Kees Schouhamer Immink
Kornelis Antonie "Kees" Schouhamer Immink (born 18 December 1946) is a Dutch engineer, inventor, and entrepreneur, who pioneered and advanced the era of digital audio, video, and data recording, including popular digital media such as compact disc (CD), DVD and Blu-ray disc. He has been a prolific and influential engineer, who holds more than 1100 U.S. and international patents. A large portion of the commonly used audio and video playback and recording devices use technologies based on his work. His contributions to coding systems assisted the digital video and audio revolution, by enabling reliable data storage at information densities previously unattainable.
Kees Schouhamer Immink | |
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Kees Schouhamer Immink in 2004 with his Emmy Award | |
| Born | Kornelis Antonie Schouhamer Immink 18 December 1946 Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Alma mater | Eindhoven University of Technology |
| Known for | Compact disc, DVD, Blu-ray |
| Awards | IEEE Medal of Honor Emmy Award Edison Medal Faraday Medal AES Gold Medal SMPTE Progress Medal |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Electronics, Information Theory |
| Institutions | Turing Machines Inc Philips Research Laboratories Institute for Experimental Mathematics National University of Singapore |
Immink received several tributes that summarize the impact of his contributions to the digital audio and video revolution. Among the accolades received are the IEEE Medal of Honor "for pioneering contributions to video, audio, and data recording technology, including compact disc, DVD, and Blu-ray", the Edison Medal and an individual Technology Emmy award by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS). Beatrix, Queen of the Netherlands bestowed him a knighthood in 2000. He was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2007 for pioneering and advancing the era of digital audio, video, and data recording. Royal Holland Society of Arts and Sciences introduced the Kees Schouhamer Immink Prize in 2019 as a means to encourage research on information science and tele-communications.
Currently, Immink holds the position of president of Turing Machines Inc, which was founded in 1998. During his career, Immink, in addition to his practical contributions, has contributed to information theory. He has written over 120 articles and four books, including Codes for Mass Data Storage Media. He has been an adjunct professor at the Institute for Experimental Mathematics, University of Duisburg and Essen, Germany, since 1994, as well as affiliated with the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) as a visiting professor.