Fig. 1: Image oF Mobile Phone
Mobile Phones have proved themselves to be one of the greatest gifts to the mankind. They have become an indispensible part of our lives. But going back in time, owning a mobile phone was confined to members of affluent class. All thanks to cost cutting techniques and innovations over a period of time; mobile phones are now affordable for everyone. With a plethora of mobile phones sets flooding the market, they are not just catering to the needs but are acting as status symbols for many.
Origin of this gadget is quite interesting. Starting from bulky mobiles phones which were as long and heavy as one’s forearms, to ultra thin and techno savvy handsets, mobiles phones have covered a long way so far. It all started with the basic telephony. Alexander Graham Bell was the first one to patent telephone in the year 1876. This technology was developed using the equipment designed for telegraph. Calls were connected with the help of operators. And a pillar of the mobile telephony came into existence when Charles Stevenson invented radio communication in early 1890s for keeping contacts with the offshore lighthouses. Marconi transmitted signals over the distance of 2 kms in year 1894. And Fessenden capably broadcasted music through radio by 1906.
And the following development was merger of radio telephone technology. In 1926, first class passenger trains, running from Berlin to Hamburg used the technology. These radio telephones were also used for air traffic safety as well as in the passenger airplanes. At the time of Second World War, German tanks made great use of these radio telephones too.
Two way radios was an ancestor of the mobiles phones. These radios also known as the mobile rigs, were fixed police cruisers, ambulances, taxicabs before advent of handheld mobile phones. Since the mobile radios were given connection to telephone network, one could not dial these from the home phones. And slowly this technology gained popularity among the mobile radio users.
