Images(2)

Card, Collecting

Object number2024.45.3

Manufacturer United States Department of Commerce

Manufacturer United States Patent and Trademark Office

Date2019

MediumPaper; Ink

Credit LineGift of Rory Cooper

DescriptionRectangular paperboard inventor collecting card of Rory Cooper. Front has photographic image of a middle-aged man in wheelchair in three-quarter view facing slightly proper left; man wears a gray and white T-shirt and blue-gray sweatpants; background is a cloudy sky with yellow and black structural elements. Front bottom has gray band above, from viewer's left to right: United States Department of Commerce (USDOC) United States Patent and Trademark Office emblem, black subject's name, and autograph in black ink. Reverse has blue-gray border surrounding light gray background; black printed text describes man pictured on front; blue-gray and white stars across top area; bottom has white background with, from viewer's left to right: same USDOC emblem as front, organizational information, and QR code.DimensionsHeight x Width x Depth: 3.5 x 2.5 x 0.031 in. (8.9 x 6.4 x 0.1 cm)
InscriptionsFront has black printed text at bottom to the viewer's left of center "Rory / Cooper".

Front has signature in black ink in the viewer's bottom right quadrant "Rory Cooper".

Reverse has printed black text "28 / Rory Cooper / Bioengineer, Inventor, Veteran, and Athlete / Born: 11-9-1959 Birthplace: Los Angeles, California / Rory Cooper is a distinguished professor of rehabilitation / engineering at the University of Pittsburgh and a senior / career scientist for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. / His team has developed over 100 inventions and holds / multiple patents related to wheelchairs, robotics, and / wearable instruments designed to improve the lives of / people with disabilities and military veterans."

Reverse has printed black text in the viewer's bottom right corner "Scan to read more on / Rory Cooper / [QR code]".
MarksFront has emblem in the viewer's bottom left corner with white text around the perimeter "UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE / DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE".

Reverse has black printed text at top "The United States Patent and Trademark Office" and bottom: "Image courtesy of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs" and "The United States / Patent and Trademark Office / is an agency of the / U.S. Department of Commerce / Constitution of the United States / Article 1 Section 8".

Reverse has emblem in the viewer's bottom left corner with white text around the perimeter "UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE / DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE".

Reverse has printed black text in the viewer's bottom right corner "The United States Patent and / Trademark Office Trading Cards / Published 2019 / www.uspto.gov/kids".
Historical NotesUnited States Patent and Trademark Office Inventor collectible card of Rory A. Cooper.Label TextDr. Rory Cooper, a bronze medalist in the 1988 Seoul Paralympic Games 4x400 wheelchair relay and captain of a U.S. National team, has competed in every Pittsburgh Marathon since the inception of the race. He also implemented the handcycle assistance team--H-CAT--for the race, which supports racers’ medical and non-medical needs. A multisport athlete, Cooper has amassed more than 200 medals at the National Veterans Wheelchair Games. While serving in the U.S. Army in Germany in 1980, a bicycle accident left Cooper paralyzed from the waist down. After returning home to recuperate, he enrolled at California Polytechnic State University. Frustrated by the weight and lack of mobility of his 80-pound wheelchair, Cooper modified it in his family’s automotive workshop. As he pursued an undergraduate, then master’s degree, in electrical engineering, Cooper’s interest in adaptive technology grew. With a PhD in electrical and computer engineering, innovating in that field became his life’s work. Dr. Cooper founded the Human Engineering Research Laboratories (HERL) at the University of Pittsburgh in 1994. He has directed the efforts to research, prototype, design, and share adaptive technologies that improve the health, mobility, and social inclusion of people with disabilities and older adults. Dr. Cooper, who holds more than two dozen patents, has received numerous awards recognizing his innovative work including the National Medal of Technology and Innovation awarded by President Biden in 2023, and has been inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame®.

Previous owner Dr. Rory A. Cooper (born 1959)

Related institution Human Engineering Research Laboratories

Related institution University of Pittsburgh

Subjects