List of women innovators and inventors by country

Women inventors have been historically rare in some geographic regions. For example, in the UK, only 33 of 4090 patents (less than 1%) issued between 1617 and 1816 named a female inventor.^[1] In the US, in 1954, only 1.5% of patents named a woman, compared with 10.9% in 2002.^[1] Women's inventions have historically been concentrated in some areas, such as chemistry and education, and rare in others, such as physics, and electrical and mechanical engineering.^[1] Some names such as Marie Curie and Ada Lovelace are widely known, many other women have been active inventors and innovators in a wide range of interests and applications, contributing important developments to the world in which we live.^[2][3]

The following is a list of notable women innovators and inventors displayed by country.

Australia[edit]

• Rose Cumming (1884–1968), innovative interior decoration
• Sally Dominguez (born 1969), modular rainwater tank
• Minnie Crabb (1885–1974), braille printing press
• Myra Juliet Farrell (1878–1957), tailoring devices, fruit picker, folding pram hood
• Melissa George (born 1976), style snaps
• Veena Sahajwalla (fl 2010s), green steel
• Alison Todd (fl 1990s), pathogen detection

Austria[edit]

• Slawa Duldig (1901–1975), folding umbrella
• Ingeborg Hochmair (born 1953), medical devices, cochlear implants
• Lise Meitner (1878–1968), radioactivity, nuclear physics
• Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky (1897-2000), Frankfurt kitchen
• Helene Winterstein-Kambersky (1900-1966), waterproof mascara

Belgium[edit]

• Guilly d'Herbemont (1888–1980), white cane for blind people
• Princess Stéphanie of Belgium (1864–1945), chafing dish
• Christine Van Broeckhoven (1953), treatments for neurodegenerative diseases^[4]
• Maria Clementine Martin (1775–1843), alcoholic herb extract

Brazil[edit]

• Chu Ming Silveira (1941–1997), public telephone

Canada[edit]

• Suhayya Abu-Hakima (fl 1982), artificial intelligence
• Margaret Atwood (born 1939), robotic writing with the LongPen
• Yvonne Brill (1924–2013), propulsion technologies
• Maya Burhanpurkar (born 1999), Alzheimer's drugs
• Martha Matilda Harper (1857–1950), hair tonic
• Catherine McCammon (fl 2000s), spectroscopy-based examination of earth materials
• Rachel Zimmerman (born 1972), Blissymbol printer

China[edit]

• Joyce Chen (1917–1994), woks
• Lanying Lin (1918–2003), material engineering
• Tu Youyou (born 1930), malaria treatment
• Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (born 1965), brain-science-based learning tools
• Dan D. Yang (born 1965), learning systems

Denmark[edit]

• Dorthe Dahl-Jensen (born 1958), ice cores
• Hanne Nielsen (1829–1903), Havarti cheese
• Ida Tin (born 1979), menstruation app

Egypt[edit]

• Hypatia (c.350–415), mathematics, astronomy
• Pandrosion (c.300–360), mathematics

Finland[edit]

• Mimmi Bähr (1844–1923), calligrapher and inventor

France[edit]

• Danièle Aron-Rosa (born 1935), laser-based eye surgery
• Martine Bertereau (born c.1600), mineralogy
• Marie Boivin (1773–1841), pelvimeter, vaginal speculum
• Herminie Cadolle (1845–1926), brassiere
• Madame Clicquot Ponsardin (1777–1866), Champagne riddling
• Marie Harel (1761–1844), Camembert cheese
• Martine Kempf (born 1951), voice activation system
• Géraldine Le Meur (born 1972), digital innovation
• Marie Marvingt (1875–1963), metal plane skis
• Marguerite Perey (1909–1975), francium
• Joanna Truffaut (fl from 2000), urban Wi-Fi networks
• Jeanne Villepreux-Power (1794–1871), aquaria

Germany[edit]

• Melitta Bentz (1873–1950), coffee filter^[4]
• Bertha Benz (1849–1944), brake linings
• Caroline Eichler (1808/9–1843), leg prosthesis, hand prosthesis
• Judith Esser-Mittag (born 1921), applicator-free tampon
• Marga Faulstich (1915–1998), optical glass^[4]
• Amelia Freund (1824–1887), cooking stove
• Caroline Herschel (1750-1848), astronomer
• Sonja de Lennart (born 1920), Capri pants
• Maria Goeppert Mayer (1906-1972), nuclear physics
• Ida Noddack (1896–1978), nuclear fission
• Emmy Noether (1882–1935), algebra, physics
• Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard (born 1942), biochemist
• Katharina Paulus (1868-1935), collapsible parachute
• Agnes Pockels (1862-1935), surface science
• Margarete Steiff (1847–1909), stuffed animals
• Brigitte Voit (born 1963), polymers

