Westinghouse, George

Westinghouse, George, 1846-1914, American inventor and manufacturer, b. Central Bridge, N.Y. In the Civil War he served in the Union army and navy. Among his inventions in the railroad field were a reversible frog, the air brake (1868), and automatic signal devices. The Westinghouse Air Brake Company was organized in 1869 and the Union Switch and Signal Company in 1882. Westinghouse was a pioneer in introducing into the United States the high-voltage alternating current system for transmission of electricity. In 1866 the Westinghouse Electric Company was incorporated. The inventor also patented devices for the transmission of natural gas. Over 400 patents were credited to him in his lifetime.

(born Oct. 6, 1846, Central Bridge, N.Y., U.S.—died March 12, 1914, New York, N.Y.) U.S. inventor and industrialist. He served in the American Civil War. His first major invention was an air brake (patented 1869), which was eventually made compulsory on all American trains. He developed a railway signaling system and later introduced many innovations in piping natural gas. His major achievement was the adoption by the U.S. of alternating current (AC) for electric power transmission. The electrical system being developed in the U.S. in the 1880s used direct current (DC), though AC systems were being developed in Europe. Westinghouse purchased the patents for Nikola Tesla's AC motor and hired Tesla to improve and modify the motor for use in his power system. In 1886 he incorporated the predecessor of Westinghouse Electric Corp. He eventually prevailed over powerful opposition from advocates of DC power, and in 1893 his company was hired to light the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago. He also obtained the rights to develop the great falls of the Niagara River with AC generators. Seealso electric current.

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Westinghouse may refer to:

In current companies:

• Westinghouse Electric Corporation (1998), and its licensees:
• Westinghouse Digital Electronics, selling LCD televisions and related products
• Salton, Inc., selling vacuum cleaners under the name Westinghouse
• Westinghouse Lighting Corporation, formerly Angelo Brothers Company, selling lamps, lamp fixtures, and ceiling fans
• Westinghouse Electric Company, Nuclear and Power Industry related businesses, sold to Toshiba in 2006
• Westinghouse Rail Systems Ltd, formerly Westinghouse Signals Ltd, part of Invensys

In prior companies:

• Westinghouse Air Brake Company, founding name of WABCO
• Westinghouse Electric (1886), also Westinghouse Electric Co. and Westinghouse Electric Corp., renamed CBS Corporation in 1997
• British Westinghouse, later subsumed into The General Electric Company
• Westinghouse Electronic Systems Group, sold to Northrop Grumman in 1996
• White-Westinghouse, acquired by Electrolux in 1986
• Westinghouse Brake and Signal Company Ltd
• Westinghouse Signals, earlier name of Westinghouse Rail Systems
• Westinghouse Brakes (UK), now part of Knorr-Bremse

In places:

• Westinghouse Park, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

In competitions

• former Westinghouse Science Talent Search, now called Intel Science Talent Search - an American science competition for high school students

In science:

• Westinghouse effect, a variant of the social-scientific observer's paradox

People with the surname Westinghouse

• George Westinghouse, founder of Westinghouse Electric Corporation