Freedom Motors Consultants
Andrew F. Burke—Dr. Burke is a foremost authority on hybrid vehicles. He has written thirteen articles on ultra-capacitors, which is an enabling technology for better hybrid vehicles. He has also authored fifteen articles on hybrid vehicles, including an essay published in the Encyclopedia of Energy Technology and the Environment titled “Hybrid Vehicles”, published by John Wiley and Sons in February, 1995. Dr. Burke received BS and MS degrees from Carnegie Institute of Technology in Applied Mathematics, and MA and Ph.D. degrees from Princeton University in Aerospace and Mechanical Sciences. Presently, he is on the research faculty of the Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS) at the University of California in Davis. He continues to work actively with the company on various hybrid vehicle projects. Otto Scharft—has 25 years in engine development at OMC where he worked for over 10 years as Group Leader in rotary engine research. He was responsible for a number of new rotary engine designs.
David Garside—Mr. Garside has worked most of his life on rotary engines. He was technical and commercial leader at Norton Motors during their development of the Norton rotary motorcycle engine. He was instrumental in the development and production of a UAV rotary engine that is now used extensively in surveillance. Norton Motors previously contracted with Freedom Motors to undertake a rotary engine endurance test. Mr. Garside holds 11 UK patents and was awarded the MBE by the Queen for his services to the UK Industry. In 1992 he lead a Management Buyout of Norton Motors. Mr. Garside retired from UAV Engines Ltd (previously Norton) in 2001 but is still active in the field of rotary engines.
Mike Griffith—Mr. Griffith joined the Company in 1987 as Manager of Engine Development. He earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan in 1964. Mr. Griffith has a 40-year history in Wankel engine development including Program Manager and Development Engineer at John Deere’s Wankel Engine Division (1984-1987), Senior Technical Specialist in the Wankel Engine Division of Curtiss-Wright (1979-1983), and Wankel Engine Project Engineer for Outboard Marine Corporation (1966-1974).
Mike Weingart—Mr. Weingart has been working with Moller International and Freedom Motors since their founding. He has been an integral part of both research and construction of aircraft, vehicles, and engines. Mr. Weingart will bring his experience and knowledge of rotary engines and solid-lubricants as a main contributor to the project team.
Maurice Velandia— Mr. Velandia spent 30 years with Intel Corporation as a Managing Design Engineer. He has a strong background leading semiconductor design teams. Mr. Velandia has a BE, Electrical Engineering from Stony Brook University and a Masterof Business Administration (MBA) from California State University.
Chaz V. Smith— Mrs. Smith has over 20 years of experience in marketing and communications. Most recently she was the Senior Communication Manager for VSP Global and the Director of Marketing for StemExpress LLC. Mrs. Smith holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Yale University.
Ketan Patel— Mr. Patel has 20 years of experience in product development engineering. Most recently he was Senior Staff Product Engineering Manager at Marvell Semiconductors. Prior to this he was a Product Development Engineer at Intel Corporation. Mr. Patel has a Bachelor of Science Degree (BSc) in Chemical Engineering from the University of Florida.
Cheryl Kiyama—Mrs Kiyama has over 30 years of experience in management including key positions at Care Innovations where she occupied many roles, from Director of Production Operations, Director of Compliance Operations and Controls and Software Engineering Manager. Mrs. Kiyama has a Bachelorof Science Degree in Computer Science with a minor in Business Administration from the California State University.
