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OUR PATRON - Dr Dean Kamen
Dr Dean Kamen is the President of DEKA Research & Development Corporation based in Manchester, New Haven. DEKA, founded in 1982 is a company which focuses on technologies that enhance quality of life. As an inventor, physicist and scientist, Dr Kamen has dedicated his life to developing technologies that help people lead better lives. His products originally included medical devices like the Palmaz-Schatz™ stent which was the first intravascular stent proven to reduce blockage in arteries. It was in fact used to repair damage to former US Vice President Dick Cheney's heart. Other notable breakthrough medical devices include the HomeCh oice® portable dialysis machine, marketed by Baxter Healthcare, and the Independence® IBOT® 4000 Mobility System, a sophisticated mobility aid, which was designed to climb stairs and traverse uneven terrain.
He currently holds more than 440 U.S. and foreign patents, many of them for innovative medical devices that have expanded the frontiers of health care worldwide.
Dr Kamen also developed a new prosthetic arm, speciallybuilt for war veterans when the Defense Department announced that 1,600 soldiers returned from Iraq and Afghanistan without an arm. This advanced prosthetic arm with 14 degrees of freedom, compared to the 21 degrees of freedom in the human arm, is able to pick up a raisin or grape off a table and deliver it to the mouth, while being able to sense what was picked up.
Moreover, Dean is widely recognized as the inventor of the Segway® Human Transporter, which was designed to provide a clean alternative for short distance travel and enhance people's productivity. One of Dean's newest projects is a water purification system that is being designed to help provide clean drinking water to the estimated 1.1 billion of people in the world who lack access to clean water.
Among Dean's proudest accomplishments is founding FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). In 2009, its flagship program, the FIRST Robotics Competition, reach more than 196,000 students and over 50 countries.
Indeed, it can be seen that his roles as inventor and advocate are intertwined -- his own passion for technology and its practical uses has driven his personal determination to spread the word about technology’s virtues and by so doing to change the culture of the United States. His vast knowledge of the physical sciences, combined with his ability to integrate the fundamental laws of physics with the most modern technologies, has led to the development of breakthrough processes and products.
Awards & Achievements
- Elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1997 for his biomedical devices and for making engineering more popular among high school students
- Awarded the National Medal of Technology in 2000 by then President Clinton for inventions that have advanced medical care worldwide
- Awarded the Lemelson-MIT Prize for inventors, for his invention of the Segway and of an infusion pump for diabetics In April 2002
- Inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for his invention of the AutoSyringe in 2005
- Awarded the Global Humanitarian Action Award by the United Nations in 2006
- Received an honorary "Doctor of Engineering" degree from Kettering University in 2001, as well as from the Wentworth Institute of Technology, and other honorary doctorates from Bates College in 2007, the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2008, the Illinois Institute of Technology in 2008 and Plymouth State University in may 2008
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