Friday, March 08, 2013
Rómulo Garza Award to Professor Noel Leon
I am delighted to publish here the announcement of the honor to my colleague and friend Noel Leon. He has done extensive work introducing and advancing TRIZ and QFD in the academic and industrial communities. Congratulations, Noel!
In February of 2013 Dr. Noel Leon, Emeritus Professor of the School of Engineering and Information Technology of Tecnologico de Monterrey, was honored with the Rómulo Garza award in the category of Professor Inventor.
Dr. Leon graduated as Diplom Engineer in Agricultural Machine Design in 1969 from the Dresden University of Technology in Germany. He has a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering (summa cum laude) from the same University in 1976.
He is recognized as the first Latin American certified in the TRIZ innovation methodology in 1996, and he is one of the leading international experts in this methodology for the development and innovation of products, processes and services. He has trained and educated engineers, technicians and managers from Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, France and Germany in this methodology. He practices also the methodology of Quality Function Deployment, QFD. He was the president Latin American QFD Association.
In his courses he uses the Project-based learning technique, and together with his students he has achieved the development and innovation of more than 50 industrial products.
Among some of the patents that have been granted in his name are:
• US6739438 Brake Rigging System,
• MX261228 Portable device for self-diagnostic tests of cervical uterine cancer through simultaneous optical and electrical measurements.
• NL/a/2005/000066 Saving Energy with an electronic sweeping circuit
• NL/a/2005/000072 /MX 288055 Improved system of slope protection with whole or halved waste tires
• NL/a/2006/000003 Centrifugal Filter of Reverse Osmosis with increased flow by vortex
• Dispositivo portátil para prueba de autodiagnóstico de cáncer cérvico uterino por medio
• Mx/a/2007/002577 Electro-thermal device for controlling the temperature in Textiles
• NL/a/2005/000021 Axial reciprocating engine.
• Mx/a/2008/016474 Solar concentrating lens by refraction with high efficiency
• Mx/a/2007/015520 Wall structure with thermal insulation.
• NL/a/2005/000016 Sampling of endocervical and ectocervix cells
Dr. Leon is founder and Honorary President of the TRIZ Mexico Association (AMETRIZ), which has sponsored six international conferences in Technological Innovation. Currently, he is director of the Research Chair "Engineering Design and Innovation" at ITESM, Campus Monterrey.