Thank you Torgny Jansson

[RichColvin]

Next year, Tormek will be celebrating 50 years of providing us with the superb sharpening system we call a Tormek.  We need to find a way to thank Torgny Jansson, so please respond to this posting with your favorite thoughts or ideas about his wonderful invention.

[Dutchman]

Yes, that's a good cause for celebration.
Torgny Jansson, however, already filed a patent in 1978 for a jig that we now know as SE-76, but with its own support instead of USB. See "Fig 4"
In total, Johansson holds 13 patents according to Epacenet  See attached list.
In 1982 he applied for a patent for the device as we know it today: "Device for grinding and/or honing"
In a shop of old books I found a manual in Dutch in which the "Supergrind 2000" is presented as the latest machine. This is probably Tormek's oldest handbook on sharpening.

[Ken S]

Dutchman,

Thank you for posting this fascinating information. It really documents why Tormek is the leader in innovative wet sharpening.

I have a similar booklet in my collection of Tormek handbooks. I checked with support; mine (English version) is the second edition. I am interested in learning how early Tormek users sharpened before all of the jigs we take for granted today. This is not as impractical as one might think. I have occasionally run into tools which are too large, too small, etc. to fit within the range of our jigs.

Ken

[Dutchman]

It should also be mentioned that Hakan Persson, the current CEO, also has 10 patents and more will most likely follow.

[Ken S]

Håkan Persson is a man of many talents. His specialty, as shown in this online class, is superabrasives. I believe he is responsible for moving Tormek from "the stone age" to diamond wheels. Here is a link:

https://youtu.be/38c95D6z5D8

Ken