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Motion Detector, Thermostat, Fax Machine
The first motion detector was patented by an inventor named Sam Bagno. He took his knowledge of how sonar waves in World War II submarines worked and applied it to above water applications. Motion detectors were first sold to security companies. Next, the thermostat was patented in 1885 by a Minnesota man named Albert Butz. His invention connected directly to the air damper on the furnace. If a room got too cold, a damper would be pulled open automatically, letting in hot air. Over the years, thermostats simplified themselves by just controlling the power to the furnace. By the 1930s they included clocks that automatically turned the heat on early in the morning or before you returned home from work. Then, the fax machine was actually invented more than 30 years before the telephone, but it wasn't until the early 1900s that the fax machine made a significant impact on the world. That's when newspapers realized they could transmit pictures coast to coast via fax in a matter of minutes. Its use has continued to grow over the years.

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