South Orange Man Wins Edison Patent Award

A South Orange resident was recently named a Patent Award winner by the Research & Development Council of New Jersey.

The 2013 Thomas Edison Patent Award in the Emerging Technology category was presented to New Jersey Institute of Technology’s “Unauthorized User Prevention Device and Method” invented by Michael L. Recce, Ph.D of South Orange.

“This patent describes an embedded electronic device and method to authenticate access in real-time through identification of individual dynamic characteristics of human handgrips for handgun use,” the R&D Council of New Jersey announced.

In other words, you cannot fire a handgun unless the patented grip recognizes your hand print.

More than 30 inventors and 12 New Jersey companies and universities were honored at the Council’s 34th Patent Award Ceremony.

Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs, AT&T, Avaya, Colgate-Palmolive, ExxonMobil, Glenbrook Technologies, JP Laboratories, NJIT, Novartis, Rutgers, Siemens, and TE Connectivity SubComwill were acknowledged for innovative patent work spanning twelve R&D categories, including biotechnology, communications technology, consumer, emerging technology, homeland security, industrial processes, information technology, medical devices, medical imaging, multimedia technology, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications.

“Each year the Council is thrilled to receive extraordinary nominations to compete for the Edison Patent Award,” said Kathleen Scotto, Ph.D., Research & Development Council of New Jersey Chairwoman and Vice-Chancellor for Research, Rutgers Biomedical Health Sciences and Dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. “This year’s recipients represent the quality and diversity of research and development that have made New Jersey a leader in innovation for more than a century. I congratulate each and every one of them.”

The 34th Patent Award Ceremony & Reception took place on November 7, 2013 at the Liberty Science Center. The Liberty Science Center is home to the nation’s largest IMAX Theater, where a short original film paid tribute to the work of each of the patents and the inventors.

“For 34 years, the Council has recognized the outstanding contributions of New Jersey’s research community and understood the importance of honoring those who are transforming the way the world works,” said Council President Anthony S. Cicatiello. “This year’s ceremony illuminated the full spectrum of innovation in the Garden State, from inventions that support natural disaster relief to technologies that increase handgun safety. On November 7th, we welcomed 30 more inventors to our Edison Patent Award alumni, and continue our tradition of celebrating New Jersey’s best and brightest in R&D.”