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Exactly 100 years ago, Dr. Bernhard Jansen filed a patent that stands in the shadow of the light bulb and the automobile – and yet is just as powerful. The resistor-type tap changer started a revolution that fundamentally shaped our electrical world and thus our lives. As the rhythm of energy supply, it now enables electricity for everyone.
On this page, we bring the history of the patent and its impact to life. We celebrate one of humanity's great inventions – an innovation that has been stabilizing the pulse of the world for 100 years and remains indispensable in the energy transition. Immerse yourself in the world behind the switching moment. Experience how 50 milliseconds make all the difference – then, now, and in the future. And come back again – there is always something new to discover about this anniversary.
He is not a pop star inventor like Thomas Edison or Henry Ford. Nor is he a revolutionary like Tesla or Watt. And yet his patent is just as powerful as theirs. As a young engineer, Dr. Jansen solved the most pressing problem facing the growing energy world: stabilizing grids under load and thus enabling them to be interconnected.
The technical principle of the resistor-type tap-changer continues to consolidate energy grids virtually unchanged to this day and is one of the invisible guarantors of security of supply, prosperity, and progress. Without this invention, the path to the energy transition would be just as unimaginable as the step toward an all-electric society as a logical consequence of the decarbonization of the world.
With the help of artificial intelligence, the inventor of the resistor-type tap-changer comes to life and provides insights into his work.
Dr. Jansen is born on August 31 in Wissen an der Sieg
Begins studying electrical engineering in Hanover
Patent application 474 613 submitted on 13 July
Dr. Jansen becomes technical director of OWAG in Regensburg
Patent granted for the resistor-type tap-changer on 6 April, 1929
First contact with the Scheubeck brothers in Reinhausen
Groundbreaking ceremony for the Reisach pumped storage plant
Chairman of the Board of OBAG
Dr. Jansen dies in a car accident
Ever since our first collaboration with Dr. Jansen, we have been pioneers. With 1,500 patents and innovations that set industry standards, we have shaped progress for 100 years – agin and again, as the first.
Regensburg
1920s
Fog hangs heavily over the Danube as the first factory sirens pierce the morning air.
Horse-drawn carts rumble through the streets while black clouds rise from the chimneys.
“Our goal is genuine innovation: we are shaping the energy transition together with our customers.”
For 100 years, the resistor-type tap-changer has been a symbol of reliability and innovation. However, our success is not based solely on technology – it is based on close cooperation with our customers. For us, this anniversary is more than just a retrospective: it is the perfect opportunity to take the next step toward the future together. In this interview, our experts discuss how we are actively shaping the energy transition with the new generation of VACUTAP® VI– and why partnerships are crucial in this endeavor.
For 100 years, Reinhausen has been shaping the energy supply with pioneering technology. Today, we are once again at a turning point: the global energy transition calls for new solutions and strong partnerships. In this interview, CIGRÉ Executive Committee member Rannveig Løken explains why tradition and transformation go hand in hand – and how Reinhausen is shaping the grids of the future.
What is CIGRÉ?
CIGRÉ (Conseil International des Grands Réseaux Électriques) is the world's leading network for experts in electrical power supply. For more than a century, it has been setting standards, discussing innovations, and shaping the future of power grids. Reinhausen has been an active member for decades, contributing its experience and innovative strength to the global transformation.
