Otis Boykin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Otis Boykin
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1979 portrait from the U.S. Department of Energy
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| Born |
Otis Frank Boykin
August 29, 1920 |
| Died | March 26, 1982 (aged 61) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Booker T. Washington High School, FISK University |
| Parent(s) | Walter B. Boykin, Sarah Boykin |
| Engineering career | |
| Institutions | Illinois Institute of Technology |
| Employer(s) | Monson Manufacturing Corporation, Chicago Telephone Supply Corporation |
| Projects | Electrical resistors, electronic control devices |
Otis Frank Boykin (born August 29, 1920 – died March 26, 1982) was a brilliant American inventor and engineer. He created many important electronic devices. His inventions helped make computers, guided missiles, and even heart pacemakers work better.
Contents
A Young Inventor's Start
Otis Boykin was born in Dallas, Texas, on August 29, 1920. His father, Walter B. Boykin, worked as a carpenter and later became a preacher. Otis's mother, Sarah, passed away from heart problems when he was just one year old. This sad event later inspired Otis to work on improving the pacemaker.
School Days and Learning
Otis went to Booker T. Washington High School in Dallas. He was a top student and graduated in 1938 as the valedictorian. This means he was the best student in his class! He then received a scholarship to attend Fisk University. While there, he worked as a lab assistant in an aerospace laboratory. He left Fisk University in 1941.
Building a Career in Electronics
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After college, Otis Boykin moved to Chicago. He started working at the Electro Manufacturing Company. Later, he became a lab assistant at the Majestic Radio and Television Corporation. He worked his way up to become a factory foreman there. By 1944, he was doing research at P.J. Nilsen Research Labs.
Otis also studied at the Illinois Institute of Technology for two years. He left to take an exciting job opportunity. He worked with Dr. Hal F. Fruth, another inventor. Together, they explored new ways to test airplane auto-pilot systems. They even opened their own electronics research lab in the late 1940s.
In the 1950s, Otis became the chief engineer at Monson Manufacturing Corporation. Later, in the early 1960s, he worked at Chicago Telephone Supply Corporation (now CTS Labs). This is where he did much of his important research on pacemakers. He later had a disagreement with this company about his inventions. After this, he started his own consulting and research company. It had offices in both the United States and Paris, France.
His Amazing Inventions
Otis Boykin was a very creative inventor. He received patents for as many as 26 different devices! He is most famous for his electronic control devices. These inventions were used in many important technologies.
His work helped improve guided missiles and IBM computers. Most importantly, his inventions were crucial for the pacemaker. A pacemaker is a small device that uses electrical signals to help a heart beat regularly.
One of his first inventions was a better electrical resistor. Resistors are tiny parts that control electricity in circuits. His design made them work more efficiently. He also invented a special variable resistor for guided missiles. Another clever invention was a cash register that was harder for burglars to break into. Otis Boykin's inventions truly made a difference in the world!
See also
