Accessible across all of today's devices: phones, tablets, and desktops. Lonnie wasnt a toymaker, he was actually an Aerospace Engineer for NASA with a resume boasting a stint with the US Air Force, work on the Galileo Jupiter probe and Mars Observer project, and more than 40 patents. But this single improvement was among a long list of achievements. Otis Boykin was an African American electrical engineer and inventor. In addition, a version of his resistor made possible the precise regulation necessary for the success of the pacemaker, which has helped to save and lengthen the lives of thousands of men and women around the world. There and at other companies, he gained . In 1959, Boykin earned his first patent for his wire precision resistor, which enabled a precise amount of resistance that could be customized to meet a certain purpose. Despite his input, Boykin died of a heart attack himself. ", Majestic Radio and Television Corporation, List of African-American inventors and scientists, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Otis_Boykin&oldid=1142263212, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox person with multiple parents, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Booker T. Washington High School, FISK University, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 12:23. And thanks to the Academy Award nominated film, Hidden Figures, were now all familiar with the amazing contributions of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson. Biography of Alexander Graham Bell, Inventor of the Telephone, The History of the Integrated Circuit (Microchip), Biography of Granville T. Woods, American Inventor, Famous Black Inventors of the 19th- and Early 20th-Centuries, Biography of Gregorio Zara, Inventor of the Videophone, George Westinghouse's Influence on Electricity, Biography of Samuel F.B. [5] One of his mentors was Dr. Denton Deere, an engineer, and inventor with his own laboratory. Boykin was born August 29, 1920 in Dallas, Texas. Others are familiar with the story of Sarah Breedlove, aka Madam C. J. Walker, the inventor of beauty products and the first woman to become a self-made millionaire in America. She also played a major role in the emergency of online video, later serving on the senior management team at Hulu. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. [2][3] His father, Walter B. Boykin, was a carpenter, and later became a preacher. Nilsen Research Laboratories, and he eventually founded his own company, Boykin-Fruth Inc. Hal Fruth was his mentor at the time and business partner. Typically, a resistors value is denoted by tiny, colored bands for identification. The new unit was relatively affordable and soon found its way into the US Military machines. Variations of his resistor technologies are used in televisions, radios, computers, pacemakers, and guided missiles. He focused primarily on resistors technology that reduces the flow of electricity to allow the safe operation of an electronic device. [10], After the suit was eventually dismissed, and his career at CTS had ended, he opened his own consulting and research company, with offices in both the US and Paris, France. [5] He attended Fisk University[3] on a scholarship, worked as a laboratory assistant at the university's nearby aerospace laboratory, and left in 1941. Otis Boykin is best known for inventing an improved electrical resistor used in computers, radios, television sets and a variety of electronic devices. The chip was cheaper and more. All in all, he earned 11 patents and invented 28 different electronic devices. He graduated in 1941 and took a job as a laboratory assistant with the Majestic Radio and TV Corporation in Chicago, Illinois. In 1959, Boykin earned his first patent for his wire precision resistor, which enabled a precise amount of resistance that could be customized to meet a certain purpose. Boykin was born in Dallas, Texas, on August 29, 1920 to parents of modest means. Aside from the resistor, Boykins most notable invention might be circuit improvements made to the pacemaker. Additionally, according to U.S. patent No. Copyright 1997 - 2023 Black Facts. In an interview with Medical Design & Outsourcing, Gabriel Mouchawar, divisional VP of product development at Abbott, explained that Boykins early technological contributions proved essential to making pacemakers accessible for many more people. For those who have benefited from using a pacemaker, his impact remains even greater. He closed shop for lack of finances. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. On this day in 1961, an improved version of Boykins electrical resistor was published and caught the attention of the military and one of Americas top computer companies. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Interesting Facts About Otis Boykin His mother Sarah was a maid, who died when Otis was only a year old, of heart failure, which inspired him to make the control unit. He was the seventh of eight children of Walter Benjamin and Sarah Jane (Cox) Boykin. To learn more about the inventions of Otis Boykin, visit: Otis F. Boykin: Black Inventor Online Museum Black History Pages: Boykin May 3, 2014. His father was a carpenter, who later became a minister. South Carolina Constitutional Convention adopted, (1976) Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, Who, Then, Will Speak for the Common Good?, (1864) Frederick Douglass On The Mission Of The War. Boykin attended Booker T. Washington High School from 1934 to 1938. Drew eventually resigned from his position with the American Red Cross over their insistence on adhering to this policy. He graduated top of his class. From a humble background as the son of a carpenter, he worked his way up the society. Over