Luther Simjian

Simjian was born in Aintab, Ottoman Empire to Armenian parents on January 28, 1905. His father, George, was an insurance broker working for an Austrian company. His mother, Josephine (née Zaharian) died when he was only a few months old. His father later remarried and he had two half-sisters. Simjian lived in Aintab until the age of nine. In 1915, during the Armenian genocide, the Simjian family fled to Aleppo, Syria, only to return to Aintab in 1920. His stepmother and half-sisters were killed in Marash. Simjian fled to Beirut, then to France and eventually to the United States by the end of 1920. He first settled in New Haven, Connecticut, living with an uncle. He found a job coloring photographs. He graduated from the Booth Preparatory School in New Haven. ==Yale and early inventions==

Simjian began working as a technician at the Yale School of Medicine in a work-study position at the photography lab. It was covered early on by the Popular Science magazine in 1929. It allowed the "subject to look into a mirror and see the framed pose the camera would take." The self-photographing camera led to the invention of the autofocus (self-focusing) camera by Simjian. It "changed the whole photography industry," but he did not "receive much money for his autofocusing invention, but he did get publicity. He eventually sold the rights to the PhotoReflex camera and name but reserved the rights to use the technology for non-photographic applications." Simjian thereafter traveled to Europe and established a laboratory in London and Miroflex, a company to produce the PhotoReflex camera. However, his plans were disrupted by World War II as the focus of production shifted from commercial to military. ==Reflectone and flight simulator==

In 1939 Simjian founded Reflectone Corporation (later renamed to Reflectone Electronics, Inc.) It was a "mechanism used for training aviators in identifying aircraft or ships, in determining the speed of movement of aircraft, direction of movement, and other related factors that are important in combat flying." ==Later inventions==

After Reflectone, Simjian founded General Research Inc. and Command Automation Inc., Hayward argues that: Bankograph (ATM) Simjian invented what has been described as a precursor of the automated teller machine (ATM). For this, Simjian is often considered the inventor of the ATM or that he first introduced the concept. The entry on Simjian in the American National Biography noted that he is "sometimes referred to as the 'father of the ATM' because he introduced the idea behind these now-ubiquitous machines." It was covered by the New York Times, which described it as a "robot bank teller that gives the depositor a picture of the money he puts in. There can never be any question as to the number and bills to be credited to his account." Simjian filed for a patent for "Subscriber controlled apparatus" in 1959. In 1960 Simjian filed for patent a device that incorporated an ATM photographing the deposited check. Described as "less than a full-function ATM," the Bankograph was an automatic deposit machine that accepted cash and check deposits at all times. A camera inside the machine took snapshots of the deposits, copies of which were given to the customers as receipts. when it was placed in a few City Bank of New York bank lobbies for six months. The company discontinued its use due to limited appeal. The authors of a 2009 study in the journal Marketing Science credited Simjian with the first concept (1957), the first patent (1957), and the first prototype (1960) of the ATM, which they listed as a radical innovation, but credited De La Rue Instruments with mico-commercialization, the first sale of an innovation (1967), and Docutel with macro-commercialization, the first year a firm sells the innovation to a broad market (1969). Other Simjian's other inventions included an indoor computerized golf practice range (1960s), a remotely accessed automatic postage meter (1981) that was purchased by Pitney Bowes, a meat tenderizing method, golf balls, cooking devices, the use of ultrasound as an anticounterfeiting device, an athletic shoe, and a bandage. He also revisited and improved some of his earlier inventions. His eyesight declined significantly in his last years. However, he still made inventions with his last patent being granted several months before his death, in March 1997. ==Personal life and death==

Simjian spoke Arabic and French, and English with a "thick accent". He married Gladys (née Cannon) in April 1936. They had met at a party in New York's Greenwich Village in 1935. == Legacy and recognition ==

The American National Biography describes him as a "pioneer in photographic and optical inventions." Times Union wrote on his death: "Simjian was Jeffersonian, Edisonian, da Vincian — take your pick. His motley inventions enriched life and gave jobs to untold thousands." Friedberg described his life as "a bona fide American success story". • In 1978 Simjian received the Eli Whitney Award by the Connecticut Patent Law Association (currently the Connecticut Intellectual Property Law Association, CIPLA) "in recognition of significant contribution to law or science." ==References==