O'Neill Graduate Holds Patent On Systems For U.S. Fighter

Scott Nelson and his wife Traci Nelson.

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O'NEILL NATIVE SCOTT NELSON - developed a patented process in use to secure high speed connections in the inner workings of the F-35.

Scott Nelson is fulfilling his dream through his job. The job he works in is electronics which he has had an interest in growing up on the family ranch north of O'Neill in the 1980s.

Jay "Scott" Nelson, or Scott, is the son of Nancy and the late Paul Nelson. Scott has three siblings Brad Lee, Beth Ann and Sara Sue. Scott, one of the elder children, graduated from O'Neill High School in 1984.

Scott liked to tinker with equipment on the ranch like his dad did because you had to fix things on your own and make them work on the farm. The idea of fixing it yourself and the curiosity that came with tinkering inspired Scott in all he did. 

Scott had a particular interest in electronics, inspired by his dad. In 1984 Scott's dad bought a computer for himself and one for Scott. The two AT&T 6300 computers were quite revolutionary for the time. This was perfect for a naturally curious individual looking to know more about electronics. In 1984 the 6300 was an expensive computer, with very few businesses even having one let alone two home computers. 

"I wanted to know how it worked, and of course, I wanted to make it better, so one of the first things I did was upgrade the floppy drive to an optional 10 MB hard disk which today the average iPhone has 128 GB, but none the less it was a huge project. I took the whole computer apart on a table. You should have seen my dad's face when he came in and saw what I had done to my computer. It took some time, but I completed the installation of the new drive and got it all back together. Doing this kind of work gave me a springboard into my desire for electrical engineering," said Scott

Nelson graduated in 1984 from OHS and attended UNL, earning a bachelor of science degree in engineering and robotics. Scott also worked at the UNL Research Center on some NASA projects.

"I wanted to work for NASA, and that's why I moved to Flordia to be closer to the industry of Aerospace and technology.

In 1991 Scott graduated from UNL and moved to Palm Bay, Florida, where he worked for Collins Aerospace in 1995 and worked in electronic manufacturing and soldering electronic components together. 

In 2000 Scott moved, changed jobs and started work with L3 Harris Technologies, a global aerospace and defense technology innovator. The company provides advanced defense and commercial technologies across air, land, sea, space and cyber domains.

Scott's work with electronic components would soon pay off with some work for the defense department. His work with soldering electronic components would help make high-speed connection parts linking vital systems of such aircraft as the Lockheed Martin F-35, America's premier multi-role fighter and strike-capable aircraft.

Scott's work was remarkable enough for L3 Harris to apply for a patent. 

On March 14 this year, Scott was awarded an international patent for systems and methods for providing an interface on a printed circuit board using pin solder enhancement. Scott has five other processes that could be patented, but it may fail to happen due to the cost of patenting them.

"I would like to think that this patent is a testament to my dad, who passed away this past January. My dad always encouraged my curiosity, and like my dad and my grandfather, we made do with what he had on the ranch, and we fixed and manufactured things out of necessity." 

Scott's work had given his dad a reason to be proud this Father's Day.

Scott is married to his wife Traci and has two children a daughter Bailey and a son Ryan.

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