Dr. Laszlo Gyugyi of the Westinghouse Science and
Technology Center received the 1994 William E. Newell Power
Electronics Award on June 22 at the Awards Luncheon of the 25th
IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Conference in Taipei, Taiwan,
Republic of China.
Dr. Gyugyi received his basic technical education at the
University of Technology, Budapest, studied mathematics at the
University of London, England, and electrical engineering at the
University of Pittsburgh, where he obtained his M.S.E.E. in 1967,
and at the University of Salford, England, where he received his
Ph.D. in 1970.
He started his professional career at the Epsylon Research and
Development Co., Ltd., England, then in 1963 joined the
Westinghouse Science & Technology Center, where he had a
number of engineering and technical management positions of
increasing responsibility. In 1980 he was appointed Manager, Power
Electronics Department, and assumed responsibility for the
Corporation's central research and development work in power
electronics for utility, industrial, and defense applications.
At the beginning of his career, Dr. Gyugyi carried out research
and development in different fields of electronics; however, in
the last 30 years he has worked exclusively in the area of power
electronics. His work has covered all types of power conversion
circuits, control systems, and applications, leading to new
products such as airborne variable-speed constant-frequency power
generators, variable-speed ac motor drives, power line
conditioners, and high-power static var compensators. During the
last 15 years, he increasingly has focused on the development of
new power electronic technologies for the real-time control of
electric power transmission systems and solving the power quality
problems of distribution systems.
Dr. Gyugyi holds 67 U.S. patents, is coauthor of the book
"Static Power Frequency Changers" and author of the section "Power
Frequency Changers in two electrical engineering handbooks. He has
over 30 technical society publications and won the 1992 Prize
Paper Award from the IEEE Power Engineering Society. In 1990, he
received a Recognition Award from the U.S. National Committee of
the International Conference on Large High Voltage Electric
Systems (CIGRE). Dr. Gyugyi is a member of various IEEE and CIGRE
working groups in the area of high-power electronics used for the
compensation and control of power transmission systems.
Dr. Gyugyi also has regularly lectured in the Professional
Development Programs of the University of Wisconsin. In 1992, he
received the Westinghouse Order of Merit, the Corporation's
highest honor, for his creativity and achievements in power
electronics, and for his personal efforts in developing advanced
power electronic technology for the compensation and control of
utility transmission and distribution systems.