Otis Boykin

An ink drawing of Otis Boykin from a U.S. Department of Energy biographical sketch of 1979.

Otis Bobby Boykin (August 29, 1920, Dallas, Texas – March 13, 1982, Chicago, Illinois) was an African-American inventor and engineer.[1][2]

Biography

Otis Frank Boykin was born in 1920 in Dallas, Texas. His mother Sarah was a maid, who died when Otis was only a year old.[3] His father Walter was a carpenter, who later became a minister. Otis Boykin attended Booker T. Washington High School in Dallas, where he was the valedictorian, graduating in 1938.[4] He attended Fisk University on a scholarship and worked as a laboratory assistant at the university's nearby aerospace laboratory. He then moved to Chicago, where he studied at Illinois Institute of Technology[5] but dropped out after two years; some sources say it was because he could not afford his tuition, but he later told Julia Scott Reed of the Dallas Morning News that he left for an employment opportunity and did not have time to return to finish his degree. He was discovered and mentored by Dr. Denton Deere, an engineer and inventor with his own laboratory; Fruth and Boykin would collaborate on a number of projects, and had a company Boykin Fruth Inc.

Boykin patented 28 electronic devices. One of his early inventions was an improved wire resistor, which had reduced inductance and reactance, due to the physical arrangement or the wire.[6] Other notable inventions include a variable resistor used in guided missiles and small component thick-film resistors for computers.[7]

Boykin's most famous invention was likely a control unit for the artificial heart pacemaker.[8] The device essentially uses electrical impulses to maintain a regular heartbeat.

Boykin died of a heart failure in Chicago in 1982.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Anonymous Black Contributors to Science and Energy Technology (Biographical sketch: Otis Boykin), US Department Of Energy, Office of Public Affairs, U.S.Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1979, pp. 8-9, DOE/OPA-0035(79)
  2. 1 2 "Inventor of Heart Stimulator Honored At Memorial Service." Dallas Morning News, March 18, 1982, p. 88.
  3. ↑ Frances T. Matlock. "Boykin's Electric Device Aid in Eisenhower Crisis." Pittsburgh Courier, September 14, 1968, p. 12.
  4. ↑ Julia Scott Reed, "Dallasite Stars as Inventor." Dallas Morning News, January 5, 1969, p. A31
  5. ↑ "Inventor Aids Foreign Nations." Pittsburgh Courier, May 28, 1977, p. 8.
  6. ↑ U.S. Patent 2,634,352
  7. ↑ Mary Bellis, "Otis Boykin", About.com Guide.
  8. ↑ Frances T. Matlock. "Boykin's Electric Device Aid in Eisenhower Crisis." Pittsburgh Courier, September 14, 1968, p. 12.

External links

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