Robert Fischell

Robert Fischell (born February 10, 1929) is a physicist, prolific inventor, and holder of more than 200 U.S. and foreign medical patents.

He contributed to APL's satellite navigation work; he later developed a rechargeable implantable pacemaker that could be programmed with radiowaves,[6][7][8][9] (Pacesetter Systems purchased by Siemens, now the CRM division of St. Jude Medical).

[10] Mr. Fischell went on to invent the implantable insulin pump (MiniMed, spun off from Pacesetter Systems in 1985), numerous coronary stents used to open clogged arteries (IsoStent merged with Cordis, in turn purchased by Johnson & Johnson),[11] and two feedback systems that provide early warning of epileptic seizures (NeuroPace) and heart attacks (Angel Medical Systems).

[4] Fischell recently donated $30 million to the University of Maryland College Park Foundation to establish a bioengineering department and an institute for biomedical devices at the A. James Clark School of Engineering.

[12] In 2005, he was awarded the TED Prize, receiving $100,000 and three wishes, including a braintrust on medical liability and the successful design of a device to cure migraines.