The first ballpoint patent dates back to 1938.
A pen is a utensil used for writing . This device has a small metal sphere at its tip , which rotates freely, and has a tube filled with ink in its central part.
History
The creation of the pen is attributed to Ladislao Biro , a Hungarian journalist and inventor who became a nationalized Argentine. Dissatisfied with the way fountain pens worked, Biro devised a writing instrument with a metal sphere at the tip and patented it in Europe in 1938 . Five years later, with another patent in Argentina , he began to market it under the name birome (after his last name and that of Juan Jorge Meyne , his partner).
Of course, when talking about the history of the pen we cannot fail to mention the BIC brand, which has become synonymous with this product in many parts of the world. It all began in 1945, when the French Edouard Buffard and Marcel Bich founded the company Société PPA , dedicated to the manufacture of mechanical pencils, pens and other related products.
The aforementioned Biro decided to sell its license to said company, and it was then that the first pen under the BIC name emerged, which hit the market in 1950. Note that it was recommended to Bitch by the publicist Raymond Savignac , not only for the product but also for the company. In 1951, when BIC arrived in Belgium, it began its entry into the international arena, quickly reaching several countries in Europe, South America, Australia and Africa.
Overview
Regarding the structure of the ballpoint pen, it consists of a metal or plastic tube that houses a special ink . In the loading tip, the tungsten or steel ball rotates and, when moved over the paper, allows writing based on the dosage of ink .
The body of the pen is known as the reed . The ink tank, on the other hand, is usually called charge . As for the ink, it is important to mention that it is thick and does not dry in the container, but does dry on the paper (and immediately).
Pens also usually have different accessories and mechanisms to facilitate writing and transporting the item itself. Many pens have a push button to hide and expose the tip, while several feature a clip so the user can attach the instrument to their pocket.
Colors
The traditional ballpoint pen comes with a fill of blue ink, which is the color considered standard for completing official documents and forms in general. But like all industrial design products, this one has gone through countless modifications throughout its evolution, and the variety of colors is its most obvious characteristic. Although it is currently marketed in a wide palette, the most common are black, red and green.
Even in the digital age, the pen is still present in all areas.
These three can have different uses, beyond aesthetic issues. For example, black is usually an alternative to blue for writing, both in the student and work environment. Red and green, on the other hand, are usually used by teachers to make corrections and annotations in their students' work: red indicates errors, while green highlights successes.
There are also multiple colored pens, which can include orange, lilac, violet, light blue and yellow, among others, to the traditional four. But the main feature of these products is that they have several charges in the same body, each of which is activated by a small sliding lever. Whether for aesthetic or functional reasons, having several colors in a single pen is undoubtedly very convenient.