 6748.
Improvements in or relating to telephone receivers. English Pat. 114850.
Diaphragm. English Pat. Nr. 130600.
Secret signalling system – Canadian Pat. Nr. 220993.
Diaphragm, in particular, for Receivers and Microphones. Danish Pat. 26438.
Sound boxes for speaking machines. Danish Pat. Nr. 25135.
Microphone. English Pat. Nr. 135183.
Device in receiving-apparatuses for acoustic waves of a great number of periods. Danish Pat. Application.
Rotatory mot[o]r. Danish Pat. Application.
Secret signalling system. Danish Pat. Nr. 29064.
Method of and apparatus for transmitting signals, telegraph signs and such like. Danish Pat. Nr. 29737.
Apparatus for taking up influences of magnetisation on telegraphone bands. German Pat. Nr. 342842.
Device for showing if the movements of two or more bodies are going on synchronically. German Pat. Nr. 346912.
Method of and apparatus for transmitting signals, speech and other communication. Danish Pat. Application.
Röntgen-tube with polariser. Danish Pat. Nr. 29419.
Apparatus for producing sounds of various numbers oscillations and varying force, in which the size of the oscillations of the sound producing diaphragm may be used directly on a scale. Danish Pat. Application.
Device in telegraph coils. Danish Pat. Nr. 30163.
Device for making two or more machines run synchronically. Danish Pat. Application.
Telephone. Danish Pat. Application.
Brake Device. Danish Pat. Application.
Device for l[e]ssening the wear and tear of iron cores in telegraphone apparatuses and such like. Danish Pat. Application.