Arnie Frisch
Arnold M. Frisch (? – d. 12 Dec 2019) was a graduate of Stuyvesant High School and Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute (now part of New York University).
In 1962, Arnie, along with Morris Engelson (1935 - ) and Larry Weiss (1936-2018), started Pentrix Corporation in Brooklyn.
Pentrix made spectrum analyzer plug-ins for Tektronix oscilloscopes, initially to get funds to develop a stand alone spectrum analyzer of their own. In the early 1960s, Tektronix made little except oscilloscopes and a few related products. Spectrum analyzers are different from oscilloscopes. They are designed to show the amplitude of a signal versus frequency, as opposed to amplitude versus time.
Tek had almost no experience in the radio frequency world of spectrum analyzers and needed to avoid becoming a one-product company.
Arnie was probably involved in just about every spectrum analyzer at Tektronix until about 1972.
Links
Timeline
- In April 1964, Tektronix bought Pentrix for 30,002 shares of Tektronix stock, and the three New Yorkers joined Tektronix at the Sunset South Plant, Building 81 in June 1964. It was a culture jolt for both.
- The stand alone spectrum analyzer Pentrix had aimed for became the 491 in August 1966.
- In Sept 1969, Arnie is Program Manager of Spectrum Analyzers & Generators on the third floor of Building 50 (Technical Center)
- He left Tek in 1971 and rejoined full time in 1979.
- In November 1979, Arnie was in “Staffing Staff” in Building 55 in probably in preparation for starting a new business unit, CBI (Computer Based Instruments).
- In 1981, Arnie became Tek's first Chief Engineer.
- In March 1986, Arnie was listed as CBI Administration in Building 02 [(45.49308 -122.81496)]
- In July 1987, Arnie was back in Building 50, third floor, in Tek Labs Staff.
- In Aug 1989, he was in ESL Engineering, still in Building 50. ESL is Electronic Systems Laboratory
- In Mar 1991, Arnie was listed as being in ESL Engineering.
- In Jul 1994, Sep 1995, Jan 1996, and Aug 1998 he was listed in Building 50, but the these directories no longer listed responsibilities along with phone numbers.
- Arnie left Tek after 1998, but did not leave electronics. He went on to work at Intel on advanced ICs in Hillsboro, OR.
- Arnie Frisch, a legend around Tektronix, died December 12, 2019.
Documents Authored by Arnie Frisch
| Document | Page | Class | Title | Author(s) | Year | Refers to |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology report july 1981.pdf | 3 | Article | Future Instruments: The Driving Forces | Arnie Frisch | 1981 |
Products by Arnie Frisch
| Manufacturer | Model | Description | Designers | Introduced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tektronix | 1L30 | 10.5 GHz Spectrum Analyzer plug-in | Arnie Frisch • Gordon Long • Morris Engelson | 1965 |
| Tektronix | 1L20 | 4.2 GHz Spectrum Analyzer plug-in | Arnie Frisch • Gordon Long • Morris Engelson | 1965 |
| Tektronix | 1L40 | 40 GHz Spectrum Analyzer plug-in | Arnie Frisch • Gordon Long • Morris Engelson | 1968 |
Components by Arnie Frisch
Patents by Arnie Frisch
| Page | Title | Inventors | Assignee | Filed | Granted | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patent US 3274505A | Series transistor circuit with selectively coupled stages | Arnie Frisch • Larry Weiss • Morris Engelson | Tektronix Inc | 1964-02-28 | 1966-09-20 | Pentrix L20 • Pentrix L30 |
| Patent US 3325754A | Resistor-diode attenuator | Arnie Frisch • Larry Weiss • Morris Engelson | Tektronix Inc | 1964-05-13 | 1967-06-13 | |
| Patent US 3375456A | Variable bandwidth crystal filter circuit | Arnie Frisch | Tektronix Inc | 1964-12-07 | 1968-03-26 | |
| Patent US 3321712A | Phase lock system for spectrum analyzer | Arnie Frisch • Gordon D. Long | Tektronix Inc | 1965-08-16 | 1967-05-23 | Spectrum Analyzers • 1L20 • 1L30 • 1L40 • 7L18 • Sampling |
| Patent US 3487314A | Radio receiving and display apparatus | Arnie Frisch | Tektronix Inc | 1966-12-06 | 1969-12-30 | Spectrum Analyzers |
| Patent US 4707834A | Computer-based instrument system | Arnie Frisch • Allen L. Hollister • Larry L. Hutchinson | Tektronix Inc | 1985-09-17 | 1987-11-17 | |
| Patent US 5428626A | Timing analyzer for embedded testing | Arnie Frisch • Thomas A. Almy | Tektronix Inc | 1993-10-18 | 1995-06-27 | |
| Patent US 5418470A | Analog multi-channel probe system | Thomas P. Dagostino • Arnie Frisch | Tektronix Inc | 1993-10-22 | 1995-05-23 | |
| Patent US 5905383A | Multi-chip module development substrate | Arnie Frisch | Tektronix Inc | 1995-08-29 | 1999-05-18 | |
| Patent US 5793642A | Histogram based testing of analog signals | Arnie Frisch • Thomas A. Almy | Tektronix Inc | 1997-01-21 | 1998-08-11 | |
| Patent US 5949284A | CMOS buffer amplifier | Arnie Frisch | Tektronix Inc | 1997-11-10 | 1999-09-07 |
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Arnie Frisch, Larry Weiss, and Rich Nute
