Editing John Logie Baird (section)

==Other inventions==
Some of Baird's early inventions were not fully successful. In his twenties he tried to create [[diamonds]] by heating [[graphite]]. Later Baird invented a glass razor, which was rust-resistant, but shattered. Inspired by pneumatic tyres he attempted to make pneumatic shoes, but his prototype contained semi-inflated balloons, which burst (years later this same idea was successfully adopted for [[Dr. Martens]] boots). He also invented a thermal undersock (the Baird undersock), which was moderately successful. Baird suffered from cold feet, and after several trials, he found that an extra layer of cotton inside the sock provided warmth.<ref name=AMH>American Media History, Fellow, p. 278</ref>

Between 1926 and 1928, he attempted to develop an early video recording device, which he dubbed [[Phonovision]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=McLean|first=Donald F|date=April 1985|title=Computer-based analysis and restoration of Baird 30-line television recordings|journal=Journal of the Royal Television Society|volume=22|pages=87–94}}</ref> The system consisted of a large Nipkow scanning disk attached by a mechanical linkage to a [[Disc cutting lathe|record-cutting lathe]]. The result was a disc that could record a 30-line video signal. Technical difficulties with the system prevented its further development, but some of the original Phonovision discs have been preserved.<ref>[http://www.tvdawn.com/ "The dawn of TV: Mechanical era of British television"]. TVdawn.com.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=McLean, Donald F.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/44693906|title=Restoring Baird's image|date=2000|publisher=Institution of Electrical Engineers|others=Institution of Electrical Engineers.|isbn=0-85296-795-0|location=London|oclc=44693906}}</ref>

Baird's other developments were in [[Optical fiber|fibre-optics]], radio direction finding, [[infrared]] [[Night vision|night viewing]] and [[radar]]. There is discussion about his exact contribution to the development of radar, for his wartime defence projects have never been officially acknowledged by the [[UK government]]. According to Malcolm Baird, his son, what is known is that in 1926 Baird filed a patent for a device that formed images from reflected radio waves, a device remarkably similar to radar, and that he was in correspondence with the British government at the time.<ref>[http://www.bairdtelevision.com/ "Television, Radar and J.L. Baird"]. Bairdtelevision.com.</ref> The radar contribution is in dispute. According to some experts, Baird's "Noctovision" is not radar. Unlike radar (except [[continuous wave radar]]), Noctovision is incapable of determining the distance to the scanned subject. Noctovision also cannot determine the coordinates of the subject in three-dimensional space.<ref>Russell Burns, John Logie Baird (N.C.: The Institution of Engineering and Technology, 2001), 119.</ref>