Robert Fischell (born February 10, 1929) is a physicist, prolific inventor, and holder of more than 200 U.S. and foreign medical patents.[1][2][3][4][5] His inventions have led to the creation of several biotechnology companies. He worked at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory full-time for 25 years and part-time for an additional 13 years. He contributed to APL's satellite navigation work; he later developed a rechargeable implantable pacemaker that could be programmed with radiowaves,[6][7][8][9] (Pacesetter Systems purchased by Siemens, now the CRM division of St. Jude Medical). He and his team at Hopkins also helped miniaturize the implantable cardiac defibrillator.[10] Mr. Fischell went on to invent the implantable insulin pump (MiniMed, spun off from Pacesetter Systems in 1985), numerous coronary stents used to open clogged arteries (IsoStent merged with Cordis, in turn purchased by Johnson & Johnson),[11] and two feedback systems that provide early warning of epileptic seizures (NeuroPace) and heart attacks (Angel Medical Systems).[4] Fischell recently donated $30 million to the University of Maryland College Park Foundation to establish a bioengineering department and an institute for biomedical devices at the A. James Clark School of Engineering.[12]

In 2005, he was awarded the TED Prize, receiving $100,000 and three wishes, including a braintrust on medical liability and the successful design of a device to cure migraines.[13]

Fischell received his B.S. in mechanical engineering from Duke University in 1951. He received his M.S. from the University of Maryland in 1953 in physics, which is part of the University of Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences. Fischell was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Maryland in 1996.[14][15]

He has three sons (from oldest to youngest), David, Tim, and Scott Fischell. He is married to Susan R. Fischell, and they live in Maryland.

He was awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation in 2016.[16][17]

References

  1. ^ Who's who in America. Marquis Who's Who. 2003. p. 1613. ISBN 9780837969756. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  2. ^ MIT Inventor of the Week Archives. Accessed February 22, 2007.
  3. ^ "NHM Board Welcomes Renowned Health and Medical Figures as Newest Trustees," Archived 2012-02-06 at the Wayback Machine National Health Museum News, Accessed February 22, 2007.
  4. ^ a b "Industry Pioneer – Robert Fischell," Medical Device & Diagnostic Industry – August 2004. Accessed February 22, 2007.
  5. ^ US Patents of Robert E. Fischell
  6. ^ Love JW, Lewis KB, Fischell RE, "The Johns Hopkins rechargeable pacemaker. Historical aspect." JAMA 1975 Oct 6;234(1):64-6.
  7. ^ "Programmable Pacemaker," Spinoff (Publication of NASA featuring commercial applications of space technology), 1996. Accessed February 25, 2007.
  8. ^ Fischell R. (1998), "Applications of Transit Satellite Technology to Biomedical Devices," Johns Hopkins APL Technical Digest; Vol 19, No. 1.
  9. ^ "The Alfred Mann Foundation," Archived 2007-02-18 at the Wayback Machine Mission and History, Accessed February 25, 2007.
  10. ^ Neal E. (2003), "Technology for Humanity: Robert Fischell," Discover Magazine, Vol. 24, No. 11.
  11. ^ "Cordis Acquires IsoStent Technology; Continues Collaborative Radioactive Stent Research," PRNewswire, Accessed February 22, 2007.
  12. ^ The Fischell Department of Bioengineering and the Robert E. Fischell Institute for Biomedical Devices. Accessed February 22, 2007.
  13. ^ 2005 Winners Archived 2008-12-21 at the Wayback Machine tedprize.org, accessed 09-08-2012
  14. ^ "Angel Medical Systems – It's about time".
  15. ^ "Bioengineering, University of Maryland". Archived from the original on 2010-05-31. Retrieved 2010-05-08.
  16. ^ "Fischell to Receive National Medal of Technology and Innovation". University of Maryland. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  17. ^ "Laureates - National Science and Technology Medals Foundation".

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