Item Details

Description

The Gary Boone papers next hit consist of microprocessor inventor Gary Boone's professional and personal documents. This collection focuses on Boone's work as a chip designer, primarily as it pertains to patents as well as litigation surrounding patents on which he was named. For example, this collection contains information on the legal battles between Gary Boone and Los Angeles engineer and inventor Gilbert Hyatt. This collection does not include Boone's files from when he worked at TI designing chips. In addition to professional material, the Gary Boone papers include some personal documents such as correspondence, diaries, and journals. While the majority of this collection is composed of text materials, there are also A/V materials (VHS tapes), software (floppy disks, cassette tapes, CDs), oversized drawings, and photographs. Biographical/Historical Note Gary Boone was a microprocessor inventor and patent expert. Boone was born April 8, 1945 in Canton, Ohio. He received his electrical engineering degree in 1967 from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. He worked at a number of companies including Collins Radio in Iowa, Texas Instruments in Houston, Lintronix in Cupertino, Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, and United Technologies Microelectronics Center in Colorado Springs before ultimately starting his own company, Micro Methods, in 1982, working as a consultant on patent projects and design projects. While at Texas Instruments, Boone worked in the then-new field of MOS design creating custom chips for industrial customers, primarily calculator companies. His work at TI resulted in two pioneering chips: the TMX-1795, the world's first 8-bit microprocessor, and the TMS-0100, the first single chip microcontroller. Due to his contributions, Boone is listed as inventor on many fundamental microprocessor and microcontroller patents. Because Boone was named on most of the TI patents, he became involved in patent lawsuits, defending old TI patents as a source of revenue for TI. Later, he worked as an expert witness in patent litigation. Boone passed away December 12, 2013 at age 68 from pneumonia as a complication of Lewy Body Dementia.

Level of description

Collection

Date

1967-2014

Subject

Microcontrollers, Microprocessors, Patents, Texas Instruments Incorporated

Collection title

Gary Boone papers

Credit

Gift in memory of Gary Boone

Catalogue number

600000730

Lot number

X6996.2014