Jacques Cousteau
Jacques Cousteau devoted his life to ocean exploration after World War II. He bought a Calypso mining boat and traveled around the world in it, including to the Antarctic Circle. He performed experiments and collected data which he used to create the Calypso-Phot underwater camera and the SP-350 deep-sea, two-man submarine.
Cousteau began to research the aqua lung, which is a new breathing apparatus. Although this apparatus was able to allow Cousteau to breathe in controlled air, it was only suited for shallow diving. Cousteau was determined to find out the depths beneath the oceans. He needed a better method to regulate airflow. Through his experimentation, he developed the demand regulator which allows air to flow only on demand. This invention would allow divers to increase their air supply and prevent decompression sickness.
Yves le Prieur
Yves le Prieur scuba diving dates back to the very beginning of the 1900s. 1946 saw the invention of a fullface face mask with a loose top plate. It was a kind of demand regulator diaphragm. His next invention was the diving regulator.
In 1933, the first scuba diving apparatus was patent. The device combined the Fernez-Le-Prieur's air supply system and the demand regulator created by Rouquayrol and Denayrouze. This device made underwater breathing apparatuses more affordable and easier to access, which revolutionized scuba diving. This was the birth of recreational scuba.
Guy Gilpatric
Guy Gilpatric made many contributions to the history of scuba dive during his lifetime. His articles for The Saturday Evening Post, which covered scuba diving, were the first to include a sport diving manual. His love of the sea and natural world led him to write about the Mediterranean. It is believed that the book inspired Jacques Cousteau to develop modern scuba diving.
In the early 20th Century, the inventions of modern scuba diving gear were made. Guy Gilpatric, an American marine biologist, patented a system that allows divers to breathe in air without using surface air. Later, Yves Le Prier designed an underwater breathing system. Owen Churchill purchased the system. The scuba diving rig was soon popular. Guy Gilpatric developed rubber goggles that included glass lenses, swim fins and snorkels.
Yves Gagnan
In the beginning of the century, scuba divers had to rely on helmets, diving bells, and air hoses from the surface. Yves Gagnan, a Parisian engineer, helped to design a demand valve. This new device provided compressed air on demand and was capable of adjusting to the pressure of the surrounding water. This discovery made it possible for people of all levels to explore the oceans.
Gagnan, a Frenchman, was born in Burgundy in 1900. After graduating from college, he took up employment with Air Liquide and studied high-pressure pneumatic design. This work eventually led to the development of scuba equipment that we use today.