[Kobi]

Virgie Ammons was an inventor and woman of color who invented the fireplace damper actuating tool.

Mary Anderson invented the windshield wiper.

Dr Virginia Apgarinvented the Newborn Scoring System, also called the Apgar Score, in 1949 that assessed the health of newborns.

Dr Patricia Bath, an ophthalmologist was the first African American female doctor to patent a medical invention. She developed the Cataract Laserphaco Probe, a method for removing cataract lenses that transformed eye surgery by using a laser device making the procedure more accurate.

Patricia Billings received a patent in 1997 for a fire resistant building material called Geobond.

Katherine Blodgett invented nonreflective glass. Her patented film and process (1938) has been used for many purposes including limiting distortion in eyeglasses, microscopes, telescopes, camera and projector lenses.

Rachel Fuller Brown and Elizabeth Lee Hazen invented the worlds first useful antifungal antibiotic - nystatin.

In 1886, Josephine Cochran proclaims in disgust, "If nobody else is going to invent a dishwashing machine, I'll do it myself." And she did.

Martha Coston invented a system of maritime signal flares based on color and pattern. Using various color combinations, these flares made ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore communication possible. In February 1859, C.S. McCauley, Captain and Senior Officer of the United States Navy, recommended the signals to the Secretary of the Navy, Isaac Toucey. Coston sold her system to the U.S. Navy for $5,000, and later sold the U.S. patent rights to the Navy for $20,000. Her system was also adopted by the governments of France, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Haiti.

Actar 911, the CPR mannequin was invented by Dianne Croteau and partners, Richard Brault and Jonathan Vinden in 1989. Actar 911 is a mannequin used to teach CPR or Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation.

Marion Donovan created the first convenient disposable diaper. (Cloth diapers were first mass produced by Maria Allen in 1887.

Dr Gertrude Elion patented the leukemia-fighting drug 6-mercaptopurine in 1954 and has made a number of significant contributions to the medical field. Dr. Gertrude Elion’s research led to the development of Imuran, a drug that aids the body in accepting transplanted organs, and Zovirax, a drug used to fight herpes.

The ultimate convenience invention must certainly be inventor Frances Gabe’s self-cleaning house. The house, a combination of some 68 time, labor and space saving mechanisms, makes the concept of housework obsolete.

Each of the rooms in the termite-proof, cinder block constructed, self-cleaning house is fitted with a 10-inch, ceiling-mounted cleaning/drying/heating/cooling device. The walls, ceilings and floors of the house are covered with resin, a liquid that becomes water-proof when hardened. The furniture is made of a water-proof composition, and there are no dust-collecting carpets anywhere in the house. At the push of a sequence of buttons, jets of soapy water wash the entire room. Then, after a rinse, the blower dries up any remaining water that hasn’t run down the sloping floors into a waiting drain.

The sink, shower, toilet and bathtub all clean themselves. The bookshelves dust themselves while a drain in the fireplace carries away ashes. The clothes closet is also a washer/drier combination. The kitchen cabinet is also a dishwasher; simply pile in soiled dishes, and don’t bother taking them out until they are needed again. Not only is the house of practical appeal to overworked homeowners, but also to physically handicapped people and the elderly.

Frances Gabe (or Frances G. Bateson) was born in 1915 and now resides comfortably in Newberg, Oregon in the prototype of her self-cleaning house. Gabe gained experience in housing design and construction at an early age from working with her architect father. She entered the Girl’s Polytechnic College in Portland, Oregon at age 14 finishing a four-year program in just two years. After World War II, Gabe with her electrical engineer husband started a building repairs business that she ran for more than 45 years.

Lillian Moller Gilbreth was an inventor, author, industrial engineer, industrial psychologist, and mother of twelve children. A pioneer in ergonomics, Gilbreth patented many kitchen appliances including an electric food mixer, shelves inside refrigerator doors, and the famous trash can with a foot-pedal lid-opener. Lillian Gilbreth is best known for her work to help workers in industry with her classic Time & Motion Studies, which supported work simplification and industrial efficiency. Lillian Gilbreth was one of the first scientists to recognized the effects of stress and lack of sleep on the worker.

Sarah Goode was the first African American women to receive a U.S. patent issued on July 14, 1885 for a cabinet bed. She was the owner of a Chicago furniture store.

In 1956, Bette Nesmith Graham started the Mistake Out Company (later renamed Liquid Paper) from her North Dallas home. She turned her kitchen into a laboratory, mixing up an improved product with her electric mixer. Graham’s son, Michael Nesmith (later of The Monkees fame), and his friends filled bottles for her customers.

Bette Nesmith Graham believed money to be a tool, not a solution to a problem. She set up two foundations to help women find new ways to earn a living. Graham died in 1980, six months after selling her corporation for $47.5 million.

Dr Temple Grandin invented improvements to the animal handling systems found in meat plants that decreased or eliminated the fear and pain animals experienced.

Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (December 9, 1906 – January 1, 1992) was an American computer scientist and United States Navy officer. A pioneer in the field, she was one of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer, and developed the first compiler for a computer programming language. She conceptualized the idea of machine-independent programming languages, which led to the development of COBOL, one of the first modern programming languages. She is credited with popularizing the term "debugging" for fixing computer glitches (motivated by an actual moth removed from the computer). Because of the breadth of her accomplishments and her naval rank, she is sometimes referred to as "Amazing Grace." The U.S. Navy destroyer USS Hopper (DDG-70) was named for her, as was the Cray XE6 "Hopper" supercomputer at NERSC.

Mary Phelps Jacob was the first to patent an undergarment named 'Brassiere' derived from the old French word for 'upper arm'. Her patent was for a device that was lightweight, soft and separated the breasts naturally. (In 1928, a Russian immigrant named Ida Rosenthal founded Maidenform. Ida was responsible for grouping women into bust-size categories (cup sizes).

Amanda Jones (1835 - 1914)was awarded two patents for methods preserving food, one patent for a vacuum method of canning called the Jones Process.

Margaret Knight was an employee in a paper bag factory when she invented a new machine part that would automatically fold and glue paper bags to create square bottoms for paper bags. Workmen reportedly refused her advice when first installing the equipment because they mistakenly thought, "what does a woman know about machines?" Margaret Knight can be considered the mother of the grocery bag, she founded the Eastern Paper Bag Company in 1870.

Stephanie Kwolek’s research with high performance chemical compounds for the DuPont Company led to the development of a synthetic material called Kevlar which is five times stronger than the same weight of steel.

Silver Screen superstar Hedy Lamarr (born Hedwig Kiesler Markey) with the help of composer George Antheil invented a secret communication system in an effort to help the allies defeat the Germans in World War II. The invention, patented in 1941, manipulated radio frequencies between transmission and reception to develop an unbreakable code so that top-secret messages could not be intercepted. The technology called spread spectrum, now takes on many forms. However, all the spread spectrum that we use today directly or indirectly, flows from the invention created by
Hedy Lamarr.

Ada Lovelace wrote a scientific paper in 1843 that anticipated the development of computer software, artificial intelligence and computer music. Daughter of the poet Lord Byron, devised a method of using punchcards to calculate Bernoulli numbers, becoming the first computer programmer. In her honor the U.S. Department of Defense named its computer language "Ada" in 1980.

American colonist and inventor, Sybilla Masters invented a way for cleaning and curing the Indian corn crops that the colonist in early America received as a gift from the native peoples. Sybilla Masters's innovation allowed the corn to be processed into many different food and cloth products. The patent was issued in her husband Thomas’ name by the British courts in 1715. That was the unfair law at the time, women and minorities had no rights to own patents. Thomas Masters was issued patents for "Cleansing Curing and Refining of Indian Corn Growing in the Plantations". A second patent was issued to Sybilla's husband for another of her inventions entitled "Working and Weaving in a New Method, Palmetta Chip and Straw for Hats and Bonnets and other Improvements of that Ware."

Ann Moore invented the snugli baby carrier.

“Growing up with cerebral palsy made me a stronger person and very determined to succeed. Inventing has given me confidence and a way to help myself as well as others.” - Krysta Morlan

Krysta Morlan's first invention was a device that relieves the irritation caused by wearing a cast called the cast cooler. The portable cast cooler works by pumping air into a cast through a plastic tube. Krysta Morlan was in grade 10 when she invented the cast cooler. Still in high school, Krysta Morlan then invented the Waterbike, a semi-submersible, fin-propelled pedaled vehicle.

African American, Lyda Newman of New York, New York patented a new and improved hair brush on November 15, 1898. Lydia Newman designed a brush that was easy to keep clean, very durable and easy to make, and provided ventilation during brushing by having recessed air chambers.

Julie Newmar, Hollywood film and television legend, patented ultra-sheer, ultra-snug pantyhose.

Ellen Ochoa invented optical analysis systems and was also the first Hispanic female astronaut.

Betty Rozier and Lisa Vallino, a mother and daughter team, invented an intravenous catheter shield to make the use of IVs in hospitals safer and easier. The computer-mouse shaped, polyethylene shield covers the site on a patient where an intravenous needle has been inserted. The "IV House" prevents the needle from being accidentally dislodged and minimizes its exposure to patient tampering.

Harriet Tubman was a runaway slave from Maryland who became known as the "Moses of her people." Over the course of 10 years, and at great personal risk, she led hundreds of slaves to freedom along the Underground Railroad, a secret network of safe houses where runaway slaves could stay on their journey north to freedom. She later became a leader in the abolitionist movement, and during the Civil War she was a spy with for the federal forces in South Carolina as well as a nurse.

Sarah Breedlove McWilliams Walker, better known as Madame CJ Walker or Madame Walker, together with Marjorie Joyner revolutionized the hair care and cosmetics industry for African American women early in the 20th century.

Carol Wior invented the Slimsuit, a women's swimsuit that was guaranteed to take an inch or more off the waist or tummy and look natural.