View source for Gerhard Fischer (inventor)

{{Other people|Gerhard Fischer|Gerhard Fischer (disambiguation){{!}}Gerhard Fischer}}
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'''Gerhard Julius Richard Fischer''' later '''Gerhard Julius Richard Fisher''', '''Gerhard R. Fisher''' (March 18, 1899 – May 2, 1988) was a U.S. entrepreneur of German descent. He contributed to the development and popularity of the hand held [[metal detector]].

==Biography==
Fisher was born in 1899 in Landeshut, Silesia, to Richard Hugo Georg Arthur Fischer, an engineer, and his wife Margaretha Julia Fischer née Job. His mother was from [[Łódź]], where the parents also married. Around 1906, the Fischer family moved to [[Dresden]]. After studying electrical engineering at the [[Dresden University of Applied Sciences|Dresden University]], Fischer emigrated to the U.S. In 1931, he founded Fisher Research Laboratory, Inc. in [[Palo Alto, California|Palo Alto]], where he served as president until his retirement in 1967. While working  with [[Radio direction finder|aircraft radio detection finders]] environment-dependent changes became apparent. From the interference by metal, he concluded that the device must also be suitable for detecting metal. Fisher shared the idea with [[Albert Einstein]] who correctly predicted the proliferation of hand held metal detector use. In 1937, he patented his metal detector. He died 1988 in Palo Alto.

===Inventions===
Although the actual inventor of the hand-held metal detector is disputed, the hand-held metal detector was made in 1925 and was first patented by Dr. Gerhard Fisher in 1931. A metal detector had been invented some forty years earlier (1881) by [[Alexander Graham Bell]] for the sole purpose of locating a lead bullet in President [[James A. Garfield]].

===Fisher Research Laboratory===
He founded ''Fisher Research Laboratory'' to develop and market the hand held metal detectors in 1931.

==References==
{{Refbegin}}
*{{cite book |last1=Neice |first1=Brandon |title=The metal detecting bible : helpful tips, expert tricks and insider secrets for finding hidden treasures |date=2016 |publisher=Ulysses Press |isbn=9781612435381 |pages=1}}
*{{cite news |last1=Underwood |first1=Beth |title=Behind the Lines {{!}} The Relic Hunter |url=https://www.historynet.com/behind-lines-relic-hunter.htm |work=HistoryNet |date=26 September 2017}}
*{{cite news |last1=Woodford |first1=Chris|author1-link=Chris Woodford (author) |title=How metal detectors work |url=https://www.explainthatstuff.com/metaldetectors.html |accessdate=11 April 2019 |work=Explain that Stuff |date=19 August 2018}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*[https://www.fisherlab.com/about.htm Fisher Research Laboratory – Company History]
*[http://mdgear.com/history/ Metal detecting history] (MDgear)

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Gerhard}}
[[Category:20th-century German inventors]]
[[Category:Engineers from Bavaria]]
[[Category:German emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing]]
[[Category:Year of death missing]]


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