ROBERT NORDENSWAN

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(Material here falls under copyright of Bell labs and SMECC)

Four years after he came to the United States, Bob Nordenswan in 1913 joined our apparatus drafting group, but was soon assigned to the engineering of transmission instruments. During World War I he worked on battle telephones for the Navy and on submarine and subterranean sound ranging systems. 'After the war he had charge of our responsible for the design of large horns and of handsets. While developing the handset it was his hand which squeezed a lump of modeling clay into a shape which determined that of the handset handle.

EDITORS NOTE: This looks like the head from  an ERPI (ERPI, Electrical Research Products Inc., was formed as a Western Electric subsidiary) sound system, perhaps  Robert helped Al Jolsen to be heard in the Jazz Singer, the first sound movie?

Appears to be a hearing test set?

Later Mr. Nordenswan joined the Specialty Products design group where he was concerned with the development of phonograph 'pickups', audiphones, audiometers and music distribution systems for hotels. In 1938 he transferred to electromechanical apparatus development on the production design of message registers, mounting plates and soldering irons. During the war he designed timing devices and interrupters for Bell System and for military uses, and subsequently he has been working on apparatus for distributing tickets in toll offices, mounting plates and other central office apparatus. -