Jerome Jackson, a leader in research efforts to solve challenging medical issues, will discuss "Biomedical Device Design and Development," Wednesday, April 21,7 p.m., in Galileo Hall at Harvey Mudd College. The event is the final talk in this spring's Dr. Bruce J. Nelson '74 Distinguished Speaker Series, "Transforming Technology: Engineering for a Changing World."

Jackson, HMC board of trustees member since 2003 and vice president of research and development of Stellartech Research Corporation, will describe how the medical device industry operates and will outline the opportunities and challenges facing those interested in the biomedical engineering field. He will show samples of Stellartech Research products and describe how they were designed, developed and introduced to the public.

Jackson has over 25 years of experience developing passive and active mechanical, electromechanical and electronic medical devices. For the last five years he has worked at Stellartech Research directing both research and product development. He has developed a broad range of products including permanent implants, such as intraocular lenses and heart valves; short-term indwelling products, such as cardiovascular, neurological and urological catheters; and embedded microprocessor controlled radio frequency (RF) ablation systems.

Jerome has developed RF heating and ablation systems for gastroenterology, cardiology and dermatology (skin tightening applications), as well as a variety of devices with applications for neurology, ophthalmology and urology. He has extensive experience developing products that integrate many technical disciplines and frequently involve software control of electro-mechanical systems. Jackson is a named inventor on over 34 U. S. patents.

Prior to joining Stellartech, Jackson was vice president of research and development for the Vascular Therapies Division of U. S. Surgical Corporation and director of engineering and research for EP Technologies, Inc. He holds a master's degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University and a bachelor of science degree in engineering sciences from Harvey Mudd College.