Thursday, September 10, 2009

EEStor's Mysterious Carl Nelson Helps Patent Cause

Photo: Arthur Von Hippel

When the sun hits EEStor headquarters in Cedar Park, TX at just the right angle, a dome of shade manifests for a few split seconds. It is at this precise opportunity, each day, that the mysterious Carl Nelson slips rapidly into hallowed walls of one this century's greatest technological wonders, ie, the EEStor production facility. Nobody knows exactly what Nelson does when he is onsite at EEStor, not even EESU co-inventor Dick Weir or VP of Operations Tom Weir. Occasionally, the entire EEStor crew must cease all work to try and locate Mr. Nelson, who has been found in abandoned closets, behind unattended particle beam gadgetry, and even amid the rafters which spill over into the Texas Magic Supply next door. To Nelson, this game of cat and mouse is an essential part of the creative process and provides an outlet for his continual conceptual ducking and weaving for which there is little recorded fact. Nelson developed this love of disappearing from his mentor, Arthur Von Hippel, the Great-Great-Grandfather of Ferroeletrics and discoverer of the inner self of barium titanate. Nelson, Von Hippel and Neils Bohr all loved the thrill of hiding and seeking on the vast expanse of MIT. Semesters would go by where all three successfully played the game.

Ok, I'm making all of this up so far. But, guess what?! The mysterious Carl Nelson really does exist. And recently, as part of the EEStor effort to secure patents, he was asked to submit expert testimony, in written form, concerning the unique nature of the dielectric material in use by EEStor Inc.. Signed by Nelson on June 30, 2009, the letter begins by clarifying his qualifications to deliver it citing an MIT BS in Chemistry in 1953 and MS in Chemistry in 1956. Nelson writes, "I have conducted research and development in ceramic materials and in the purification of ceramic components for 52yrs. In particular, I worked with Dr. Von Hippel, an early researcher and developer of composition-modified barium titanate powders, from 1956-1964. "

The letter goes on to state the following:

The resulting composition modified barium titanate powders have an average dielectric constant of approximately 33,518 and an average breakdown voltage greater than 6000 V. In addition, the dielectric constant is not a strong function of temperature, having a tolerance of less than 15% over temperature range of -55°C to 125°C.


The letter is classified as testimony. It ends with an acknowledgement that "willful false statements and the like, so made, are punishable by fine or imprisonment or both."

So, we now have further evidence of EEStor's competence. We now have a statement of fact about their dielectric material's properties. But what does it all add up to? Perhaps you can find out from the geniuses at TheEEStory.com.

Note: Apologies to anyone offended that I would suggest Carl Nelson likes to play hide and go seek. My giggling while writing it in no way should detract from Nelson's genius. No, to my knowledge, he did not play hide n seek with Von Hippel or Neils Bohr, in case you are curious. I would welcome any evidence to the contrary but only if it's in written form and notarized in Wyoming.