Alfred TraegerPrint Page 
The monument commemorates engineer and inventor of the pedal wireless, Alfred Traeger (1895-1980).
Traeger's knowledge of radio attracted Flynn who asked him to accompany him to Alice Springs to conduct some experiments and develop a cheap, efficient radio to connect people of the outback with a central station. Traeger adapted a World War One idea of using pedals to generate electricity, to create a transmitter-receiver, and in 1929 launched the Traeger Pedal Radio at a then cost of £33 ($66.00). By 1933 these sets were extensively used and new models were frequently launched.
Traeger then overcame the problem of outback people having to use morse code by designing a morse keyboard, similar to a typewriter, which sent out the correct signal at the touch of a key. By 1939 he had developed a set which used vibrator units instead of pedals, however, as recently as 1962, the Traeger Radio Company was exporting pedal sets to Nigeria. In 1970 the School of the Air in Canada, and 20 developing countries relied on the Traeger Pedal Radio for communications in remote areas.
Location
| Address: | Santa Teresa Road , Alice Springs Airport, Alice Springs, 0870 |
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| State: | NT |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -23.801111 Long: 133.903333 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Industry |
| Link: | http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/adbonli… |
Dedication
| Approx. Monument Dedication Date: | 1968 |
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To commemorate the invaluable services of Alfred Traeger, O.B.E., whose invention of 1927 of the Pedal Generator Set and its development at Alice Springs solved the problem of radio communication with the remote areas of the inland thereby making possible the Flying Doctor Service operations throughout Australia.
Erected by the South Australian section of the Royal Flying Doctor Service 1968.
