Pacemaker inventor Wilson Greatbatch dies

Wilson Greatbatch, the man who invented the implantable pacemaker, died on Tuesday in his home in Buffalo, New York. He was aged 92.

Greatbatch has been described by The New York Times as a self-professed “humble tinkerer” who designed the first practical implantable pacemaker while working in his barn in 1958.

The device, keeps the heart beating in a regular rhythm, was first implanted in humans in 1960. Hundreds of thousands of patients receive pacemakers every year.

The cause of Greatbatch's death is not known, but his son-in-law, Larry Maciariello, told reporters his health had been "intermittent", reported the BBC.

In the first successful implant of a pacemaker, at the Buffalo Veterans' Affairs Hospital, was in a 77-year-old patient. He lived for 18 months afterwards.

Last year was the 50th anniversary of the pacemaker.

Inventing was Greatbatch's life’s passion, and in 1998, he was admitted to the National Inventors' Hall of Fame in Akron, Ohio.

Greatbatch patented more than 325 of his inventions. Among them was a solar-powered canoe, which he took on a 160-mile trip on the Finger Lakes in New York, to celebrate his 72nd birthday.

In later years, he worked on possible cures for Aids, and invested time and money in developing fuels from plants. He also supporting work on helium-based fusion reaction for power generation, at the University of Wisconsin.

At the age of 76, Greatbatch was awarded the Lemelson-MIT Prize for lifetime achievement.