Richard Spikes - blackinventor.com

Richard Spikes

Invented an Automatic Gear Shift

Richard Spikes - blackinventor.comInventors often toil for their entire lifetimes creating devices which have beneficial effects on society for years – yet that inventor might gain recognition only after he or she has passed away. For others, even after they have gone, recognition is slow in coming despite their great contributions. Richard Spikes is such a person.

Little has been written about Richard Spikes in terms of his childhood, education and personal life. What is known is that he was an incredible inventor and the proof of this is in the incredibly diverse number of creations that have had a major impact on the lives of everyday citizens.

 

Entrepreneur

Over the course of his lifetime, Spikes developed the following inventions or innovations:

  • railroad semaphore (1906)
  • automatic car washer (1913)
  • automobile directional signals (1913)
  • beer keg tap (1910)
  • self-locking rack for billiard cues (1910)
  • continuous contact trolley pole (1919)
  • combination milk bottle opener and cover (1926)
  • method and apparatus for obtaining average samples and temperature of tank liquids (1931)
  • automatic gear shift (1932)
  • transmission and shifting thereof (1933)
  • automatic shoe shine chair (1939)
  • multiple barrel machine gun (1940)
  • horizontally swinging barber chair (1950)
  • automatic safety brake (1962)

Spikes inventions were welcome to major companies. His beer keg tap was purchased by Milwaukee Brewing Company and the automobile directional signals which were first introduced in the Pierce Arrow, soon became standard in all automobiles. For his innovative designs of transmission and gear-shifting devices, Spikes received over $100,000.00 – an enormous sum for a Black man in the 1930s.

By the time he was creating the automatic safety brake in 1962, Spikes was losing his vision. In order to complete the device, he first created a drafting machine for blind designers – by the time his braking device was completed, he was deemed legally blind. The device would soon be found in almost every school bus in the nation.

Richard Spikes died in 1962 but left behind a lifetime of achievement that few could parallel.

Percy Julian

A pioneer in the chemical synthesis of medicinal drugs from plants, including a synthetic form of cortisone

Charles Drew

A pioneer in the field of blood transfusions who developed improved techniques for blood storage.

Elijah McCoy

Invented lubrication systems for steam engines. His devices were referred to as “The Real McCoy.”

Daniel Hale Williams

A surgeon who performed what is considered the first successful heart surgery.

Videos About Richard Spikes

Search for More Info about Richard Spikes:
Custom Search
Richard Spikes - blackinventor.com

Same-Day & Walk-In Apts

Covid 19 Testing

Easy Booking & Renewals

Expert Doctors

Trusted by 20k+ Patients

On Demand 24/7 Telehealth

Other Notable Inventors

Jan Matzeliger

Patented a shoe lasting machine, increasing the speed of shoe production.

Lewis Latimer

Developed an improved process for manufacturing carbon filaments for light bulbs

Garrett Morgan

 Invented a three-position traffic signal and an early version of a gas mask

Elijah McCoy

Invented lubrication systems for steam engines. His devices were referred to as “The Real McCoy.”