Who invented taximeter?

Taximeter was invented by, a German Wilhelm Bruhn in 1891. The word taximeter was derived from two words; a French word taxe meaning price and a Greek word metron meaning measure. Though earlier also there were patents for calculating fares such as “Patent Mile Index“ registered in 1847 and “Kilometric “ registered in 1858 but were not accepted by the taxi drivers. It is believed that Bruhn was thrown in river by the taxi drivers though his invention is still being used. This was from taximeter only that the taxicab got its name. The first meter equipped taxi “Daimler Victoria” was built by Gottlieb Daimler in 1897. The earliest taximeters were put outside the taxi on the driver’s side front wheel and were mechanically operated. Later it was put inside where they still exist.

It was in 1980 that electronic meters were introduced. Besides printing receipts and showing the fare amount the latest taximeters are well equipped with GPRS systems, radios as communicator and are also used to run a credit card. The passengers today can enjoy online booking also. They can confirm the freight by filling the boarding and dropping destination. The introduction of taximeters brought about revolution in taxi business. Though many factors determine the taxi fare but the main that influences is the distance covered.