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INVENTIONS OF 1912
The Influence of the Titanic Disaster

The 20th report of the Comptroller of Patents, Designs and Trademarks was issued as a parliamentary paper last night.
The loss of the Titanic was followed by a remarkable number of inventions relating to the general problem of saving life at sea. Mechanical devices affecting the safety and speed of the lowering of boats from ships received considerable attention, as also did ship fittings designed to be readily detached and used as rafts in case of emergency, and buoyant fittings for personal wear.
Means for preventing collisions at sea attracted many inventors, more particularly for detecting the near presence of ice at night or in a fog; while others devoted themselves to enabling a wireless distress signal to be received even though the operator was off duty.