#Cruise September 25

We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post.

This month the #Coach4adayChallenge for September is to profile a biography of someone. Have you ever becoming frustrated with an attorney? Well frustration with a lawyer is why automobiles have CRUISE contraol.

Modern cruise control (also known as a speedostat) was invented in 1948 by the inventor and mechanical engineer Ralph Teetor. His idea was borne out of the frustration of riding in a car driven by his lawyer, who kept speeding up and slowing down as he talked.

Ralph Teetor

Ralph Teetor, a prolific (and blind) inventor, invented CRUISE control. Teetor, blind since the age of five, built his first car, a one-cylinder, by the age of 12. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. Teetor was born in 1890 and died at the age of 92 in 1982. He went on to an additional master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania in engineering. Eventually Teetor went to work for the Perfect Circle Company. He would go on to become the company president from 1946-1957.

In 1945, Ralph Teetor received his first patent on a speed cruise control device. Early names for his invention included “Controlmatic”, “Touchomatic”, “Pressomatic” and “Speedostat” and finally the familiar name of “CRUISE Control”. 

Cruise control was first offered in the 1958 Chrysler Imperial, New Yorker and Windsor car models. By 1960, cruise control was offered on all Cadillacs.

Ralph managed to live his life almost as if his accident had never happened, and went on to become successful as an engineer, manufacturing executive and entrepreneur. His other inventions included an early powered lawn mower, lock mechanisms, and holders for fishing rods.