European Inventor Hall of Fame – till June 30, 2014

European Inventor Hall of Fame

from March 20 to June 30, 2014
Incubator Gallery

Città della Scienza

Seven outstanding scientists and engineers from across Europe were thrust into the public spotlight at the European Inventor Hall of Fame. The exhibition has been commissioned by the European Patent Offuce as part of celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the signing of the European Patent Convention in 1973.

The Hall of Fame features seven exhibits about inspirational men and women, all of whom have been honoured in recent years with the European Inventor Award for their groundbreaking inventions. The exhibition itself is the result of co‑operation between the EPO and a group of European science and technology museums. The exhibition’s first stop was the Deutsches Museum in Munich, but it will then travel to some of Europe’s other leading science and technology museums in the months to come. Its first port of call is Città della Scienza, where it will be hosted from March 20 to June 30, 2014.

The inventors featured in the Hall of Fame are:

  • Prof. Josef Bille (Germany), pioneer of laser eye correction (winner 2012, Lifetime Achievement);
  • Prof. Jason Chin (UK), who together with Oliver Rackham (Australia) has re-engineered protein synthesis inside human cells for advanced therapeutics (finalists 2012, Research);
  • Dr. Jaap Haartsen (the Netherlands), inventor of Bluetooth short-range wireless connectivity (finalist 2012, Industry);
  • Ann Lambrechts (Belgium), inventor of steel fibres to reinforce concrete (winner 2011, Industry);
  • Farouk Tedjar (France), inventor of a safe, green way to recycle batteries (finalist 2012, SMEs);
  • Jan Tøpholm (Denmark), together with Søren Westermann and Svend Vitting Andersen, whose patented process is behind 95% of all tailor-made hearing aids (winners 2012, Industry);
  • Benedetto Vigna (Italy), whose three-dimensional motion sensor is found in smart phones and the Nintendo® WiiTM (finalist 2010, Industry).

Launched in 2006, the European Inventor Award is presented annually by the European Patent Office, to honour inventive individuals and teams whose pioneering work provides answers to the challenges of our age and thereby contributes to social progress, economic growth and prosperity. It is presented in five categories: Industry, Research, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), Non-European Countries, and Lifetime Achievement.

Further information

Hall of Fame

European Inventor Award

Hall of Fame on the CNN website

Città della Scienza Contact Centre: tel. +39 081.7352.220-222-258-259 – email contact@cittadellascienza.it

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