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IPO Education Foundation Honors Top Inventors of 2009

WASHINGTON, May 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation will present the 36th Annual National Inventor of the Year Award to James Baughman, David Cook, Ph.D., Keith Kowalsky, and Daniel Marantz on May 28, 2009. The award will be presented in a ceremony at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. The inventors will be recognized for their development of the Plasma Transferred Wire Arc (PTWA) Thermal Spray Apparatus and Method, which applies a coating of molten metal to the interior of aluminum engine bores to increase efficiency and reduce costs.

The invention was perfected by Flame-Spray Industries Inc. and Ford Motor Company. It was first implemented in the 2009 Motor Trend Car of the Year, the 2008 Nissan GT-R. The PTWA technology has also been licensed to outside companies including Caterpillar's remanufacturing business, which repairs parts that would otherwise be discarded.

The PTWA improves fuel consumption by reducing engine and overall vehicle weight. It provides a lower cost, lower weight alternative to cast iron engine liners. By applying a wear-resistant coating, the PTWA can improve part life. It reduces internal friction losses and bore distortion and improves heat transfer, improving engine efficiency.

Dan Marantz founded Flame-Spray Industries Inc. in 1965, and served for over thirty-eight years as the President and Chief Technical Director. Keith Kowalsky is the current president of the company. He served as team leader for the development of the PTWA. David Cook is Vice President and the director of Automotive Applications for the company and previously developed thermal spray processes for Ford Motor Company. James Baughman is retired from Ford Motor Company, where he led the thermal spray research group.

The National Inventor of the Year Award fosters the spirit of American innovation and highlights the protection offered to inventors by the patent system. The Award is the best known honor for recent American inventors, having gone previously to those responsible for the development of the Jarvik Seven Artificial Heart, Bose speaker technology, Powercore(R) LED technology and other patented breakthrough inventions. The award will be presented by John Engler, President and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers and former three-term governor ofMichigan.

Members of the media can arrange to attend the May 28 ceremony by contacting Clara Stanfield at 202-507-4511.

About IPO Education Foundation

Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation, a non-profit subsidiary of Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO), was established in 2005 to educate the public on the importance of intellectual property rights to the national and global economies.

Donations to the foundation are tax deductible to the extent allowed by the law. To find out more about IPO Education Foundation programs or how to make a donation, visit www.ipoef.org or call 202/507-4500.

SOURCE Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation