Hungarian Intellectual Property Office

KÁLMÁN KANDÓ (1869 - 1931)

Kálmán Kandó was one of the creators of the electric railway.

He attended high school in Budapest, and obtained his diploma as a mechanical engineer at the Budapest Technical University. He worked in France as a junior engineer designing and developing Tesla's induction motor. András Mechwart (the Ganz factory's managing director at that time) called him to return home in 1894. Shortly afterwards, Kandó designed the three-phase motor and generator series. Following these successful achievements at home he worked in Italy, later returning to Budapest to work at the Ganz factory where he became the managing director. On Kandó's initiative and under his leadership the factory began work on three-phase hauling for railways. Based on their design, the Italian Valtellina railway line was electrified, which became Europe's first electrified main railway line.

Kandó lived in Italy from 1907 to 1915, and returned home at the outbreak of war, but he was exempted from military service. He worked on the phase-converter system to the end of his life. His work is recognized abroad, as well, mainly for the 50-phase, electric railway supplied from the national grid system.