| By 1913 the german weapons designer, Reinhold Becker, had patented a 20mm cannon. The cannon was an automatic weapon of blowback design and used a differential
locking system. It had a 15 round vertical feed magazine and could be fired either in single shot mode or in a fully automatic 300 rounds per minute mode. The Becker
Cannon cartridge, which was actually 19.6mm, used a high explosive projectile with a contact detonator.
The Stahlwerke Becker company, of Reinickendorf, Germany, was formed to produce the weapon. During Early WW1 the Germans tried introducing it as zeppelin/aircraft
weapon, but apparently had reliability problems with the ammunition. A redesigned ammunition round was developed in 1916 by two German brothers by the name of Conders
who were employed by Stahlwerke Becker.
Later in the war it was again used as an aircraft weapon and also re-issued as anti-aircraft-gun in 1917.
After the end of the First World War the Stahlwerke Becker company was not allowed to manufacture any firearms. To remain in business, they sold their patent rights to
a Swiss company, SEMAG [Lit; Seebach Maschnenfabric AG]. They made some modifications to the basic design of the cannon and marketed it as the Semag-Becker Cannon
for use as an infantry support weapon. Despite some sales the marketing was not successful and the company went into receivership in 1921 though production seems to have
continued until 1923. The patents, weapons, staff and machinery were acquired by the Oerlikon Machine Tool Company of Switzerland in 1923 who continued to sell the gun
using the Semag-Becker designation until at least 1929.
Eventually the gun was redesigned to use a 20mm diameter projectile and the case was significantly lengthened, becaming the famous 20mm Oerlikon cartridge. The
subsequent Oerlikon guns designed to use this cartridge were, probably, the most widely used 20mm anti-aircraft guns before and during WW2 and possibly since. They were
exported to a large number of countries and the same time license produced in USA and Great Britain in huge numbers.
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