The “iron lung,” originally known as the Drinker respirator, was developed in 1928 by Dr Philip Drinker and Dr Louis Agassiz Shaw to improve the respiration of polio patients. In 1931, John Haven Emerson, an inventor from Cambridge, MA, enhanced the design of the Drinker respirator and introduced a new and highly improved model of the iron lung that was cheaper and significantly lighter. Dr Drinker eventually filed a lawsuit against Emerson for alleged patent infringement. In his defense, Emerson argued that devices that help save human lives should be widely accessible to all patients. He also questioned the novelty of Drinker’s design, claiming that Drinker’s device comprised of patented technology that existed since the late 1800s, and that he therefore did not have full ownership of the machine’s intellectual property. Ultimately, the case backfired on Drinker, as he not only lost the court case but also lost the entire panel of patents that were in his possession.
GauldMM. The Drinker respirator: its use in anterior poliomyelitis cases. The American Journal of Nursing1931; 31: 1035–1039.
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Breathing machine is almost human. Spokane Daily Chronicle, 10–19 September 1931, p. 27.
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Device breathes air into patient. Spokane Daily Chronicle, 1932, p. 6.
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Drinker respirator credited with saving two lives here in recent paralysis cases. The Day, 1931, p. 2.
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New respirator for St. Luke’s. The Spokesman Review, 1932, p. 10.
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Girl, 19, cheats death after year in respirator. The Day, 1931, p. 1.
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Girl, chest paralyzed, lives 6 days in machine. The Pittsburgh Press, 1930, p. 54.
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Mahoney T. The miracle of the iron lung. Rotarian, July 1938, p. 24.
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Philip Drinker, polio, and that “damn machine.” Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 2016.
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Griscom S. Paralysis and profits. The Nation. June 1933, p. 1.
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Iron lung creator tells of his work. The Montreal Gazette, 17 January 1939, p. 11.
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Smith E. Respiratory failure and the Drinker respirator in poliomyelitis. JAMA 1933; 100: 1666.
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Bowen CD. Family portrait. 1st ed. Boston, MA: Little, 1970, p. xvi, 301.
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Death by dust. The Pittsburgh Press, 3 March 1936, p. 2.
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DrinkerPMcKhannCF. The use of a new apparatus for the prolonged administration of artificial respiration: I. A fatal case of poliomyelitis. JAMA1929; 92: 1658–1660.
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Shaw, Co-Inventor Of ‘Iron Lung,’ Dead. The Burlington Free Press. 28 August 1940, p. 1.
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‘Iron lung’ inventor dies. St Petersburg Times, 29 August 1940, p. 15.
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Shaw LA and Drinker P. Respiration apparatus. Patent 1834580A, USA, 1931.
DrinkerPShaughnessyTJMurphyDP. A case of respiratory failure successfully treated in the Drinker respirator. JAMA1929; 93: 456–457.
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ShawLADrinkerP. An apparatus for the prolonged administration of artificial respiration: II. A design for small children and infants with an appliance for the administration of oxygen and carbon dioxide. Journal of Clinical Investigation1929; 8: 33–46.
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ShawEBThelanderHELimperMA. Respiratory failure in poliomyelitis: its treatment with the Drinker respirator: report of cases. California and Western Medicine1931; 35: 5–7.
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WesselhoefCSmithEC. Results of the use of the Drinker respirator in thirty cases of respiratory failure in poliomyelitis. New England Journal of Medicine1932; 207: 559–563.
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Philip Drinker ‘15 given medal for invention. The Princeton Alumni Weekly, 27–23 October 1931, p. 95.
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Harvard men win medal for respirator. The Telegraph, 1931, p. 4.
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Collins et al. v. Emerson. United States District Court, D., 1935.
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Respirator fight. Time, 27 February 1933, p. 28.
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RabinowitchE. Robert Emerson, November 4, 1903-February 4, 1959, New York, NY: National Academy of Sciences, 1961, pp. 112–131.
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Taylor D. High school dropout turned inventor. The Telegraph, 1991, p. 2.
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The iron lung. Youngstown: The Rose Melnick Medical Museum at Youngstown State University, 1960.
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Trial on patent respirator suit scheduled today. The Harvard Crimson, 6 November 1934.
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SilverJKWilsonDJ. Polio voices: an oral history from the American polio epidemics and worldwide eradication efforts, Westport, CT: Praeger, 2007. p. 20.
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EmersonJH. The evolution of iron lungs, Cambridge, MA: J. H. Emerson Company, 1978. p. 20.
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Iron lung inventor guest speaker. The Telegraph, 1991, p. 3.
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Question and answers. The Southeast Missourian, 1956, p. 4.