Greece[edit]

• Spéranza Calo-Séailles (1885–1949), "Lap" decorative concrete

Hungary[edit]

• Mária Telkes (1900–1995), solar energy

India[edit]

• Pratibha Gai (fl from 1974), electron microscopy
• Munia Ganguli (fl 2010s), drug delivery systems
• Sylvia Ratnasamy (born 1976), distributed hash table
• Sheila Sri Prakash (born 1955), prefabricated rotationally moulded inspection chamber

Ireland[edit]

• Jane Ní Dhulchaointigh (fl 2010s), silicone glue^[4]

Israel[edit]

• Ruth Arnon (born 1933), multiple sclerosis drug

Italy[edit]

• Maria Abbracchio (born 1956), pharmacology
• Catia Bastioli (born 1957), biodegradable plastics^[4]
• Patrizia A. Caraveo (born 1954), particle physics
• Teresa Ciceri Castiglioni (1750–1821) Italian inventor, agronomist
• Maria Cristina Facchini (fl from 1980s), aerosols
• Elena of Montenegro (1873–1952), signed photographs
• Maria Montessori (1870–1952), physician and educator
• Adele Racheli (1897–1992) engineer and co-founder of Milan patent protection office

Japan[edit]

• Teruko Mizushima (1920–1996), time-based currency
• Katsuko Saruhashi (1920–2007), measurement of carbon-dioxide concentrations in seawater^[5]

Latvia[edit]

• Marija Šimanska (1922–1995), heterocyclic compounds
• Lina Stern (1878–1968), blood–brain barrier

Netherlands[edit]

• Katja Loos (born 1971), enzymatic polymerization
• Laura J. van 't Veer (born 1957), cancer risk screening^[4]
• Saskia Wieringa (born 1950), gender relations

New Zealand[edit]

• Elizabeth Ann Louisa Mackay (1843–1908), cooking utensils

Nigeria[edit]

• Omowunmi Sadik (born 1964), microelectrode sensing, environmental applications

Poland[edit]

• 

  Marie Curie (1867–1934), radioactivity

Portugal[edit]

• Antonia Ferreira (1811–1896), winemaking

Romania[edit]

• Ana Aslan (1897–1988), ageing treatment

Russia[edit]

• Anna Pavlova (1881–1931), pointe shoes for ballet
• Irina Beletskaya (born 1933), organometallic chemistry

Singapore[edit]

• Lin Hsin Hsin (fl 1990s), various IT inventions

Spain[edit]

• Concepción Aleixandre (1862–1952), gynecology
• Ángela Ruiz Robles (1895–1975), electronic book reader
• Margarita Salas (1938–2019), DNA amplication^[4]

Sweden[edit]

• Maria Christina Bruhn (1732–1808), gunpowder packaging
• Eva Ekeblad (1724–1786), agronomy
• Amalia Eriksson (1824–1923), candy stick
• Simone Giertz (born 1990), robotic devices
• Iréne Grahn (1945–2013), patented finger joint support for patients with rheumatoid arthritis
• Hanna Hammarström (1829–1909), telephone wires
• Ninni Kronberg (1874–1946), powdered milk
• Laila Ohlgren (1937–2014), mobile telephony
• Maria Romell (1859-1949), heat-insulated food container and more
• Petra Wadström (b.1952), inventor of Solvatten

Switzerland[edit]

• Ursula Keller (born 1959), laser technology^[4]

United Arab Emirates[edit]

• Reem Al Marzouqi (fl 2000s), car driven without hands

United Kingdom[edit]

