While the invention of the telephone dates back much further, the first people to propose the most basic concept of mobile phones were Douglas Ring and W. Rae Young in 1947. The two Bell Labs engineers were the first to propose hexagonal cells for mobile phones in vehicles. This idea was developed by Philip Porter, who suggested that the cell towers should be at the corners of the hexagons instead of in the centers. He also suggested that the phones should have directional antennas so that it could transmit and receive in three directions in three adjacent cells. While the idea was born, there was not the technology available to create them. It wasn't until the 1960s that Bell Labs engineers Richard Frenkiel and Joel Engel developed the electronics that could turn the idea into reality.
• Early mobile phones. Some of the first mobile phones had to stay within a certain coverage area by one particular base station throughout the whole of the phone call. This meant that if the phones moved through several cell coverage areas, there would be no continuity of their service. The 1970s saw the introduction of the automatic call handoff system. This system, designed by Amos Joel, allowed mobile phones to move through a number of cell coverage areas within the same conversation without being interrupted.
• Development of mobile phones. 1973 was the first year that mobile phones developed from only being installed in cars and other vehicles into handheld devices. Martin Cooper, of Motorola, was the first to make a prototype of a portable mobile phone. This concept was then taken on by both Motorola and Bell Labs in a race to become the first to develop it. Cooper won and has his name on the patent for the radio telephone system.
There are a number of names associated to the invention of the mobile phone. The idea was created by Ring and Young, developed by Frenkiel and Engel and made into a handheld device by Cooper.
• Early mobile phones. Some of the first mobile phones had to stay within a certain coverage area by one particular base station throughout the whole of the phone call. This meant that if the phones moved through several cell coverage areas, there would be no continuity of their service. The 1970s saw the introduction of the automatic call handoff system. This system, designed by Amos Joel, allowed mobile phones to move through a number of cell coverage areas within the same conversation without being interrupted.
• Development of mobile phones. 1973 was the first year that mobile phones developed from only being installed in cars and other vehicles into handheld devices. Martin Cooper, of Motorola, was the first to make a prototype of a portable mobile phone. This concept was then taken on by both Motorola and Bell Labs in a race to become the first to develop it. Cooper won and has his name on the patent for the radio telephone system.
There are a number of names associated to the invention of the mobile phone. The idea was created by Ring and Young, developed by Frenkiel and Engel and made into a handheld device by Cooper.
