Why Did Hedy Lamarr Not Get Paid For Her Invention?
Hedy Lamarr, a famous Hollywood actress, once held the title of most beautiful woman in the world. She appeared on the covers of all the magazines, and her iconic style influenced women all over the world to part their hair in the middle and use darker makeup. However, the Austrian-born actress was also a brilliant…
Hedy Lamarr, a famous Hollywood actress, once held the title of most beautiful woman in the world. She appeared on the covers of all the magazines, and her iconic style influenced women all over the world to part their hair in the middle and use darker makeup.
However, the Austrian-born actress was also a brilliant inventor whose ground-breaking work served as the inspiration for modern WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth technologies. Her frequency-hopping communications system was developed to aid in the war effort against the Nazis. Lamarr’s attractiveness prevented her from receiving the recognition she deserved for this ground-breaking invention.
In Hedy Lamarr’s lifetime, Hedy Lamarr was granted one patent for the concept of “frequency hopping,” which was applied to a torpedo guidance system. She and her coworker George Antheil were granted US patent number 2,292,387 for this creation in 1942.
Why Did Hedy Lamarr Not Get Paid For Her Invention?
Hedy Lamarr’s inventions never brought in any money. By the time the U.S. government became interested in her frequency hopping concepts in the early 1960s, the patent had already expired, so she was not entitled to any compensation.
