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SALT LAKE CITY — Recognized as one of history's great inventors, Thomas Edison held 1,093 U.S. patents for inventions such as the electric light bulb and the telegraph, in addition to 1,239 foreign patents. He was considered a genius for his innovative ideas and creativity.
While not quite as prolific, Utah is home to many fertile inventive minds that have made some significant contributions to the world in the form of technological advances that are being used around the globe.
Take David Hall, president and chief executive officer of Provo-based Novatek Inc. Last year he collected 54 patents — bringing his lifetime total to more than 500 registered patents. His considerable ingenuity and vision have helped make his company one of the leaders in developing solutions for some of industry's most challenging problems.
Hall was honored as the top Utah inventor of the year at the 2011 Utah Genius Awards hosted Thursday at the Little America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City. His son, Mark Hall — Novatek's chief information officer — said the company is working on a number of projects and expects to continue increasing its presence as it has over the past two years, growing from 115 employees two years ago to 288 employees today.
"We have a campus that is 100 acres, and we're only utilizing 25 acres currently," Hall said. "We have lots of expansion plans."
The awards recognize the people, companies and cities that contribute to the state’s growth with patents and trademarks.
“The state of Utah is consistently recognized as one of the fastest-growing states in the nation,” said Randall Bateman, founder of Bateman Intellectual Property Law Group. “This is due, in no small part, to the spirit of innovation and invention that is found from one end of the state to the other."
While Hall was the individual leader for new inventions, another Utah County company was the top recipient of registered patents. Provo-based Novell recorded 53 patents, just ahead of the University of Utah with 51 patents.
"It's really the constant innovation that we have to (maintain) to be on the forefront of technology," said Dipto Chakravarty, Novell's vice president of engineering. He said his company is continually striving to develop new technologies that will benefit business and industry.
Among the other featured honorees was entrepreneur James Lee Sorenson, founder and former chairman of and chief executive officer of Sorenson Communications, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award for spearheading several new industry innovations that have impacted the lives of millions, a news release stated.
"It's a tremendous honor," Sorenson said. "I'm standing on the shoulders of many great achievements and examples (of excellence from) our community."
Being among many great innovators provided some inspiration for one grade-schooler in attendance at the lunchtime event.
Kaven Johansen, a 10-year-old fourth-grader sporting a lab coat and a notebook complete with sketches of invention ideas like a rechargeable light bulb, said he would like to follow in the footsteps of innovators like his great-grandfather — who designed and developed one of the first solar panels.
"(When I go to college, I'd like to study) engineering, inventing, science and stuff like that," he said.
E-mail:jlee@ksl.com
