<Tr> <Th> Parent (s) </Th> <Td> Lewis Edwin Farnsworth, Serena Amanda Bastian </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Relatives </Th> <Td> Agnes Farnsworth (sister) </Td> </Tr> <P> Philo Taylor Farnsworth (August 19, 1906--March 11, 1971) was an American inventor and television pioneer . He made many contributions that were crucial to the early development of all - electronic television . He is perhaps best known for his 1927 invention of the first fully functional all - electronic image pickup device (video camera tube), the "image dissector", as well as the first fully functional and complete all - electronic television system . He was also the first person to demonstrate such a system to the public . Farnsworth developed a television system complete with receiver and camera, which he produced commercially in the form of the Farnsworth Television and Radio Corporation, from 1938 to 1951, in Fort Wayne, Indiana . </P> <P> In later life, Farnsworth invented a small nuclear fusion device, the Farnsworth--Hirsch fusor, or simply "fusor", employing inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC). Although not a practical device for generating nuclear energy, the fusor serves as a viable source of neutrons . The design of this device has been the acknowledged inspiration for other fusion approaches including the Polywell reactor concept in terms of a general approach to fusion design . Farnsworth held 300 patents, mostly in radio and television . </P>

Who invented the television and when was it invented