1959 - History of Ericsson - History of Ericsson

Aii Idea Takes Shape
How L M Ericsson's new loudspeaking telephone came to birth
TORBJORN OLSSON, MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SWEDISH ARCHITECTS, STOCKHOLM
Fig. 1 X 2398
Work on the development of L M Ericsson's
new loudspeaking telephone
X 2400
X 2401
Fig. 2 X 2402
The apparatus employed in L M Ericsson's
earlier loudspeaking telephone
(From left) loudspeaker, telephone, amplifier
UDC 745/749:621.395.623.7
The following pages contain an account of some of the principal steps in
the work of designing and giving shape to L M Ericsson's new loudspeaking
telephone. The account has inevitably had to be abridged and the chronological
sequence to some extent rearranged. In actual fact the designers were so pressed
for time thai on several occasions they had to work on different lines of
development simultaneously.
The work described in this article was done by Magnus Ahlgren, Torbjorn
Olsson. Sven Silow. Members of The National Association of Swedish Archi­
tects, with the assistance of Mr. Dean L. Smith.
L M Ericsson's earlier loudspeaking telephone was made up of separate
parts, a telephone instrument with handset, a loudspeaker and an amplifier
(fig. 2). Developments especially within the field of transistors have opened
the way for a considerable reduction in the volume of components and in the
number of units required. In the new instrument it was desired that the handset
should not be tied to the telephone as in conventional types. The handset was
to consist of an Ericofon. The new instrument would therefore accommodate
a loudspeaker, microphone, amplifier, dial and control buttons.
Grouping of the Components
The first step was to make a preliminary study of a few conceivable
groupings for the main components. To start with, the problem was viewed
literally from the outside. We asked ourselves what the main shape of the
instrument should be, as it appears to the subscriber.
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