The Netherlands

18th century: everything started with the light bulb

Like a centenarian, Philips has spanned three centuries. The history of this world-famous company can be traced back to 1891, when Dutch mechanical engineers began producing carbon filament light sources in a former deerskin factory in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. Among his earliest major customers were early power companies who included the provision of light sources in their energy supply contracts. These companies set high standards for product quality, so the young Philips was strictly monitored in terms of quality from the beginning.

1908 was the first year Philips entered the world market and began to produce metal tungsten filament light bulbs. In 1913, the tungsten-filament inflatable "half-watt" lamp was put on the market, followed in 1915 by the smaller "Arga" light source. At that time, Philips' slogan was "We have a light source for every application." In 1914, the company established a research laboratory to study physical and chemical phenomena to promote product innovation. This can be regarded as a sign of its product innovation, because in the following year, Philips expanded its strength and expanded its business to various products such as automotive lights, searchlights, theater lighting, etc. Before World War I, Philips entered the American and French markets, and entered the Belgian market in 1919. By the 1920s, it had become one of the most influential carbon filament lamp manufacturers in Europe.

From this era, Philips began to use patent rights to protect its inventions and creations, and adopted X-ray radiation and radios as new areas of endeavor for the company, which marked the beginning of the diversification of Philips' products. In 1918, Philips produced its first medical X-ray tube. In 1925, Philips made its first foray into television development. In 1927, Philips began to produce radios. Just one year later, Philips not only increased the production of radios to 100 million units, but also began producing medical X-ray equipment in the United States and entered the field of medical equipment.

The 20th century: "Flying" speed after the war

From the end of the 19th century to the entire 20th century, household appliance technology has undergone earth-shaking changes. By the 1940s and 1950s, household appliances had become indispensable necessities for people's lives. It was not until the outbreak of World War II in 1941 that the pace of product development and technological innovation slowed down. Fortunately, after the war, people across Europe paid more attention to science and cherished the hard-won peaceful life. After World War II, Philips also devoted its main energy to the development of household appliances that were closer to people's lives.

The 1960s was an era when television began to become popular around the world. Philips participated in major inventions such as CCDs. There is also specialized research in the research and development of memory, transmission and reproduction technology for television images. By 1963, Philips invented the pocket tape player, which made it easier for people to listen to radio programs and opened up ideas for the future development of WALKMAN pocket appliances.

In the 1970s, Philips’ exciting new products and ideas emerged one after another. Its research in lighting technology contributed to the new PL and SL energy-saving light bulbs; in images, sounds, data Key technological breakthroughs in generation, storage and transmission, leading to the invention of laser discs and optical communication systems, and the establishment of the Compact Disc subsidiary.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the development of Philips products moved towards entertainment, life, practicality and other aspects. Philips began to manufacture CD discs in the 1980s, which changed the way people listen to music and laid the foundation for future generations. The development of VCD and DVD provides ideas.

At the end of the century, Philips devoted more energy to products in high-tech and cutting-edge fields. In particular, the successful development of computer chips broke the monopoly of other companies in the computer field.

The 21st century: 76,000 patents

Today, Philips' research laboratories have become one of the most important research and development institutions in the world. It has laboratories in 6 countries (The Netherlands, England, France, Germany, China and the United States) and has approximately 3,000 employees spread around the world. The invention level of Philips Research Laboratories can be reflected from the widespread use of compact discs, CD-ROMs and the rapid introduction of DVD products.

Scientists with a wide range of backgrounds from electrical engineering, physics, chemistry, mathematics, information technology and software work closely together in Philips research laboratories, influencing each other and broadening their ideas, achieving the effect of complementary advantages. At the same time, it also injects vitality into the team in a more international direction. Today, the PHILIPS trademark can be easily seen on the streets of most cities in the world.

Philips Research Laboratories works closely with its product divisions to develop new products, improve existing products, and obtain important patent rights in many areas. As of today, Philips has 76,000 patents, which protect the technical achievements of the company's technology and enable Philips to exchange technical achievements with other companies. At the same time, Philips Research Laboratory is also a window for external technology.

Of course, out of market considerations, about two-thirds of the company's research work is carried out in conjunction with the activities of Philips' various product departments. The remaining one-third is exploratory research work that provides broad space for future work. It can be seen from the fact that the results of Philips' R&D department account for about 7.3% of the company's total sales that it attaches great importance to research.

Looking back when the Dutch Philips and his sons founded the company, Philips was just an extremely small family business. However, opportunities are always discovered by creative people. Philip and his sons were keenly aware of the rapid growth in global demand for light bulbs and keenly captured this business opportunity. From light bulbs to lighting product experts, then to radios and medical equipment, and then to high-tech products full of the times. Looking at the development history of Philips is like looking at the history of world technology development. Good brands always keep pace with the times. In this way, through constant innovation, a global brand was quietly born