USPTO co-hosts first black history month celebration on the campus of Clark Atlanta University

On February 21, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the Minority Business Development Agency, The White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the Clark Atlanta University Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development cohosted a Black History Month celebration on the campus of Clark Atlanta University. The theme of the historic first-time program was “The Future of Business, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship.”

Iconic inventor and Atlanta-based businessman Dr. Lonnie Johnson gave the keynote remarks. A prolific innovator behind more than 120 inventions ranging from spacecraft system design to the Super Soaker squirt gun, he is currently breaking new ground in lithium battery technology.  Johnson delivered an informative and inspiring address, from an insider’s perspective, to an audience of students, thought leaders, inventors, university faculty, community leaders, special guests, and aspiring business owners. He took listeners on a trip though the history of innovation, showing how inventions from thousands of years ago to the modern era have changed civilizations. Johnson noted that, after 228 years, the USPTO issued patent number 10 million last year. Given the rate of innovation, he said he expects that the next 10 million mark will take much less time to reach.

During the Q&A session that followed his remarks, Johnson spoke directly to young aspiring business entrepreneurs. He shared the value of being resilient while starting a new enterprise and stressed how he works daily to increase his own “how to” knowledge of the invention process and the game-changing business strategies that allow him to innovate. The conversation ranged from Johnson’s personal career challenges and successes to his passion for the potential of future technological advances.

Johnson received his first patent (number 4,143,267) on March 6, 1979 for a digital distance measuring instrument. Ten years later, he established his own engineering firm and licensed the Super Soaker® water gun, his most popular invention, to Larami Corporation, which was later acquired by Hasbro Corporation, the second largest toy manufacturer worldwide. To date, sales of the Super Soaker® have totaled close to $1 billion.  Currently, Johnson is working on rechargeable battery technology to solve problems related technology mobility.

Other event participants included Program Manager of the Atlanta University Center Consortium Anthony Otey; Director of Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development and Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at Clark Atlanta University Bruce D. Berger, Ph.D.; Business Manager Bonita Moore of the Morehouse College Entrepreneurship Center; and Program Manager NaThanya Ferguson of the Office of Innovation Development, USPTO.