Jacques Cousteau
Jacques Cousteau devoted much of his time to ocean exploration following World War II. He bought a Calypso minesweeper and took it on a round-the-world trip, including the Antarctic Circle. He did experiments and collected data. These were used to design the Calypso-Phot underwater camera and SP-350 deep-sea two-man submarine.
Cousteau began to research the aqua lung, which is a new breathing apparatus. This apparatus allowed Cousteau, although it could only be used for shallow dives, to control his airflow. Cousteau discovered that there was a better way for air to flow to help him explore the depths. After much experimentation, Cousteau developed the demand regulator. This allowed air to only move on demand. This invention would aid divers in increasing their air supply while avoiding decompression sickness.
Yves le Prieur
Yves le Prieur is a pioneer in scuba diving, dating back to the early 1900s. In 1946, he designed a fullface helmet with a removable front plate. This mask was a type of diaphragm that could be used to regulate the demand. His next invention was his diving regulator.
1933 saw the invention of the first scuba diving device. The device combined the Fernez-Le-Prieur's air supply system and the demand regulator created by Rouquayrol and Denayrouze. It revolutionized the world of scuba diving, making it affordable and easy to use underwater breathing devices. This was what led to recreational scuba.
Guy Gilpatric
Guy Gilpatric is a pioneer in scuba divership history. He wrote the first manual for sport diving, and his articles in The Saturday Evening Post were amongst the first to discuss scuba diving. His love of the sea and natural world led him to write about the Mediterranean. It is said that the book inspired Jacques Cousteau who would later go on and create modern scuba dive.
In the early 20th Century, the inventions of modern scuba diving gear were made. In 1921, American marine biologist Guy Gilpatric patented a system that allowed divers to breathe air without the use of surface air. Later, Yves Le Prier designed an underwater breathing system. The scuba rig was quickly popularized by Owen Churchill after he sold it to him. Guy Gilpatric designed rubber goggles with lenses made from glass, swim fins, masks, snorkels, and face masks.
Yves Gagnan
Scuba divers used to depend on their helmets, diving bells, or air hoses from above at the beginning of this century. Yves Gagnan a Parisian engineer helped them develop a demand system. The new device could provide compressed air on demand and adjust to the pressure in the water. This invention made it possible to explore the oceans with people at all levels.
Gagnan was born 1900 in Burgundy in France. After graduating from college, Gagnan began work at Air Liquide. He studied high pressure pneumatic design. This eventually led to the design of the scuba equipment today.