• Princess Anne of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg (1864–1927), automatic balancing bed
• Anna Atkins (1799–1871), photography
• Hertha Ayrton (1854–1923), electric arc lighting
• Theresa Berkley (died 1836), Berkley Horse
• Lauren Bowker (born 1985), colour-change inks
• Roxey Ann Caplin (1793–1888), corsetry
• Adelaide Claxton (fl 1860s–1890s), ear caps
• Eleanor Coade (1733–1821), artificial stoneware
• Emily Cummins (born 1987), evaporative refrigeration
• Fiona Fairhurst (fl 2009), swimsuits
• Christine Foyer (born 1952), plant science
• Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958), chemist
• Ida Freund (1863–1914), gas measurement
• Barbara Gilmour (died 1732), cheese making
• Sarah Guppy (1770–1852), bridge construction, domestic devices
• Mandy Haberman (born 1956), baby bottles
• Diane Hart (1926–2002), corsetry
• Valerie Hunter Gordon (1921–2016), disposable diapers, sanitary towels
• Phyllis Margaret Tookey Kerridge (1901–1940), glass electrodes
• Marie Killick (1914–1964), sapphire stylus
• Helen Lee (researcher) (fl from 1990s), diagnostic kits for infectious disease^[4]
• Ada Lovelace (1815-1852), mathematician
• Heather Martin (designer) (fl from 2000), interaction design
• Jane A. McKeating (fl from 1990s), molecular biology
• Emma Parmee (fl from 1990s), antidiabetic drugs
• Lucy Rogers (fl from 1990s), animatronic controllers
• Leslie Scott (born 1955), board games
• Beatrice Shilling (1909–1990), device for aircraft engines
• Bridget Elizabeth Talbot (1885–1971), watertight electric torch
• Asha Peta Thompson (fl 2000s), wearable technology

United States[edit]

A

• Berenice Abbott (1898–1991), photography
• Alice Alldredge (born 1949), marine biology
• Frances Allen (1932–2020), computer scientist
• Randi Altschul (born 1960), cellphones, games and toys
• Susan Amara (fl from 2000), drug discovery
• Anne Anastasi (1908–2001), psychometrics
• Betsy Ancker-Johnson (born 1927), plasma physics
• Beth Anderson (born 1950), music composition
• Laurie Anderson (born 1947), electronic music
• Mary Anderson, windscreen wipers
• Virginia Apgar (1909–1974), health of newborns
• Frances Arnold (born 1956), enzyme engineering
• Barbara Askins (born 1939), photographic negative enhancement

B

• Tabitha Babbitt (1779–c. 1853), tool making
• Betty Lou Bailey (1929–2007), exhaust nozzle
• Ellene Alice Bailey (1853–1897), clothing, household goods
• Betsey Metcalf Baker (1786–1867), straw bonnets
• Anna Baldwin (fl 1860s), milk production
• Alice Pike Barney (1857–1931), mechanical devices
• Janet Emerson Bashen (born 1957), software
• Patricia Bath (born 1942), medical devices
• Maria Beasley (fl 1870s–1890s), barrel hooper, life rafts
• Ruth Benedict (1887–1948), anthropology
• Ruth R. Benerito (1916–2013), cotton fabrics
• Miriam Benjamin (1861–1947), hotel chairs
• Evelyn Berezin (1925–2018), computerized typewriter^[5]
• Margaret Olofsson Bergman (1872–1948), looms
• Barbara Beskind (fl 1945–1956), therapeutic devices
• Patricia Billings (born 1926), Geobond building material
• Hazel Bishop (1906–1998), lipstick
• Sara Blakely (born 1971), hosiery
• Helen Blanchard (1840–1922), sewing machines
• Joani Blank (1937–2016), vibrators
• Katharine Burr Blodgett (1898–1979), low-reflectance glass^[5]
• Bessie Blount Griffin (1914–2009), feeding devices, disposable basins
• Vanna Bonta (1958–2014), flight suit for weightless environments
• Sarah Boone (1832–1904), ironing boards
• Shree Bose (born 1994), drugs for treating cancer
• Charlotte Bridgwood (1861–1929), windshield wipers
• Louise Brigham (1875–1956), modular furniture design
• Clarissa Britain (1816–1895), received seven patents
• Marie Van Brittan Brown (1922–1999), home security systems
• Deborah Washington Brown (1952–2020), speech recognition
• Rachel Fuller Brown (1898–1980), antibiotics
• Mary Brush (fl 1815), corsets

C

• Ve Elizabeth Cadie, (20th century), heat insulating handle for small home appliances, coffee pot
• Mary P. Carpenter (1840–1900), sewing machines, mosquito nets
• Keiana Cavé (born 1998), oil spill disperants
• Leona Chalmers (fl 1937), menstrual cup
• Melanie Chartoff (born 1950), water recycling
• Deanna M. Church (fl from 1990s), human genome
• Inga Stephens Pratt Clark (1906–1970), scarf
• Edith Clarke (1883–1959), electrical engineering
• Josephine Cochrane (1839–1913), dishwasher^[4]
• Lynn Conway (born 1938), computer science
• Martha Coston (1826–1904), marine signalling
• Cathy A. Cowan (fl from 1990s), health care cost trends
• Margaret Crane (fl 1967), home pregnancy test
• Caresse Crosby (1891–1970), modern bra
• Rose Cumming (1887–1968), wallpapers
• Jamie Lee Curtis (born 1958), diapers

