Each year the Technology Association of Iowa(TAI) awards people who have made advancements in technology during the past year.  This year the TAI has selected Thomas Schnell and Rockwell Collins as the 2007 Innovators of the Year.

Thomas Schnell and Rockwell Collins were selected based on their cooperative work on a synthetic vision system called the Synthetic Flight Bag (TM).  The Synthetic Flight Bag (TM) is a low-cost synthetic vision system that was designed to provide pilots with a view of the terrain when conditions are unfavorable.

The display used for the Synthetic Flight Bag(TM) is a XGA touch screen.  The screen is daylight readable and supports a resolution of 1024x768.  Data entry can be done by a telephone style keypad that is overlayed on the screen.  There is also a USB port for uploading flight data.