John Haven Emerson (February 5, 1906 – February 4, 1997) was an American inventor of biomedical devices, specializing in respiratory equipment. He is perhaps best remembered for his work in improving the

iron lung An iron lung is a type of negative pressure ventilator (NPV), a mechanical respirator which encloses most of a person's body, and varies the air pressure in the enclosed space, to stimulate breathing.Shneerson, Dr. John M., Newmarket Genera ...

Early life

Emerson was born in 1906 in

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, the son of Dr. Haven Emerson, Health Commissioner of New York City, and Grace Parrish Emerson, the sister of

Maxfield Parrish Maxfield Parrish (July 25, 1870 – March 30, 1966) was an American painter and illustrator active in the first half of the 20th century. He is known for his distinctive saturated hues and idealized neo-classical imagery. His career spann ...

. He was named for his paternal grandfather (1840–1913), who was also a medical doctor. At the age of 22, he bought a rudimentary machine shop from the estate of a local inventor. He moved the equipment to a small warehouse in Harvard Square, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he built research apparatus for professors and researchers of

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-area medical schools, and produced many inventions over the following years. In 1928, he designed a Barcroft-Warburg apparatus for tissue respiration studies. In 1930, he designed a new type of micromanipulator which was valuable in early physiology studies and later saw use in assembly of electronic components. In 1931, Emerson developed an

oxygen tent An oxygen tent consists of a canopy placed over the head and shoulders, or over the entire body of a patient to provide oxygen at a higher level than normal. Some devices cover only a part of the face. Oxygen tents are sometimes confused with a ...

which incorporated an improved cooling system.

Work on the iron lung

Emerson's father encouraged him to work on an artificial respirator after noticing the beginning of a

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epidemic. Emerson thus began his work on the iron lung in the early 1930s, improving the design of the Drinker lung. Completed in July 1931, Emerson's lung was quieter, lighter, more efficient, and cheaper. With a $1000 price tag, it sold for less than half the price of Drinker's make. Drinker threatened legal action against Emerson, and later filed a lawsuit which backfired. Drinker not only lost the suit, his patents were declared invalid. Emerson's new design replaced blowers and valves with a flexible diaphragm in a dual layer. This acted as a failsafe: if one layer was torn, the second would continue operation. He also made improvements to the chamber. The first example of this design, nicknamed "Old Number One", is currently on display at the

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Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

. Emerson continued to make improvements to the iron lung, adding a quick opening and closing function, an improved pressure gauge, and emergency hand operation. His final improvement was the addition of a transparent positive pressure dome, allowing ventilation when the chamber was opened to care for the patient.

Later inventions

In the mid-1940s, following a suggestion of Dr. Alvin Barach, Emerson perfected the Thunberg barospirator, which caused respiration without moving the lungs at all. Emerson was involved with the development of high-altitude flight valves and

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gear for the Navy shortly before

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. In 1942 he developed an automatic resuscitator. In 1949 he developed a mechanical assistor for anesthesia with the cooperation of the anesthesia department at Harvard. In 1955 he built a pleural suction pump for postoperative

thoracic surgery Cardiothoracic surgery is the field of medicine involved in surgical treatment of organs inside the thoracic cavity — generally treatment of conditions of the heart (heart disease), lungs (lung disease), and other pleural or mediastinal stru ...

, the Emerson Postop Pump, which is still widely used. Late in the twentieth century he assisted Alvin Barach in developing the "In-Exsufflator Cough Machine", a device to aid in secretion removal in patients with

neuromuscular disease A neuromuscular disease is any disease affecting the peripheral nervous system (PNS), the neuromuscular junction, or skeletal muscle, all of which are components of the motor unit. Damage to any of these structures can cause muscle atrophy and wea ...

Relatives

Emerson was the brother of Robert Emerson the scientist who discovered that plants have two photoreaction centers. Emerson was the great-grandson of the brother of

Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champ ...

. His uncle was the illustrator

. His first cousin was Bartram “Bart” Kelley, also a nephew of Maxfield Parrish, who was a major designer of military helicopters for Bell Aircraft and Bell Helicopter.

Patent images

For the lawsuit involving the iron lung, images were lacking on some of the old patents. New drawings were supplied to Emerson by his cousin, Maxfield Parrish Jr.

References

External links

Notes on his life and contributions to respiratory careObituary at FindArticles.comTranscript of a 1985 lecture by Emerson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Emerson, John Haven 1906 births 1997 deaths People from New York City 20th-century American inventors