IPO Education Foundation Honors Top Inventor of 2007

    WASHINGTON, June 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Intellectual Property
 Owners Education Foundation today announced the winner of the 2007 National
 Inventor of the Year Award. The program, now in its 34th year, honors the
 spirit of American innovation and the protection offered to inventors by
 the patent system. Dr. Raymond V. Damadian will be recognized for his
 breakthrough in diagnostic medicine tonight on Capitol Hill.
     Professor Raymond Damadian, M.D. is currently President and Chairman of
 FONAR Corporation (Nasdaq:   FONR), Melville, New York. Dr. Damadian is being
 recognized for his development of Upright(TM) Magnetic Resonance Imaging
 (MRI) technology. This invention allows physicians to image patients in
 various weight-bearing positions in order to view tissues or analyze the
 spine, joints, or bones for fractures under the strain of normal use rather
 than in a prone position. The device also allows doctors to image the
 cardiovascular system when the body is upright and blood is being propelled
 against gravity.
     The system is equipped with an MRI-compatible motorized patient
 handling system that moves the patient into the magnet and places the
 anatomy of interest into the center of the magnet gap. It also can rotate
 the vertically- oriented patient into a horizontal position so the patient
 can be scanned lying down as in conventional MRI scanning.
     The Upright MRI scanner can examine any part of the body under its
 normal functional load. This is particularly useful given the human body
 and its many components are dynamic. Upright MRI can scan a patient in
 virtually any position that reproduces pain or other symptoms. From the
 patient's perspective, the scanner's open configuration may make MRI
 imaging more comfortable.
     "We are delighted to honor Dr. Damadian with this award," said IPO
 Foundation President Harry J. Gwinnell. "His contributions to the field of
 magnetic resonance imaging, particularly with the Upright(TM) MRI
 technology for which we salute him today, have been critical in advancing
 modern medicine's diagnostic and treatment capabilities."
     Currently, Dr. Damadian has patents pending on a 360 degree or "room
 size" MRI, which allows surgeons complete access to a patient in the
 operating room during MRI scans, providing immediate diagnostic analysis of
 the surgery and allowing a surgeon to see images of the tissues as surgery
 is being performed. In this fashion, surgeons will be able to adapt
 operational procedures and techniques and can view lesions such as tumors
 in detail to be certain that they have removed 100% of the diseased tissue.
 The first of these devices was installed in January 2006 by FONAR
 Corporation, which Dr. Damadian founded in 1978, at Oxford University in
 England. Further research is underway.
     IPO Education Foundation, in conjunction with Intellectual Property
 Owners Association (IPO), is at the forefront of not only educating
 consumers about the patent process but ensuring that the rights of patent
 holders are protected. IPO is the only association in the United States
 that serves all intellectual property owners in all industries and all
 fields of technology.
     Presented by IPO Foundation, the Inventor of the Year award is the best
 known honor for recent American inventors, having gone previously to those
 responsible for the development of the Jarvik Seven Artificial Heart, Bose
 speaker technology and other patented breakthrough inventions.
     The Inventor of the Year ceremony will take place tonight in the Caucus
 Room at the Cannon House Office Building. Interested press can attend by
 contacting Samantha Grover at 202-521-6730.
     About IPO Education Foundation
     Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation, a non-profit
 subsidiary of Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO), was
 established in 2005 to educate the public on the importance of intellectual
 property rights to the national and global economies. IPO Foundation
 conducts programs to:
     -- Broaden public understanding of systems for protecting intellectual
        property
 
     -- Sponsor awards for the purpose of recognizing outstanding achievement
        in the fields of invention, creativity, and IP rights
 
     -- Publish reports dealing with legal, economic, and other aspects of
        intellectual property
     Donations to the foundation by individuals are tax deductible to the
 extent allowed by law. To find out more about IPO Education Foundation
 programs or how to make a donation, call 202/466-2396.
 
 

SOURCE Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation