Ross Freeman
Encyclopedia
Ross Freeman founded leading FPGA developer Xilinx
in 1984 and a year later invented the first Field Programmable Gate Array. Freeman's invention - patent 4,870,302 - is a computer
chip full of 'open gates' that engineers can reprogram as much as needed to add new functionality, adapt to changing standards or specifications and make last minute design changes.
Ross postulated that because of Moore's Law
, transistors would be getting less expensive each year, making customizable programmable chips affordable. The idea was "far out" at the time, but the company and technology grew quickly, eventually catching the attention of new-found competitors in what is now a mature industry.
Freeman was born in upper Michigan
in 1944 and died in 1989, only a few years after creating a new industry with the FPGA and launching what would become a multi-billion dollar company.
Freeman earned a BS degree in physics from Michigan State University in 1969 and a master’s from University of Illinois in 1971. He worked in the Peace Corps for several years, then went to Teletype Corporation
to design a custom PMOS circuits.
In 2006, 17 years after his passing, Freeman was inducted into the National Inventor's Hall of Fame, which honors men and women responsible for fundamental technology advances for human, social and economic progress. That year was the integrated circuit
's 50th anniversary so the hall of fame inductees were themed with inventions fundamental to modern computing.
To honor Freeman's memory, encourage technical innovation, and reward employees, Xilinx began a new tradition in 1992 of honoring a Xilinx employee each year with the Ross Freeman Award for Technical Innovation. Participants are nominated, finalists are chosen by a nomination committee at Xilinx and award winners are chosen by a vote from the company's technical staff.
Xilinx
Xilinx, Inc. is a supplier of programmable logic devices. It is known for inventing the field programmable gate array and as the first semiconductor company with a fabless manufacturing model....
in 1984 and a year later invented the first Field Programmable Gate Array. Freeman's invention - patent 4,870,302 - is a computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
chip full of 'open gates' that engineers can reprogram as much as needed to add new functionality, adapt to changing standards or specifications and make last minute design changes.
Ross postulated that because of Moore's Law
Moore's Law
Moore's law describes a long-term trend in the history of computing hardware: the number of transistors that can be placed inexpensively on an integrated circuit doubles approximately every two years....
, transistors would be getting less expensive each year, making customizable programmable chips affordable. The idea was "far out" at the time, but the company and technology grew quickly, eventually catching the attention of new-found competitors in what is now a mature industry.
Freeman was born in upper Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
in 1944 and died in 1989, only a few years after creating a new industry with the FPGA and launching what would become a multi-billion dollar company.
Freeman earned a BS degree in physics from Michigan State University in 1969 and a master’s from University of Illinois in 1971. He worked in the Peace Corps for several years, then went to Teletype Corporation
Teletype Corporation
The Teletype Corporation, a part of American Telephone and Telegraph Company's Western Electric manufacturing arm since 1930, came into being in 1928 when the Morkrum-Kleinschmidt Company changed its name to the name of its trademark equipment...
to design a custom PMOS circuits.
In 2006, 17 years after his passing, Freeman was inducted into the National Inventor's Hall of Fame, which honors men and women responsible for fundamental technology advances for human, social and economic progress. That year was the integrated circuit
Integrated circuit
An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit is an electronic circuit manufactured by the patterned diffusion of trace elements into the surface of a thin substrate of semiconductor material...
's 50th anniversary so the hall of fame inductees were themed with inventions fundamental to modern computing.
To honor Freeman's memory, encourage technical innovation, and reward employees, Xilinx began a new tradition in 1992 of honoring a Xilinx employee each year with the Ross Freeman Award for Technical Innovation. Participants are nominated, finalists are chosen by a nomination committee at Xilinx and award winners are chosen by a vote from the company's technical staff.