D

• Emily Davenport (1810–1862), electric motor
• Constance Demby (1939–2021), electronic musical instruments
• Olive Dennis (1885–1957), passenger train equipment
• Maude Dickinson (c.1866–1933), hygiene products
• Marion Donovan (1917–1998), disposable diapers
• Anna Dormitzer (1830–1903), window-cleaning equipment
• Emily C. Duncan (born 1849), banking calculators

E

• Tomima Edmark (born 1957), garments designed for online sales
• Ellen Eglin (born 1849), clothes wringer
• Gertrude B. Elion (1918–1999), medical research, drugs
• Jeri Ellsworth (born 1974), computer design

F

• Ethel Finck (1932–2003), cardiac catheter
• Edith M. Flanigen (born 1929), molecular sieves
• Irmgard Flügge-Lotz (1903–1974), aircraft guidance systems
• Eunice Newton Foote (1819–1888), greenhouse effect, boot soles
• Josephine G. Fountain (fl 1960), direct suction tracheotomy tube
• Helen Murray Free (1923–2021), diabetes tests

G

• Frances Gabe (1015–2016), self-cleaning house
• Ruth Graves Wakefield (1903–1977), chocolate chip cookies
• Sarah E. Goode (1855–1905), folding cabinet bed
• Linda Gottfredson (born 1947), educational psychology
• Olga D. González-Sanabria (fl from 1979), battery technology, systems management
• Bette Nesmith Graham (1924–1980), liquid paper
• Temple Grandin (born 1947), hug machine
• Elizabeth Riddle Graves (1916–1972), Manhattan Project
• Lori Greiner (born 1969), household sponge, toilet accessories

H

• Mary Hallock-Greenewalt (1871–1950), visual music
• Ruth Handler (1916–2002), Barbie doll
• Elise Harmon (1909–1985), computer miniaturization
• Martha Matilda Harper (1857–1950), retail franchising
• Arlene Harris (born 1948), mobile and wireless technologies
• Ami Harten (1946–1994), applied mathematics
• Elizabeth Lee Hazen (1885–1975), antifungal medication
• Marti Hearst (fl from 1990s), text mining
• Ada Henry Van Pelt (1838–1923), water purification
• Beulah Louise Henry (1887–1973), sewing machines, freezers, typewriters
• Isabella Coler Herb (c.1863–1943), ether administration to patients
• Leta Stetter Hollingworth (1886–1939), educational psychology
• Mabel White Holmes (1890–1977), baking mixes
• Erna Schneider Hoover (born 1926), computerized telephone switching
• Grace Hopper (1906–1992), computer programming language compiler
• Frances Hugle (1927–1968), semiconductors
• Simona Hunyadi Murph (fl 2010s), nano technologies
• Ida Henrietta Hyde (1857–1945), intracellular micropipette electrode

J

• Mary Lou Jepsen (born 1965), computer applications, sunlight-readable display, laptop development
• Karen C. Johnson (born 1955), preventative health
• Kristina M. Johnson (born 1957), optoelectronic processing, 3-D imaging
• Nancy Maria Donaldson Johnson (1794–1890), hand-operated ice cream freezer
• Amanda Jones (1935–1914), vacuum canning
• Eldorado Jones (1860–1932), aeronautical mufflers, electric iron developments
• Marjorie Joyner (1896–1994), cosmetics, permanent waving

K

• Anna Keichline (1899–1943), interior design, kitchen features, construction bricks
• Mary Kenner (1912–2006), sanitary belt^[5]
• Mary Dixon Kies (1752–1837), hat manufacture
• Elizabeth Kingsley (1871–1957), crossword puzzles
• Edith Klemperer (1898–1987), neurology and psychiatry
• Margaret E. Knight (1838–1914), flat-bottomed paper bag
• June Kroenke (fl 1960s–1990s), sewing tools
• Deepika Kurup (born 1998), solar-powered water purification
• Stephanie Kwolek (1923–2014), synthetic fibres
• Angela Kornas (born 1977), bra inserts

