 General John T. Thompson developed the Thompson Submachine Gun.He originally envisioned an "auto rifle" (semi-automatic rifle) to replace the bolt action service rifles then in use, such as the American M1903 Springfield, but he came across a patent issued to John Bell Blish in 1915 while searching for a way to allow his weapon to operate safely without the complexity of a recoil or gas-operated reloading mechanism.Blish's design was based on the adhesion of inclined metal surfaces under pressure.