Carl Pulfrich

Carl Pulfrich (* September 24, 1858 in streets, today Burscheid; † August 12, 1927 in the Baltic Sea near Timmendorfer beach ) was a German physicist and optician. He is considered one of the founders of stereophotogrammetry.

Life

Carl Pulfrich was the eldest son of a teacher. After attending grammar school in Mülheim an der Ruhr, he studied at the University of Bonn Physics, Mathematics and Mineralogy and in 1881 received his doctorate with the work Photometric studies on absorption of light in isotropic and anisotropic media. After military service, and a year as a sample teacher at a high school in Essen, he was at the Institute of Physics of the University of Bonn assistant to Rudolf Clausius, and after his death in 1888 by Heinrich Hertz. After his habilitation in experimental physics Pulfrich lecturer was in Bonn. Ernst Abbe was able to move him in 1890 to take a job at Carl Zeiss in Jena, where he remained until his death. From 1892 he headed the newly established Department of Physical measuring instruments.

Although Carl Pulfrich on the left eye was blind and therefore could not see space, most of his scientific work with the spatial vision, stereoscopy employed. By his own admission, the blindness was the long-term consequence of a bloody eye injury in his youth. According to his colleagues, Moritz von Rohr he suffered in his left eye cataract since 1905.

Pulfrich married in 1891 Matilda Doll, daughter of geodesics Max Doll and sister of Elizabeth, the wife of Heinrich Hertz.

During his holiday Carl Pulfrich was drowned in the Baltic Sea after his canoe capsized.

Services

Carl Pulfrich authored over 100 publications and has developed or perfected many optical devices.

His work consisted of three main phases: from 1885 to 1899 he devoted himself to refractometry ( refractive index measurement ), then to 1920 of stereoscopy and later the photometry. In the first phase of the adult from the study of refractive indices of crystals construction of the Pulfrich refractometer falls. After his move to Zeiss, he completed numerous going back to Abbe devices. In 1899 he presented his first space image rangefinder, which was followed in 1901 stereocomparator, which was successfully used in cartography, but also in astronomy. A further development was invented by Eduard Orel stereo autograph, with which it was possible to carry out the automatic mapping of an area of two photographic images. After his discovery of the Pulfrich effect, the focus of his work shifted towards photometry and color theory. Result of this work was the Pulfrichsche levels photometer, which was widely used as color and turbidity meter.

Honors

1917 gave the Prussian government Carl Pulfrich the title of professor. The Technical University of Munich in August 1923 appointed him an honorary doctorate. In 1926 he was elected a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.

He was honored with the Order of the Red Eagle IV class and the officer 's Cross of the Franz Joseph Order.

Since 1968, the Carl Pulfrich Award, the Carl Zeiss company annually awards for achievements in the field of surveying.

In Jena, a street is named after Carl Pulfrich.

Works

  • About a test panel for stereoscopic vision. In: Journal of Organology 21, 1901, pp. 249-60
  • Over recent applications of stereoscopy and a specific purpose stereocomparator. In: Journal of Organology 22, 1902, pp. 65-81, pp. 133-141, pp. 178-92, pp. 229-246
  • Discovery of a new planet using the stereocomparator. In: astronomer. Msg 159, 1902, pp. 83ff
  • Stereoscopic vision and fairs. Gustav Fischer, Jena 1911
  • About photogrammetry from aircraft and serving their instruments. Gustav Fischer, Jena 1919
  • Stereoscopy in the service of isochromene and heterochromic photometry. In: The Natural Sciences 10, 1922, pp. 553-564, pp. 569-574, pp. 596-601, pp. 714-722, pp. 735-743, pp. 751-761
  • Stereoscopy in the service of photometry and pyrometry. J. Springer, Berlin 1923
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