Gorilla Glass has been a feature in almost every smartphone ever since the first iPhone. Gorilla Glass is known for its toughness and also being touch-sensitive at the same time. Corning, the company behind this has a long history with glass-based products. Here are some facts about Gorilla Glass that you never knew:
Before Gorilla Glass, Corning’s main sales were from glassware
Corning was known for providing durable glass-ware. Hence their dinner plate sets and teacups were popular in the 20th century. They soon transitioned into high-end tech-based products, but they continue to manufacture their famous glassware line – Corelle.
Corelle is still now extremely popular in the household for its kitchenware. Even more so than their flagship product, the Gorilla Glass.
Coring is 169 years old
Corning, as mentioned before, started off with ordinary glassware. Founded in 1851 by Amory Houghton in Massachusetts as the Bay State Glass Co, it moved to Corning, NY and changed its name to Corning. Corning has provided all glass-oriented work for the US for both the world wars and even during the space race.
The company has seen many CEOs and owners throughout the years. Currently, the CEO is Wendell Weeks since 2005.
Corning was the first company to mass-produce bulbs
In 1879, Thomas Edison asked Corning to produce glass envelopes, or bulbs, for his newly invented incandescent lamp. Over the following years, the company changed lighting forever by creating a way to mass-produce the bulbs, making incandescent lights widely affordable.
They played a significant role in the development of many countries due to their mass-produced bulbs. Corning had owned the patents for many years before they gave it up. This ushered a new market of incandescent bulbs.
They were the pioneers for fibre optic technology
In 1982, the market for Corning’s fibre-optic technology really took off when they got an order for 100,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable. Optic fibre technology is basically using light rays to transfer information. The material inside the wire is reflective and can keep on reflecting the light ray for transmission. This helps in almost instant connectivity.
Corning also claims to be one of the leaders in the optic fibre technology. They helped in introducing the deep sea wiring under the Pacific to enable faster connectivity among the countries.
Corning has made parts for space-ships and rockets
Corning provided the heat resistant windows for the Apollo Missions and the Gemini Flights. They continue to provide heat resistant glass for all American space-crafts. They are also providing the windshield and window panes for the International Space Station. In fact, they are also providing help to ISRO, India’s Space Program for the upcoming manned missions.
Apple sought Corning’s help to make touch screen displays
Apple was one of the first customers to order a touch-screen display from Corning. Corning delivered and the product is now known as Gorilla Glass. Apple used it in the first iPhone, making it the first phone to use Gorilla Glass. Later, the Gorilla Glass became an industry standard with almost every company using this product.
Corning crossed the 1 Billion mark of the number of Gorilla Glass Displays
In October 2012, Corning announced this news. This wasn’t surprising, considering that they were one of the main manufacturers of touch-screen displays. However, nowadays, Corning is facing some amount of competition from Dragontail Glass, a Japanese Glass company and Sapphire Glass.
Lotus Glass is an alternative to Gorilla Glass
Corning made Lotus Glass, an environmentally friendly glass, which can be used for O-LED displays. Though it is supposed to replace Gorilla Glass, till now it is in testing. It is, however, possible that the next line of phones may use it.
Gorilla Glass can take a lot of damage.
Corning had claimed that their latest Gorilla Glass can survive 15 consecutive drops from a height of 1 meter. This was done with the Gorilla Glass 6, the current version of Gorilla Glass, where they showcased various types of tests. The drop test proved that the glass takes 15 consecutive drops and not break.
The newer Gorilla Glass Victus can take damage from up to 6 feet. This builds upon the damage resistance of Gorilla Glass 6.
Corning has a Museum of Glass
Corning owns and operates a museum of glass. You can find various glass structures inside. One can also see how some of their popular products, like the Gorilla Glass, is made. They also showcase prototype products, such as their “A Day Made of Glass”, which shows a house where almost everything is a touchscreen display.
The Museum of Glass is a popular tourist destination located in Corning, NY.