Otis Frank Boykin
By
John C Abercrombie
Otis Boykin was born in Dallas, Texas on August 29, 1920. His father was a carpenter who later became a preacher. His mother died of heart failure when he was 1 year old. This is the inspiration that drove him to help improve the pacemaker. It is difficult situations that many use as fuel to propel them to great heights. These posts are intended to inspire you to become your greatest self. Rather than suffer in silence become aware that you can perform miracles if you persist.
Boykin was a brilliant student and graduated as the valedictorian of his class in 1938. He attended the HBCU Fisk University on scholarship and worked as a lab assistant in the university’s aerospace laboratory.
Outstanding at turning his intellect into practical use he moved to Chicago and worked as a clerk for Electro Manufacturing Company and eventually was promoted to a laboratory assistant for the Majestic Radio and Television Corporation before being promoted to foreman of the factory. By 1944 he was working for the PJ Nilsen Research Labs.
He studied at the Illinois institute of Technology in 1946 – 1947 before leaving to pursue an employment opportunity. He was mentored by Dr Denton Deere an engineer and inventor with his own laboratory. He was also mentored by Dr Hal F Fruth. These men and others were able to recognize the genius of Boykins potential. He collaborated on more effective ways to test automatic pilot control units in airplanes. Boykins next step was to partner with Fruth and open an electronics research lab in the late 1940s.
Boykin and Fruth worked together at the Monson Manufacturing Corp where he was the chief engineer. In the early 1960s he was a senior project engineer at what later became known as CTS Labs, and it was where he did most of his work on the pacemaker. He left over patent rights from his work there in the development of the pacemaker.
He sued and lost, resulting in his opening his own consulting and research company with offices in the United States and Paris, France.
Boykin patented over 20 devices but is best known for inventing electric control devices in guided missiles, IBM computers and the work with pacemakers.
Among his best known inventions are the variable resistor used in guided missiles. His most famous invention was a control unit for the cardiac pacemaker which uses electrical impulses to maintain a regular heartbeat.
The world lost a great scientist on March 26, 1982, when he died at the age of 61.
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Otis Boykin made his mark in the pages of history and medical devices. Motivated by the death of his mother, he turned that into a work that has saved and continues to save countless lives. Remember you to are capable of great things if you believe in yourself and persist. May success be yours!