George Andreasen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Andreasen

George F. Andreasen (February 16, 1934 – August 11, 1989), born in Fremont, Nebraska, was an American orthodontist and inventor.

Andreasen, most noted for his invention and patent of the Nitinol Wire, also known as Memory Wire or shape memory alloy, began his experimentation with the nickel-titanium (NiTi) alloys as early as 1969. His idea for Nitonal came from an article he read in the United States Naval laboratory publication supplement in the Journal of American Orthodontics. Over the course of the next seven years, Andreasen experimented with his formula until he reached his goal and was awarded U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,324 on July 26, 1979. To this day, this is the highest earning patent fostered by the University of Iowa College of Orthodontics[citation needed].

Dr Andreasen joined the University of Iowa Orthodontics department in 1963 and was chairman of the orthodontics department from 1965 to 1975. He held degrees in mechanical engineering and in dentistry from Oxford University and the University of Nebraska. He was a diplomat of the American Board of Orthodontics. Dr. Andreasen died on August 11, 1989 of multiple myeloma at the age of 55.