Item Details

Description

The Robert (Bob) Norman papers, which date from 1963 to 2009, consist of the professional and personal papers of Bob Norman. Norman is known for designing the first Micrologic integrated circuits at Fairchild Semiconductor as well as co-founding General Micro-Electronics, Inc., which pioneered MOS integrated circuits. This collection traces Norman's early work on Micrologic and MOS integrated circuits, as well as his subsequent work at companies such as Nortec Electronics Corporation, Timex, Applied Micro Circuits Corporation, General Dynamics, and Singer Corporation. Types of materials in the collection include correspondence, memos, lab notebooks, newspaper and magazine clippings, financial statements, presentation materials and slides, internal business documents, project planning and implementation documents, board of directors meeting minutes, industry market forecasts, research files, and handwritten notes and figures. There is also material pertaining to the sale of General Micro-Electronics by Pyle-National Company to Philco Corp. in 1966. Additionally, the papers include drafts for several handbook chapters as well as records from two court cases: Hughes Aircraft Company vs. General Instrument Corporation (1973) and AT&T Technologies Inc. vs Mintel Corporation (1989). There is a small amount of conference proceedings, manuals, data sheets, 32mm presentation slides, negatives, and photographic prints. The collection also includes files related to Norman’s personal life, including correspondence, hand-written reflections on his career, and a few files on his biography and family background. Biographical/Historical Note Robert (Bob) Norman was an engineer who worked at Fairchild Semiconductor, General Micro Electronics, and other technology companies involved in integrated circuit production during the 1960s and 1970s in Silicon Valley. Born in New York on March 24, 1927, Norman served in WWII as a gunner on the battleship "Alabama." He graduated from Oklahoma A&M with a degree in electrical engineering and obtained his master's degree at Columbia University. From 1953 to 1959, Norman worked at Sperry Gyroscope Company, where he introduced the use of semiconductors in logic design. He then joined Fairchild Semiconductor in Mountain View, California in 1959, where he designed Micrologic, the first family of planar integrated circuits. In 1963, Norman co-founded General Microelectronics (GM-e), the first company to manufacture commercial MOS integrated circuits. From 1966 to 1972, Norman was President of Nortec Electronics Corporation, after which he worked at American Microsystems, Inc., Ion Equipment Corporation, and Astrotech Corporation. From 1977 to 1980, Norman worked at Timex Corporation, and from 1981 to 1982 he served as the Manager of Programs and Technical Publications at Applied Micro Circuits Corporation. From 1983 to 1984 he established Application Specific Integrated Circuit development at Singer Corporation. Norman then worked at General Dynamics from 1984 to 1992, where he managed the development of a computer for combat vehicles and an automatic infra-red target recognizer. Over the course of his career, Norman earned 23 patents. He passed away on January 6, 2017 in Massachusetts.

Level of description

Collection

Date

1963-2009, 1963-1990

Extent

4.75 linear feet in 4 record cartons

Subject

Fairchild, Integrated Circuits, Semiconductors

Collection title

Robert (Bob) Norman papers

Credit

Gift of AnneMarie Norman

Catalogue number

102776847

Lot number

X8246.2017