Engineering Innovation: Past, Present, & Future

The inventor of the Frank-a-Matic machine that revolutionized the hot dog industry passed away this month. Ray Townsend was an engineering graduate of Iowa State University.

He is well-known for the Frank-a-Matic, which was introduced in 1962. However, he was also responsible for several other inventions. In all, he held 127 patents. Read the full biography for more information

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Inc.com recently published a Q&A session with Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering president, Dr. Richard K. Miller (CA L ’71).

The article, profiles Dr. Miller’s work as the first employee at Olin. He also discusses the unique engineering experience of attending Olin College and the importance of a design-based approach to engineering education.

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A regional FIRST Robotics competition was recently held at Churchill High School (MI). The highlights of the competition were detailed in an article by the Observer & Eccentric.

The 40 teams using the standard “kit of parts” built robots that competed in skill competitions. Several teams have real-world engineers as mentors. Brian Aitken (MI B ’86), is an engineer at Ford who works on fuel systems. He was a mentor to a team from Livonia, MI.

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