L

• Hedy Lamarr (1914–2000), radio guidance systems
• Esther Lederberg (1922–2006), microbial genetics
• Cricket Lee (born 1953), clothing fitting
• Tara Lemmey (fl 2010s), information technology
• Jennifer A. Lewis (born 1964), 3D printing
• Lisa Lindahl (born 1948), exercise bra
• Barbara Liskov (born 1939), computer programming

M

• Elizabeth Magie (1866–1948), game of Monopoly
• Misha Mahowald (1963–1996), computational systems
• Annie Malone (1869–1957), cosmetics
• Helen Herrick Malsed (1910–1998), toys
• Joy Mangano (born 1956), self-wringing mop, luggage systems
• Elizabeth Holloway Marston (1893–1993), systolic blood-pressure test
• Sybilla Righton Masters (1676–1720), corn milling, hat making
• Jessica O. Matthews (fl from 2008), energy-storing devices
• Melanie Mayron (born 1952), skin care products
• Frances McConnell-Mills (1900–1975), hair rinse
• Florence Melton (1911–2007), foam-soled slippers
• Barbara Haviland Minor (fl from 1980s), refrigerants
• Heidi Messer (born 1969), online marketing
• Ynes Mexia (1870–1938), botany
• Catharine Cox Miles (1890–1984), human intelligence
• Joan L. Mitchell (1947–2015), JPEG image format
• Sumita Mitra (born 1949), dental filler based on nanoparticles^[4]
• Karen Mohlke (fl from 1990s), human genetics
• Mary Sherman Morgan (1921–2004), hydyne rocket fuel^[5]
• Virginia A. Myers (1927–2015), printing press developments

N

• Klára Dán von Neumann (1911–1963), early computer applications, including meteorology
• Lyda D. Newman (fl 1890s), hairbrush

P

• Karen Panetta (fl 1990s), medical diagnostics software
• Alice H. Parker (1885–1920), gas-powered central-heating furnace
• Bonnie Pemberton (fl from 1990s), cat anti-scratch deterrent
• Radia Perlman (born 1951), spanning-tree networking protocol
• Lindsay Phillips (born 1984), flip-flop design
• Mary Florence Potts (1850–1922), clothes irons

Q

• Agnes J. Quirk (1884–1974), penicillin producation

R

• Gitanjali Rao (born 2005), measurement of lead content in water
• Sibyl M. Rock (1909–1981), mass spectrometry
• Ernestine Rose (1810–1892), deodorizer
• Lorraine Rothman (1932–2007), menstrual extraction kit

S

• Leona D. Samson (born 1952), DNA repair
• Ginny Scales-Medeiros (fl 1970s), tanning system
• Sandra Scarr (born 1936), developmental psychology
• Becky Schroeder (born 1962), Glow Sheet for writing in the dark
• Patsy O'Connell Sherman (1930–2008), Scotchgard, repellents
• Altina Schinasi (1907–1999), Harlequin eyeglass frame
• Amy B. Smith (born 1962), screenless hammer mill, phase-change incubator
• Pamela S. Soltis (born 1957), botany, polyploidy
• Fannie S. Spitz (1873–1943), nut-shelling equipment
• Vesta Stoudt (1891–1966), duct tape
• Edith Stern (born 1952), holds over 100 patents in various computerized applications
• Harriet Williams Russell Strong (1844–1926), water storage
• Janese Swanson (born 1958), educational games

T

• Esther Takeuchi (born 1953), energy storage^[4]
• Emily E. Tassey (1823–1899), marine technology
• Emily E. Tassey (fl 1980s), women's bicycles
• Valerie Thomas (born 1943), illusion transmitter
• Elizabeth Sthreshley Townsend (died 1919), braille typewriter
• Harriet Tracy (1834–1918), elevators and sewing machines
• Ann Tsukamoto (born 1952), stem cell research
• Madeline Turner (fl 1916), fruit press
• Anne Tyng (1920–2011), children's construction set

V

• Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic (fl 1990s), tissue grafts^[4]

W

• Grace Wahba (born 1934), statistics
• Mary Walton (fl 1879), reduced hazards of smoke emissions
• Josephine Webb (1918–2017), switchgear
• Sandra Welner (1858–2001), patient examination table
• Eliza Wilbur (1851–1930), telescopes
• Margaret A. Wilcox (born 1838), car heater design
• Nancy Farley Wood (1903–2003), ionizing radiation detectors

Y

• Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (1921–2011), radioimmunoassay technique
• Adele De Berri (1885 - 1950s), Inventor of Silver Screen

See also[edit]

• List of inventions and discoveries by women

References[edit]