Donald Lewes Hings, (November 6, 1907 – February 25, 2004) was a Canadian inventor, born in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. In 1937 he created a portable radio signaling system for his employer CM&S, which he called a "packset", but which later became known as the "

Walkie-Talkie A walkie-talkie, more formally known as a handheld transceiver (HT), is a hand-held, portable, two-way radio transceiver. Its development during the Second World War has been variously credited to Donald Hings, radio engineer Alfred J. Gross, ...

". While Hings was filing a U.S. patent for the packset in

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the ...

in 1939, Canada declared

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

. CM&S sent Hings to

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the c ...

to redevelop his new invention for military use, and he worked there from 1940 to 1945. During these years, he developed a number of models, including the successful C-58

which eventually sold eighteen thousand units produced for infantry use, and for which he received the MBE in 1946 and the

Order Of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

in 2001. Following the war, he moved to

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrar ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

, where he established an electronics R&D company, Electronic Labs of Canada. He continued researching and creating in the fields of communications and

geophysics Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' so ...

until his retirement. He held more than 55 patents in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

and the United States, and was the inventor of the

klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio frequen ...

magnetometer A magnetometer is a device that measures magnetic field or magnetic dipole moment. Different types of magnetometers measure the direction, strength, or relative change of a magnetic field at a particular location. A compass is one such device, ...

survey system.US Patent 4458205 - Geomagnetic prospecting method In 2006, Hings was inducted into the

Telecommunications Hall of Fame Canada's Telecommunications Hall of Fame was a Canadian not-for-profit foundation that sought to foster a greater awareness of Canada's role in developing and innovating telecommunications. The foundation began operating in 2005 and had two main pr ...

. Born in Leicester, England, he moved to Canada with his mother and father when he was three. He died on

Capitol Hill, Burnaby Capitol Hill elev. 203m, is a hill in the city of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, and also is the name of the neighbourhood spanning the summit of the hill. Standing on the north side of Hastings Street and bounded by Willingdon Avenue to ...

, in 2004.

References

External links

Hings' Website
includes many original documents and images. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hings, Donald 1907 births 2004 deaths 20th-century Canadian inventors Members of the Order of Canada Canadian Members of the Order of the British Empire British emigrants to Canada People from Leicester