ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Robert Kearns

Robert Kearns was a man who invented something important called the intermittent windshield wiper. This means that when you turn on your car's wipers, they don't just keep going at the same speed all the time, but they go faster or slower depending on how much rain there is.

Kearns was a smart engineer who worked hard to make this invention, and he even got a patent for it! That means he owned the rights to this idea so nobody else could use it without his permission.

But then something bad happened. Some big car companies decided they wanted to use his invention without paying him any money or giving him credit for it. This made Kearns very upset, so he decided to fight for his rights in court.

It took a long time for the court case to be resolved, and it was very hard for Kearns. But eventually, the court agreed that he was right and the car companies had to pay him a lot of money for using his idea without permission.

So Robert Kearns was a brave and determined man who fought for what he believed was right, and he won! His invention still helps keep us safe on the road today.