Visionary, inventor, father of the PLC
Richard (Dick) E. Morley, (December 1, 1932 to October 17, 2017) was best known as the father of the programmable controller. He was a leading visionary in the field of advanced technological development and an entrepreneur whose consistent success in the founding of high technology companies was proven through more than three decades of revolutionary achievements.
Morley has, among his many accomplishments, more than 20 United States and foreign patents, including the parallel inference machine, hand-held terminal, programmable logic controller and magnetic thin film. His MIT based background in physics provided the insight to become an internationally recognized pioneer in the areas of computer design, artificial intelligence, automation and futurism.
As an inventor, author, consultant and engineer, Morley provided the Research and Development Community with world changing innovations. His peers have acknowledged his contributions with numerous awards, honors and citations. Mr. Morley’s medals of achievment are from such diverse groups as Inc. Magazine, the Franklin Institute, Society of Manufacturing Engineers and the Engineering Society of Detroit. He was also inducted into the Manufacturing Hall of Fame. In 2015, ISA published a book by Morley and Jesse Yoder, president of Flow Research, The Tao of Measurement: A Philosophical View of Flow and Sensors.
Morley lived on a farm and worked out of his barn in New Hampshire. He raised over two dozen children, loved skiing, and rode a Sturgis.