Martin Cooper (inventor)

Martin Cooper
Cooper in 2007
Born (1928-12-26) December 26, 1928 (age 95)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Other namesMarty Cooper
EducationIllinois Institute of Technology (BS, MS)
Occupations
  • Inventor
  • entrepreneur
  • executive
Known forInventor of the first handheld cellular mobile phone
TitleMotorola
Founder & CEO of ArrayComm
Co-founder and chairman of Dyna LLC
Spouse
​
(m. 1991)​
AwardsMarconi Prize (2013), ITU 150 Awards (2015)[1]
Websitewww.dynallc.com

Martin Cooper (born December 26, 1928) is an American engineer. He is a pioneer in the wireless communications industry, especially in radio spectrum management, with eleven patents in the field.[2][3]

On April 3, 1973, he placed the first public call from a handheld portable cell phone while working at Motorola, from a Manhattan sidewalk to his counterpart at competitor Bell Labs.[4][5] Cooper reprised the first handheld cellular mobile phone (distinct from the car phone) in 1973 and led the team that re-developed it and brought it to market in 1983.[6][7] He is considered the "father of the (handheld) cell phone".[2][6][8][9]

Cooper is co-founder of numerous communications companies with his wife and business partner Arlene Harris;[10] He is co-founder and current Chairman of Dyna LLC, in Del Mar, California. Cooper also sits on committees supporting the U.S. Federal Communications Commission[11] and the United States Department of Commerce.

In 2010, Cooper was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering for leadership in the creation and deployment of the cellular portable hand-held telephone.

  1. ^ [1] ITU 150 Awards
  2. ^ a b Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2008. encyclopedia.com
  3. ^ Companies Try to Create Room on Radio Spectrum, The New York Times, July 6, 2012
  4. ^ 38 years ago he made the first cell phone call, CNN. April 3, 2011
  5. ^ 50 years ago, Martin Cooper made the first cellphone call
  6. ^ a b A Chat With the Man Behind the Mobiles, BBC, April 21, 2003
  7. ^ Meet Marty Cooper, the Inventor of the Mobile Phone, BBC, April 23, 2010
  8. ^ Father of the Cell Phone, Economist, June 4, 2009
  9. ^ The Cell Phone: Marty Coop's Big Idea, CBS News 60 Minutes, June 11, 2010
  10. ^ Wireless Hall of Fame – Arlene Harris, RCR Wireless, May 26, 2007
  11. ^ Carriers Warn of Crisis in Mobile Spectrum, The New York Times, April 17, 2012