Magic eye tube
Ojo mágico
- Date
- 1932 · confidence high
- Place
- Upper Montclair, New Jersey, United States
- Credited to
- Allen B. DuMont
- Field
- Matter & energy
What it is
Engineer Allen B. DuMont invented the magic eye tube in 1932, a vacuum tube with a circular fluorescent display that visually indicated signal strength; DuMont sold the patent to RCA, which marketed it as a radio tuning indicator starting in 1935.
What it led to
- Tuning indicators in radio and audio receivers
- Popularization of visual electronic indicators
- Later replacement by needle meters and LED indicators