the course of his life he earned over 25 patents, his first issued in 1959 and his last in 1985. To share with more than one person, separate addresses with a comma. So the next time youre escaping a hot day inside your cool house, dont forget to thank Lewis Latimer. We hope you and your family enjoy the NEW Britannica Kids. In due course, he was able to make important inventions that revolutionized how we live. Found in everything from televisions to smartphones, variations of Boykins resistor designs enable the precise regulation of electrical current within a circuit. [1] His inventions include electrical resistors used in computing, missile guidance, and pacemakers. Electrical resistors and its technology was transformed due to the inventions of Otis Boykin. Perhaps most importantly, his work was used to create the first successful 0pacemaker. Most people in medtech know of Earl Bakken's contributions to pacemakers and cardiac rhythm devices. He began to invent products on his own, with some of his noteworthy inventions including a wire precision resistor used in televisions and radios and a control unit for the pacemaker. Boykin decided to pursue his graduate education at the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1946. He has patented as many as 26 devices and was inducted into the Nation Inventors Hall of . His father started as a carpenter but later became a church minister. He sought and received a patent for a wire precision resistor on June 16, 1959. A patent is an official document that gives inventors control over who may use their invention. Otis Boykin was an inventor responsible for many important electrical devices that are used in modern times, most notably the electrical resistor. Nilsen Research Labs. After graduating from Fisk University in 1941 in Nashville, Tennessee, hewas employed as a laboratory assistant for the Majestic Radio and TV Corporation of Chicago, testing automatic controls for airplanes. Drew was one of the most prominent doctors working in his field, and one of the only African-Americans, during a time when blood donation was still separated along lines of race. A pacemaker is a medical device, placed inside the body, that helps the heart to beat steadily. With a scientific mindset, Otis Boykin had a keen interest in electronic gadgets. With technology playing an even greater role in our everyday lives due to our increased need to work and learn remotely, we often take advantage of Boykins contributions to resistor technology without even knowing it. Drew was a physician, surgeon, and medical researcher who worked with a team at Red Cross on groundbreaking discoveries around blood transfusions. His father was a pastor, and his mother worked as a housekeeper. Otis Boykin Inventions and Accomplishments. After graduating high school, he attended Fisk College in Nashville, Tennessee. Boykin pursued graduate studies at the Illinois Institute of Technology from 1946 to 1947, but unfortunately, he had to drop out when his family could no longer afford to pay tuition. Bellis, Mary. However, this did not deter him, and after graduating as valedictorian from Dallas's Booker T. Washington High School in 1938, he earned a scholarship to attend Fisk University. (2021, February 16). PERSONAL LIFE His father was a minister and a carpenter. By 1944, he was working for the P.J. Today, you can catch Lisa at the White House, in the United States Digital Service. He graduated from Fisk University in 1941 and got a job as a laboratory assistant, testing automatic aircraft controls. Student Fellows Research Program: Recruitment Open! His designs are still in use in nearly all aspects of electronic gadgets. The computer manufacturer IBM also used it to strengthen its hardware. Otis Frank Boykin was born on August 29, 1920, in Dallas, Texas. Boykin continued his education at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago from 1946 to 1947, but he had to drop out when he could no longer pay tuition. Otis Boykin. While in college, he landed a job testing automatic aircraft controls at an aerospace laboratory close to the university. She is currently serving as the Chief Digital Service Officer with the US Department of Education. Boykin was born on Aug. 29, 1920, in Dallas, Texas, to a family of modest means. Other applications of Boykins invention included guided missiles, televisions, and IBM computers. ", Julia Scott Reed, "Dallasite Stars as Inventor. Otis Frank Boykin died in Chicago of heart failure on March 13, 1982 at the age of 61. His most famous invention was a control unit for the pacemaker. Today's Texas Birthdays 36 Windell Middlebrooks Jan. 08 1979 35 Allison Harvard Three years laster he left Majestic and took a position as a research engineer with the P.J. Read on for posts that were previously published here. Otis Redding, (born September 9, 1941, Dawson, Georgia, U.S.died December 10, 1967, near Madison, Wisconsin), American singer-songwriter, one of the great soul stylists of the 1960s. Nilsen Research Labs. Two years later, he created a breakthrough device that could withstand extreme changes in temperature and pressure. Otis Boykin: Improved the Pacemaker. His resistor was quickly incorporated into a number of products, including guided missiles and IBM computers in the United States and overseas. This resistor would later be used in radios and televisions. This genius also designed an improved railroad car bathroom and an early air conditioning unit. He developed the wire precision resistor which enabled manufacturers to accurately designate a value of resistance for an individual piece of wire in electronic equipment. In 1959, Boykin invented his wire precision resistor and two . 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