Xerox researcher achieves 100th patent milestone

Toronto, ON – While Nan-Xing Hu was growing up in China, he remembers seeing his first photograph. It was a moment that kicked off a lifetime of trying to understand how things work, and ultimately led to one of the rarest achievements in the scientific world: the receipt of his 100th US patent. Dr Hu is only the seventh Canadian scientist at the Xerox Research Centre of Canada to accomplish this feat, and the 26th Xerox scientist worldwide.

His 100th patent, No 7,754,812, entitled “Adhesion Promoter” discloses a material formulation that works with production colour printers to improve book binding capabilities. His inspiration for the adhesion promoter came from customer need for expanded post-print applications using production colour devices.

Dr Hu now manages the Key Component Materials Design & Synthesis lab, which is responsible for material design and process chemistry development for photoreceptors, fusers and printed electronics. He joined the Xerox Research Centre of Canada in 1994 as a member of the industrial research team.

“During his career at Xerox, Nan-Xing has demonstrated great technical depth and breadth. He has made an impressive set of materials contributions that have been implemented in company products”, said Hadi Mahabadi, vice president and centre director, Xerox Research Centre of Canada. “Nan-Xing is an extremely skilled chemist. His talent not only improves Xerox’s competitive offerings, but has added to the fabric of Canada’s entire scientific landscape.”

Dr Hu’s extensive patent portfolio includes novel materials and processes for organic light-emitting devices, dyes for solid ink, long-life xerographic components, and printable electronics.

“Having the ability to create a useful product that makes a difference in people’s personal or professional lives gives me a great sense of accomplishment,” he says. “I am constantly driven by technical challenges and external competition. The diversity of Xerox’s culture and its people are a great inspiration, as is our management’s strong commitment to fostering innovation.”

Prior to beginning his 16 year career at Xerox, Dr Hu completed his bachelor degree in chemistry at East China University of Science and Technology in Shanghai, China. He then completed his master and doctorate degrees in organic chemistry at Hiroshima University in Japan.

He held a postdoctoral fellow position at the University of Calgary before joining Xerox, and was also an associate adjunct professor at Queen’s University.