History & Origin of Ceiling Fan

Ceiling fan is a fan that is mounted on the ceiling, used to mix air masses and create a cool effect.

 

History of Origin

The idea of a mechanical device capable of creating a natural flow of air has excited the minds since time immemorial. The first device to solve this problem was an ordinary fan, which was used in ancient China. Subsequent scientific research and technical improvements did not change the simple and ingenious idea of a fan too much, eventually reducing it to such a device as a ceiling fan.

The first technically sophisticated machines for moving air appeared in the Middle Ages in Europe. The prototype of the ceiling fan can to some extent be considered the helicopter of Leonardo da Vinci: this technical device, alas, could not fly, but the wind created a fair amount.

The first ceiling fans appeared in the United States after the Civil War in the late 1860s. At the time, they worked without an electric motor. Instead, the mechanical energy of water was used: the water wheel was tied to a belt system, which, in turn, was connected to a 2-blade fan. Such a system could provide operation of several ceiling fans at once. At that time, this invention was the only one in the field of "air cooling", thanks to which it became quite popular in shops, restaurants and offices. Some of these systems have survived to this day. They can be seen in the southern regions of the United States, where they originally appeared.

The electrically driven ceiling fan was invented in 1882 by Philip Diel. Diehl was involved in the design of the electric motor for the first Singer sewing machines, and in 1882 he adapted it for use in ceiling fans. The Diel Electric Fan worked like most modern ceiling fans, but each fan now had its own motor, eliminating the need for expensive and cumbersome belt systems.

Diel almost immediately faced serious problems due to tough competition in the market, as ceiling fans were in great demand among the population. The competition pushed him to make new improvements and refine his invention.

The result of these improvements was the "Diesel Chandelier", which was a set of lamps mounted on the ceiling fan housing. The luminaires compensated for the light flaws associated with blinking blades, the so-called "running shadow", and, in addition, provided additional lighting in the room.

By the start of World War I, most ceiling fans had four blades instead of the original two.

Over time, thanks to the advent of new bearings, the fans have become much quieter and, moreover, they have now been able to mix large volumes of air, thereby using the consumed energy more efficiently.

By 1920, ceiling fans became common in the United States and began to expand internationally. However, during the Great Depression in the United States, they began to go out of fashion. By the end of World War II, ceiling fans had disappeared from the American market altogether, and that was until the mid-1950s.

In the United States, ceiling fans have come to be seen as a tribute to the past, giving way to air conditioners. But at the same time, they were quite popular in other countries, especially where warm climate prevailed, and where residents could not afford to buy energy-consuming and expensive air conditioners.

In the 1960s, several Asian manufacturers began exporting their ceiling fans to the United States. At first, the exports were quite small. The market was spurred by the energy crisis in the late 1970s: ceiling fans began to conquer the market again, as they consumed much less energy than air conditioners.

Seeing the commercial success of Asian manufacturers, many American companies began to produce, and subsequently significantly increase the production of ceiling fans in the United States.

During the second half of the 1970s and until the late 1980s, ceiling fans remained popular in the American market. Many small American manufacturers, most of whom were fairly young companies, produced these products. Throughout the 1980s, the sales ratio between American and Asian ceiling fans changed dramatically. The high cost of US-made components and the high cost of labor contributed to a significant increase in prices, with the result that American products could no longer compete with Asian ceiling fans.

In addition, sales of ceiling fans declined from the early to mid-1990s as the cost of air conditioners continued to decline. With the decline in sales, research and development funding for ceiling fans has dropped. It was then that standard components such as solid wood blades fixed to the fan casing, high quality motors, and cast steel casings were replaced with cheap, standardized parts.