Robert Fondiller - inventor of the LED wristwatch calculator ? before pulsar ??!!
This chap seems to have a filed a couple a dozen patents to do with electronic watches and other devices from early 70s through to late 80s; He died in 1999. His obituary claims that he was the inventor of many things ? including the ?wristwatch calculator? ? before Pulsar !
A summary of his life is shown below. His 2 dozen patents (by him or referenced to him) including numerous ones to do with the electronics of digital watches and digital displays in the 70s, and numerous links to John Bergey ? But what is really interesting is that his company Fondiller Corp produced a 9 digit LED wrist calculator with a tiny grid of touch pads for buttons encased in a machined stainless steel case and made this in early 1975, and even had a price on it of $600. IE, perhaps 9 months BEFORE the pulsar calculator wristwatch broke cover in Dec 75 / Jan 76.
I have included two items of interest. One is the text summary of his obituary from 1999, and then a composite image taken from scans of a June 1975 Playboy magazine that showed a picture of the ?Fondiller Calcron? watch in a static image with a simple description. I do not pretend to know that this worked, or they made many, etc. But I am keen to find out more because this superficially looks extremely interesting. I am a big fan of anything Pulsar, and don?t wish to steel their thunder, and no doubt some of the army of Pulsar evangelists out there will scoff at this ? but you have to admit this is pretty interesting stuff, and as far as I know NO ONE has ever voiced this observation before me.
Can anyone shed any additional light on this fascinating tale ??
Let the flames commence.
Robert Fondiller, inventor, consultant and entrepreneur, New York, Died on February 9, 1999. Fondiller, who received a master?s from the Stevens Institute of Technology, an MBA from NYU, and a doctorate in psychology from California?s Fremont College, was a prolific engineer and consultant. After working for a time with Western Electric, Fondiller became president of Fondiller Corp., later known as Futura Corp. The holder of 20 patents, ?Robin? Fondiller was credited with inventing a battery used to power life-support systems in spacesuits used on the first moonwalk, the erase key for typewriters, the wristwatch calculator, and fitted bedsheets. He designed clip-on sunglasses, the first kitchen configured for use by the wheelchair-bound, a ?healthmobile? with medical diagnostic equipment for use in rural areas, and the ?princess? telephone. He also created a spray process to help construct low-cost housing in less than a day. A member of Mensa, the Explorers? Club and the New York Academy of Sciences, as well as a Knight of Malta, Fondiller was something of an eccentric ? he once entertained the King of Spain with grilled cheese sandwiches. On a trip to Cuba in 1960 to meet Magda Lupescu, the mistress of the deposed king of Romania, Fondiller was arrested for taking unauthorized photographs, only to be released when it was discovered that he had forgotten to load film in his camera. He learned to fly airplanes after being forced to land a plane in Mexico when the pilot suffered a sudden heart attack. Fondiller became a widely respected consultant on economic development, technology and business management, advising 21 governments (including the People?s Republic of China, Russia and South Korea) and the United Nations. He addressed the general assembly of UNESCO in Paris on a literacy system for underdeveloped countries that he had developed. Fondiller also taught widely, including courses at City College, the New York Institute of Technology, NYU and Columbia; in later years, he became a popular speaker for the American Management Association.
Class of 1939
This chap seems to have a filed a couple a dozen patents to do with electronic watches and other devices from early 70s through to late 80s; He died in 1999. His obituary claims that he was the inventor of many things ? including the ?wristwatch calculator? ? before Pulsar !
A summary of his life is shown below. His 2 dozen patents (by him or referenced to him) including numerous ones to do with the electronics of digital watches and digital displays in the 70s, and numerous links to John Bergey ? But what is really interesting is that his company Fondiller Corp produced a 9 digit LED wrist calculator with a tiny grid of touch pads for buttons encased in a machined stainless steel case and made this in early 1975, and even had a price on it of $600. IE, perhaps 9 months BEFORE the pulsar calculator wristwatch broke cover in Dec 75 / Jan 76.
I have included two items of interest. One is the text summary of his obituary from 1999, and then a composite image taken from scans of a June 1975 Playboy magazine that showed a picture of the ?Fondiller Calcron? watch in a static image with a simple description. I do not pretend to know that this worked, or they made many, etc. But I am keen to find out more because this superficially looks extremely interesting. I am a big fan of anything Pulsar, and don?t wish to steel their thunder, and no doubt some of the army of Pulsar evangelists out there will scoff at this ? but you have to admit this is pretty interesting stuff, and as far as I know NO ONE has ever voiced this observation before me.
Can anyone shed any additional light on this fascinating tale ??
Let the flames commence.
Robert Fondiller, inventor, consultant and entrepreneur, New York, Died on February 9, 1999. Fondiller, who received a master?s from the Stevens Institute of Technology, an MBA from NYU, and a doctorate in psychology from California?s Fremont College, was a prolific engineer and consultant. After working for a time with Western Electric, Fondiller became president of Fondiller Corp., later known as Futura Corp. The holder of 20 patents, ?Robin? Fondiller was credited with inventing a battery used to power life-support systems in spacesuits used on the first moonwalk, the erase key for typewriters, the wristwatch calculator, and fitted bedsheets. He designed clip-on sunglasses, the first kitchen configured for use by the wheelchair-bound, a ?healthmobile? with medical diagnostic equipment for use in rural areas, and the ?princess? telephone. He also created a spray process to help construct low-cost housing in less than a day. A member of Mensa, the Explorers? Club and the New York Academy of Sciences, as well as a Knight of Malta, Fondiller was something of an eccentric ? he once entertained the King of Spain with grilled cheese sandwiches. On a trip to Cuba in 1960 to meet Magda Lupescu, the mistress of the deposed king of Romania, Fondiller was arrested for taking unauthorized photographs, only to be released when it was discovered that he had forgotten to load film in his camera. He learned to fly airplanes after being forced to land a plane in Mexico when the pilot suffered a sudden heart attack. Fondiller became a widely respected consultant on economic development, technology and business management, advising 21 governments (including the People?s Republic of China, Russia and South Korea) and the United Nations. He addressed the general assembly of UNESCO in Paris on a literacy system for underdeveloped countries that he had developed. Fondiller also taught widely, including courses at City College, the New York Institute of Technology, NYU and Columbia; in later years, he became a popular speaker for the American Management Association.
Class of 1939