László Bíró

László Bíró

László József Bíró ( _hu. Bíró László József; _es. Ladislao Biro [ [http://www.mendoza.edu.ar/efemerid/l_biro.htm Obituary] at education website of Mendoza Department, Argentina] ) (September 29, 1899 – November 24, 1985) was the inventor of the modern ballpoint pencite book|last=Stoyles |first=Pennie |title=The A to Z of Inventions and Inventors |coauthors=Peter Pentland| url=http://books.google.com/books?id=n9FZuxigkTkC&printsec=frontcover&hl=hu#PPT21,M1|pages=18|isbn=1583407901|year=2006|accessdate=2008-07-22] .

Bíró (pronounced|ˈbiːroː), (approximate pronunciation, Bee-row), was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1899. He presented the first production of the ball pen at the Budapest International Fair in 1931cite web|title=Golyó a tollban - megemlékezés Bíró László Józsefről|language=Hungarian|url=http://www.mszh.hu/kiadv/ipsz/199608/biro.html|work=Hungarian Patent Office|accessdate=2008-07-22] . While working as a journalist in Hungary, he noticed that the ink used in newspaper printing dried quickly, leaving the paper dry and smudge-free. He tried using the same ink in a fountain pen but found that it would not flow into the tip, as it was too viscous. Working with his brother Georg, a chemist, he developed a new tip consisting of a ball that was free to turn in a socket, and as it turned it would pick up ink from a cartridge and then roll to deposit it on the paper. Bíró patented the invention in Paris in 1938.

In 1943 the brothers moved to Argentina and on June 10 filed another patent, and formed "Biro Pens of Argentina" (in fact, in Argentina the ball pen is known as "birome"). This new design was licensed by the British, who produced ballpoint pens for Royal Air Force aircrew, who found they worked much better than fountain pens at high altitude [cite book|last=Bevan|first=Rob|title=Unleash Your Creativity: Secrets of Creative Genius|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=kayBh_z-3SEC&printsec=frontcover&hl=hu#PPA82,M1|coauthors=Tim Wright|pages=82|isbn=1904902170|year=2004|accessdate=2008-07-22] .

In 1950 Marcel Bich bought from Bíró the patent for the pen, which soon became the main product of his Bic company.

László Bíró died in Buenos Aires in 1985. Argentina's Inventor's Day is celebrated on Bíró's birthday , September 29.

"Biro" trade

Ballpoint pens are still widely referred to as a biro [cite book |last=Room |first=Adrian |title=Dictionary of Trade Name Origins |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=Qdw9AAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&hl=hu#PPA41,M1 |accessdate=2008-07-22 |year=1983 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=0710201745 |pages=41] in many English-speaking countries, including the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. The term "biro" in colloquial British English is used generically to mean any ball point pen. Although the word is a registered trademark, it has become a genericised trademark. The company's intellectual property department keeps a close eye on the media and will often write to publications who use its trade name without a capital letter or as a generic term for ballpoint pens, in order to preserve its trademark. They have written to Private Eye (who printed the letter on their correspondence page under the heading "What a way to make a living!") concerning this on at least one occasion.

References

External links

* [http://www.budpocketguide.com/TouristInfo/famous/Famous_Hungarians17.asp Brief biography of Bíró] by Budapest Pocket Guide


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Laszlo Biro — László József Bíró, circa 1978. László József Bíró [ˈlaːsloː ˈjoːʒɛf ˈbiːroː] (* 29. September 1899 in Budapest, Ungarn; † 24. November 1985 in Buenos Aires, Argentinien …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Laszlo Biro — László Biró László József Bíró vers 1978. László József Biró, ou Ladislao José Biró, né le 29 septembre 1899 à Budapest et mort le 24 novembre 1985 à Buenos Aires, est considéré comme l inventeur du stylo à bille …   Wikipédia en Français

  • László Biró — László József Bíró vers 1978. László József Biró, ou Ladislao José Biró, né le 29 septembre 1899 à Budapest et mort le 24 novembre 1985 à Buenos Aires, est considéré comme l inventeur du stylo à bille. Biogr …   Wikipédia en Français

  • László Bíró — ist der Name folgender Personen: László Bíró (Bischof) (* 1950), ungarischer Bischof László Bíró (Ringer) (* 1960), ungarischer Ringer László József Bíró (1899–1985), ungarischer Erfinder Diese Seite ist eine Begriffsklärung zur Unt …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • László József Biró — László József Bíró, circa 1978. László József Bíró [ˈlaːsloː ˈjoːʒɛf ˈbiːroː] (* 29. September 1899 in Budapest, Ungarn; † 24. November 1985 in Buenos Aires, Argentinien …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • László József Bíró — László József Bíró, circa 1978 László József Bíró [ˈlaːsloː ˈjoːʒɛf ˈbiːroː] (* 29. September 1899 in Budapest, Ungarn; † 24. November 1985 in Buenos Aires, Argentinien …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Bíró — oder Biro ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Anton Biró, Mitgründer des österreichischen Stahlbauunternehmens Waagner Biro Atila Biro (auch Attila Biro; 1931–1987), ungarisch französischer Maler Lajos Biró (1880–1948), britischer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • László — is a popular Hungarian given name pronounced [laːsloː] . Its main namedays are 27 June and 8 August. The most common short (diminutive, familiar) form of the name is Laci . The name might appear as surname as well.The name originates from Slavic… …   Wikipedia

  • Biro — is a Hungarian surname meaning Judge and may refer to: * Ballpoint pen, the British English and Australian English word * László Bíró, the inventor of the ballpoint pen * Charles Biro, a comic book writer …   Wikipedia

  • Biro — proprietary name of a type of ball point pen, 1947, from László Bíró, the Hungarian inventor. The surname means judge …   Etymology dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”