Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1972 [PAGE 419]

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1971]

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

409

of the Board, officers of the Board, and officers of the University as recorded at the beginning of these minutes were present.

R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S O F T H E UNIVERSITY P A T E N T COMMITTEE (23) T h e University Patent Committee, with the concurrence of the Chairman of the University Research Board, submits the following recommendations relating to patentable inventions by members of the staff. I concur in these recommendations. 1. Tracking light pen cursor — Paul T. Tucker, Graduate Assistant, Computerbased Education Research Laboratory, Urbana, inventor. T h e light pen consists of a fiber optic tube and a light detector at one end and a light pen head at the other end along with the necessary control switches and light focusing devices. The field of view of the light pen head should be limited to a circle of diameter between .16 inch and .25 inch. The field of view will then cover the entire cursor as well as some of the surrounding spots. The method of detecting head movement is to sequentially interrogate each of the four corner spots and to determine whether or not those spots are in the field of view of the light pen head. If light is detected on both write and erase, the spot is considered in the field of view. The Committee recommends that the rights of the University in this invention should be transferred to the University of Illinois Foundation for further development and patent application. 2. Phase shift telephone communications modem — Paul T. Tucker, Graduate Assistant, Computer-based Education Research Laboratory, Urbana, inventor. This system is an inexpensive, medium speed, telephone communications modem which utilizes a narrow shift (36°) phase keying which is capable of reliably transmitting and receiving data over unconditioned schedule 4 phone lines at speeds up to 1800 baud and still keep the complexity of the system at a minimum in order to reduce cost and size. The narrow shift used enables the system to be virtually immune to line phase shifts because the informational energy is confined to a ± 1 0 per cent of bit rate frequency spectrum and consequently almost all line injected phase and amplitude distortions are common mode to all interesting frequencies. The uniqueness of this modem and the reason for its inexpensiveness lies in the manner that the phase shifted signal is generated and detected. The Committee recommends that the rights of the University in this invention be transferred to the University of Illinois Foundation for further development and patent application. 3. Thin film bolometer infrared detector — Ben Contreras, Graduate Student in Electrical Engineering, Urbana, and Oscar L. Gaddy, Professor of Electrical Engineering, Urbana, inventors; developed under the sponsorship of the United States Army. This device consists essentially of thin films of an electrically conducting material placed upon a high thermal conductivity substrate. Absorption of infrared radiation by the film produces a temperature increase which changes the resistance of the film. When a bias current is established through the film resistor, this change in resistance produces a small change in voltage across the bolometer in proportion to the intensity of the infrared radiation. The Committee recommends that the rights of the University in this invention be released to the inventors, subject to the rights of the sponsoring agency. 4. Low modulus mechanical and electric coupler for periodic stress conditions — David S. Lieberman, Professor of Physical Metallurgy, Urbana, inventor. A wire spring, wire, or rod made of ferroelastic material can be repeatedly altered rather severely in shape, but the original shape is recovered each time in a "rubberlike" manner upon the removal of the stress. This novel behavior is in marked contrast to other metals and materials which plastically deform and subsequently fatigue and fracture under these conditions. The method of processing such a device has been developed which is simple and versatile, permitting a wide range of shapes and configurations which can be tailor-made for individual applications and needs. T h e Committee recommends that the rights of the University in this invention be released to the inventor. 5. Zemlin's index of palato-pharyngeal opening ( Z I P P O ) — W i l l a r d R. Zemlin, Associate Professor of Speech, Urbana, inventor. This invention is a device which measures vocal damping time. T h e novel aspect of the technique is the use of vocal damping time to evaluate velopharyngeal (palatal-pharyngeal) closure. Damping time is denned as the interval in seconds between closure of the valve