Tablets are image of the technology of the post-modern age, slim highly portable entertainment devices, jam-packed with nano technology that many children have owned at some point in the last 10 years (and inevitable broken). A symbol of the latest micro-technology, who invented the first, and when?
In 1949, Ángela Ruiz Robles, a Spanish educator born in Villamanín, León, in 1895, patented the “Mechanical Encyclopedia,” a groundbreaking precursor to the modern tablet. The revolutionary device, which was designed to make learning engaging and accessible, was invented by a woman whose contributions remained largely unrecognised until recent years.
Ruiz Robles, affectionately known as “Doña Angelita” by her students in Ferrol, Galicia, was no ordinary teacher. A graduate of León’s Teacher Training School, she taught shorthand, typing, and accounting before becoming headmistress of schools in Gordón and Ferrol. A widowed mother of three daughters, she defied conventions, riding horses and embracing Ferrol’s beaches, while her daughters fell asleep to the clatter of her typewriter as she crafted numerous works and inventions.
First tablet the Mechanical Encyclopedia
Her most important creation, the Mechanical Encyclopedia, was meant to address the challenges of heavy textbooks, complex subjects, and visual impairments. Built in Ferrol’s shipyards due to lack of corporate investment, the prototype featured reels, each containing a subject, similar to modern USB drives, was operated by buttons. It included a light for reading in the dark, a magnifying lens adjustable to students’ needs, a small calculator, and buttons functioning as early hyperlinks. Despite approval from Spain’s Ministry of Education, the invention never reached mass production.
Ruiz Robles’ ingenuity earned her the Cross of Alfonso X and skepticism from those who doubted all subjects could fit into her device. Guided by her Catholic faith and a motto of selfless service, she managed the National School for Orphan Girls, taught free classes, and wrote letters for others without charge. In 1925, her community honoured her dedication with a special distinction.
In 2013, with Apple’s iPad gaining popularity, Spain’s Ministries of Education and Economy said “hang on a minute” and published a book on her invention, provoked a lot of renewed interest. Her story appeared in works like “Las chicas son guerreras” and earned her a Google Doodle on her birthday. Two awards now bear her name, and her prototype is displayed at the National Museum of Science and Technology in A Coruña.
Ruiz Robles always refused to sell her invention in the US, insisting it should be developed in Spain. Her legacy as a teacher, mother, and visionary continues, a testament to a woman whose innovative spirit transformed education.
