Today, MCI wants to celebrate the life and inventions of Marlan Bourns, who passed on March 18th 2014. He was the inventor of the Trimpot trimming potentiometer in 1952. A potentiometer is fitted directly onto the circuit board and allows you to adjust the resistance in a circuit. The current can be controlled by changing the position of a wiper on a resistive track.
Marlan and Rosemary Bourns started their business in a small garage behind their house. A small band of engineers beavered away developing components that would assist the aeronautic industry in such matters as the altitude of aircraft and guided missiles, monitoring flight surfaces, acceleration and hydraulic pressure. Marlan’s wife, Rosemary tested the components in her kitchen, using her freezer and oven. It wasn’t long before the company grew to international proportions.
The components were used in the Apollo missions to the moon. Bourns famously provided the sensor used in the joystick of the Lunar Landing Module and the pressure transducers that regulated the oxygen flow to the astronauts as they walked on the moon. Bourns components have even been used in the Mars rovers and other interplanetary probes.
Today, you can find Bourns potentiometers regulating the power in mobile phone towers. Marlan Bourns had over 100 patents to his name and employed thousands of people across the globe. The family continues to run the company.
MCI manufactures and repairs PCBs and circuit boards of all kinds for all industries. Whether you are looking for something bespoke, or wanting to order some spares, give us a call on 01324 611371 to see how we can help keep your machinery going. Have a good weekend everyone!