Sperry rand biography wikipedia

Sperry Corporation was a major American equipment and electronics company whose existence spanned more than seven decades of the 20th century. Sperry ceased to exist in following a prolonged hostile takeover bid engineered by Burroughs Corporation , which merged the combined operation under the new name Unisys. The company is best known as the developer of the artificial horizon and a wide variety of other gyroscope -based aviation instruments like autopilots , bombsights , analog ballistics computers and gyro gunsights.

Rand sperry family

In the post-WWII era the company branched out into electronics, both aviation-related, and later, computers. The company was founded by Elmer Ambrose Sperry. The company was incorporated on April 14 [ 2 ] by Elmer Ambrose Sperry as the Sperry Gyroscope Company , to manufacture navigation equipment—chiefly his own inventions: the marine gyrostabilizer and the gyrocompass —at 40 Flatbush Avenue Extension in Downtown Brooklyn.

Over the years, it diversified to other locations. In , Lawrence Sperry split from his father to compete over aero-instruments with the Lawrence Sperry Aircraft Company , including the new automatic pilot. After the death of Lawrence on December 13, , the two firms were brought together in The company once again became independent in when it was spun-off as a subsidiary of the newly formed Sperry Corporation.

The company made advanced aircraft navigation equipment for the market, including the Sperry Gyroscope and the Sperry Radio Direction Finder. It also moved into the hydraulics industry when it acquired Vickers, Inc.