Östen Mäkitalo
Encyclopedia
Östen Mäkitalo was a Swedish electrical engineer. He is considered to be the father of the Nordic Mobile Telephone
(NMT) system and many times the father of cellular phone.
, Sweden
, and obtained a Master's degree
in Electrical Engineering
from Royal Institute of Technology
(KTH), while studying for a time he employed as a training assistant and lecturer at the Department of Physics at KTH. He started his professional career in 1961 at Televerket
(now merged with TeliaSonera
), the Swedish Telecommunications Administration, where he developed the first expansion compressor for high-quality sound. In the early 1970s, he was accepted as a PhD student at KTH, with Tele Transmission theory as a major and a minor in mathematics. He was a visiting professor at KTH since 2005. He was the elected member of Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences
.
cellular system and was also a key figure in the development of GSM. Mäkitalo was the part of the group that developed the world's first countrywide paging system with the possibility of sending messages. In addition, he has partaken in the development of the technology for digital TV sound and digital terrestrial TV. Mäkitalo held about 20 patents, including one on a cellular system with roaming
and handover
from 1971 (the year after Bell labs applied for patent on a similar system). He was an honorary doctor at Chalmers University of Technology
.
Nordic Mobile Telephone
NMT is the first fully automatic cellular phone system...
(NMT) system and many times the father of cellular phone.
Education and occupation
Mäkitalo was born in KoutojärviÖvertorneå Municipality
Övertorneå Municipality is a municipality in Norrbotten County in northern Sweden, bordering Finland. Its seat is located in Övertorneå.Until the Finnish War Övertorneå and the Finnish Ylitornio were a single municipality. Following the war, the eastern part of the municipality was ceded to...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, and obtained a Master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Electrical Engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
from Royal Institute of Technology
Royal Institute of Technology
The Royal Institute of Technology is a university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH was founded in 1827 as Sweden's first polytechnic and is one of Scandinavia's largest institutions of higher education in technology. KTH accounts for one-third of Sweden’s technical research and engineering education...
(KTH), while studying for a time he employed as a training assistant and lecturer at the Department of Physics at KTH. He started his professional career in 1961 at Televerket
Televerket (Sweden)
Televerket was the public utility company responsible for telecommunications in Sweden between 1953-1993; however, it originated 100 years earlier....
(now merged with TeliaSonera
TeliaSonera
TeliaSonera AB is the dominant telephone company and mobile network operator in Sweden and Finland. The company has operations in other countries in Northern, Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Spain, with a total of 150 million mobile customers...
), the Swedish Telecommunications Administration, where he developed the first expansion compressor for high-quality sound. In the early 1970s, he was accepted as a PhD student at KTH, with Tele Transmission theory as a major and a minor in mathematics. He was a visiting professor at KTH since 2005. He was the elected member of Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences
Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences
The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences or Kungl. Ingenjörsvetenskapsakademien , founded in 1919 by King Gustaf V, is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden...
.
Research and inventions
Mäkitalo assisted the development of first ever first generation1G
1G refers to the first-generation of wireless telephone technology, mobile telecommunications. These are the analog telecommunications standards that were introduced in the 1980s and continued until being replaced by 2G digital telecommunications...
cellular system and was also a key figure in the development of GSM. Mäkitalo was the part of the group that developed the world's first countrywide paging system with the possibility of sending messages. In addition, he has partaken in the development of the technology for digital TV sound and digital terrestrial TV. Mäkitalo held about 20 patents, including one on a cellular system with roaming
Roaming
In wireless telecommunications, roaming is a general term referring to the extension of connectivity service in a location that is different from the home location where the service was registered. Roaming ensures that the wireless device is kept connected to the network, without losing the...
and handover
Handover
In cellular telecommunications, the term handover or handoff refers to the process of transferring an ongoing call or data session from one channel connected to the core network to another...
from 1971 (the year after Bell labs applied for patent on a similar system). He was an honorary doctor at Chalmers University of Technology
Chalmers University of Technology
Chalmers University of Technology , is a Swedish university located in Gothenburg that focuses on research and education in technology, natural science and architecture.-History:...
.
Awards and honors
Mäkitalo won numerous awards and honors, some of them were:- 1987 - IVA's gold medal for the development of mobile phone technology.
- 1991 - Received honorary doctorate at Chalmers University of Technology.
- 1994 - KTH Grand Prize by The Royal Institute of TechnologyRoyal Institute of TechnologyThe Royal Institute of Technology is a university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH was founded in 1827 as Sweden's first polytechnic and is one of Scandinavia's largest institutions of higher education in technology. KTH accounts for one-third of Sweden’s technical research and engineering education...
(KTH) for Pioneering Research in the Field of Analogue and Digital Radio Technique. - 2001 - H. M. The King's MedalH. M. The King's MedalH. M. The King's Medal , earlier known as the Court Medal , is an honour that may be bestowed on Swedish citizens.-Honour:...
from the King of Sweden for important contributions in the field of mobile telephone.