1 00:00:00,500 --> 00:00:02,250 Innovation and invention are at the heart 2 00:00:02,250 --> 00:00:04,770 of America's development as a nation, one 3 00:00:04,770 --> 00:00:07,320 of the first articles written in the US Constitution 4 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:10,080 was the Patent Act of 1790. 5 00:00:10,080 --> 00:00:12,990 This piece of legislation gave inventors exclusive rights 6 00:00:12,990 --> 00:00:15,540 to their inventions and revolutionized patent systems 7 00:00:15,540 --> 00:00:17,640 globally. 8 00:00:17,640 --> 00:00:19,440 Back home, however, black inventors 9 00:00:19,440 --> 00:00:22,480 face harsh prejudice in America's patent system. 10 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:24,510 And legal barriers, often barred block people 11 00:00:24,510 --> 00:00:26,460 from patenting their work. 12 00:00:26,460 --> 00:00:29,250 Those inventions still managed to make prolific contributions 13 00:00:29,250 --> 00:00:33,268 to society, and their impact continues to this day. 14 00:00:33,268 --> 00:00:35,310 Here are three black inventors you might not have 15 00:00:35,310 --> 00:00:38,990 heard of. In the early 1800s, 16 00:00:38,990 --> 00:00:41,670 Benjamin Bradley built a steam engine model large enough 17 00:00:41,670 --> 00:00:45,060 to drive the first steam powered warship at 16 knots 18 00:00:45,060 --> 00:00:47,120 because he was under slavery at the time. 19 00:00:47,120 --> 00:00:49,680 He was not able to get a patent for his invention, 20 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:53,080 but he was able to sell the model with the money he earned. 21 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:56,430 He purchased his freedom. 22 00:00:56,430 --> 00:00:59,580 After a series of events that left Marie Van Britton Brown feeling 23 00:00:59,580 --> 00:01:01,950 uneasy in her neighborhood, she figured out a way 24 00:01:01,950 --> 00:01:03,810 to feel safer in her home. 25 00:01:03,810 --> 00:01:06,390 Brown created the first home security system. 26 00:01:06,390 --> 00:01:08,250 It was a closed circuit security system 27 00:01:08,250 --> 00:01:10,020 that monitored visitors through a camera 28 00:01:10,020 --> 00:01:13,140 and included a panic button that called the police immediately. 29 00:01:13,140 --> 00:01:15,600 Brown filed for the patent in 1966, 30 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:18,780 but she wasn't awarded the patent until three years later. 31 00:01:18,780 --> 00:01:21,070 After witnessing a terrible accident at a manual 32 00:01:21,070 --> 00:01:23,357 stop and go traffic signal, Garrett Morgan 33 00:01:23,357 --> 00:01:25,440 realized that there needed to be an interim period 34 00:01:25,440 --> 00:01:28,795 between the switch of the lights. Morgan created a traffic 35 00:01:28,795 --> 00:01:30,420 light that provided an interval of time 36 00:01:30,420 --> 00:01:33,060 for cars to clear an intersection, something we now 37 00:01:33,060 --> 00:01:35,040 know as a yellow light. 38 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:37,620 In November of 1923, Garrett Morgan 39 00:01:37,620 --> 00:01:40,080 was awarded a patent for the first three position traffic 40 00:01:40,080 --> 00:01:43,140 signal, an important innovation on insufficient models 41 00:01:43,140 --> 00:01:45,490 of the day. Black inventors have created 42 00:01:45,490 --> 00:01:48,690 things that have changed our everyday lives without due credit. 43 00:01:48,690 --> 00:01:51,150 Let's celebrate their part in the technological and social 44 00:01:51,150 --> 00:01:53,750 advancements we enjoy today.