March 26, 2002 – Dallas, TX – Dr. Larry Hornbeck had been elected SPIE Fellow for 2002. SPIE is the International Society for Optical Engineering, and the award will be made at the 47th annual meeting held at the International Symposium on Optical Science & Technology, July 7 – 11 in Seattle, WA.

The award was made for Hornbeck’s lifetime achievements in digital projection display technology and micro-opto electromechanical systems architecture and process development.

“I am proud and honored to receive this highly prestigious award, and to be joining such exalted company,” said Hornbeck who was responsible for the invention of, and many subsequent developments in, the digital micromirror device – the optical semiconductor chip which is at the heart of DLP technology. “To be recognized by one’s peers in this way is a rare privilege, and one for which I am very grateful.”

SPIE is an international technical society dedicated to fostering engineering, scientific, and commercial applications of optical, photonic, imaging, electronic, and optoelectronic technologies. Fellows are distinguished individuals who have made significant scientific and technical contributions in optics and optoelectronics. In addition, they are recognized for their service to the general optics community and to SPIE in particular.

“We’re very pleased that Larry has received this recognition,” said John Van Scoter, VP and GM of TI’s DLP products division. “His invention has been the basis of an important new business for Texas Instruments.”

Hornbeck’s honors include Germany’s Eduard Rhein Foundation Technology Award, England’s Rank Prize, the Society for Information Display’s Karl Ferdinand Braun Prize, and an Emmy from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. He has served on the program committee and as a session chairman for SPIE’s Projection Display Conference at the Electronic Imaging Symposium from 1997 through 2002.