About the Designer
Clive Smith designed the One Digital Stethoscope.
He spent his early life in South Africa and was raised in Johannesburg. He received a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from Wits University, where he first developed his interest in medical electronics. He and classmate David Cohen received the Siemens Prize for Best Thesis for their research on multi-channel electrocardiography.
Smith came to the United States for graduate study, receiving an MSEE from the California Institute of Technology, focusing on various electronics design disciplines including analog, integrated circuits, digital signal processing and power electronics.
He founded Thinklabs in 1991, developing electronic
products and systems, always on the lookout for interesting medical electronic challenges. After reading research published in Circulation journal, that stethoscope sound had not improved much since Laennec invented the stethoscope in 1816, he decided to focus his attention on developing stethoscope technology. He holds numerous patents in the field, releasing the first Thinklabs stethoscope in 2003.
His interests include music, product design, technology, entrepreneurship, the changing nature of business and innovation in a world of global trade, and the challenges facing healthcare systems in industrialized and developing world countries.
He was profiled in the annual 2013 Caltech Alumni ENGenious publication.
Throughout the site, usually at the bottom of some pages on the website, Clive has offered comments and thought about the topics on the respective web page. He also writes Thinking Out Loud blog postings.
