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Memorial Tributes: Volume 11 (2007)

Chapter: Robert Fridley

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Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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ROBERT BRUCE FRIDLEY

1934–2006

Elected in 1985

“For his managerial ability and research toward the mechanization of tree harvests.”


BY BRUCE R. HARTSOUGH, JOHN R. GOSS, AND WILLIAM J. CHANCELLOR


ROBERT FRIDLEY, Professor of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Emeritus, University of California (UC), Davis, passed away at his home on March 19, 2006.

Born in Burns, Oregon, on June 6, 1934, Bob was raised in farming and lumbering communities in Oregon, Washington, and California, where his family was involved with farming and ranching on a part-time basis. To support his college education, he worked with livestock and in a fruit-packing shed and lumber mill, experiences that provided a strong foundation for his stellar career in engineering research focused on solving problems associated with biological systems.

Bob entered Sierra College in Auburn, California, in 1952 and graduated with an A.A. degree in 1954. He then entered the B.S. program in agricultural engineering at UC Davis. In 1955, he married Jean Griggs of Nevada City, California, and, just a year later, in 1956, he graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering (issued by the College of Engineering, UC Berkeley). He was then offered a position at UC Davis as an assistant specialist in the Department of Agricultural Engineering. After he completed his M.S. in agricultural engineering in 1960, he was appointed assistant professor in 1961 and rapidly advanced to professor in 1969. He received his Ph.D. from Michigan State University in 1973 and became chair of the Department of Agricultural Engineering at UC Davis in 1974.

Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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With Paul Adrian (a U.S. Department of Agriculture agricultural engineer stationed at UC Davis), Bob initiated studies of mechanized harvesting of tree fruits and nuts. Although some mechanical harvesting had been done prior to this time, Bob identified the parameters that influence tree response to vibration and provided a basis for the rational design of shakers. He then studied the response of fruit to impact and determined the best design for collecting surfaces to minimize bruising. This work led to several patents and advanced mechanization in California, nationally, and around the world. Bob also collaborated with several other individuals at UC Davis, most notably Dr. Larry Claypool, a postharvest physiologist in the Department of Pomology, and James Mehlschau, a development engineer in the Department of Agricultural Engineering.

Bob’s accomplishments included the development of the inertial tree shaker, the integrated shake-catch harvester, shaker clamps that minimize damage to tree bark, and criteria for the design of fruit-catching surfaces to minimize the bruising of fruit during harvesting and handling. Most tree-fruit harvesters today are designed based on principles developed by Bob, and most growers who produce fruit to be mechanically harvested follow the guidelines for tree shape and pruning that were identified during his research. In 1983, Bob co-authored, with Michael O’Brien, UC Davis, and Burton Cargill, Michigan State University, Principles and Practices for Harvesting Fruits and Vegetables (AVI Publishing Company, 1983).

Bob was known as much for his leadership and ability to foresee the future as for his creativity, problem solving, and productivity. In 1977, he left the university and put all of those capabilities to good use in pursuing his interest in forest engineering research with the Weyerhaeuser Company. He began as manager of silvicultural research and development (R&D) and advanced through multiple positions to manager of diversified technology R&D. In the latter role, he was responsible for all research related to silviculture, agriculture, and aquaculture. Bob’s team at Weyerhaeuser developed technology for reforestation and methods of raising and releasing juvenile salmon for ocean ranching.

Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
×

During his eight years in industry, Bob maintained close ties with UC Davis and provided many opportunities for internships, summer jobs, and permanent positions for UC Davis students. He returned to UC Davis in 1985 as director of the Aquaculture and Fisheries Program, which he expanded and strengthened.

In 1989, he headed the National Research Council Marine Board Committee on the Assessment of Technology and Opportunities for Marine Aquaculture in the United States; the results of this committee study were published in Marine Aquaculture, Opportunities for Growth (National Academy Press, 1989).

While directing the Aquaculture and Fisheries Program at UC Davis, Bob also chaired the UC Davis Project 2000 Strategic Planning Steering Committee for the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. In recognition of his organizational skills and ability to bring together people with diverse backgrounds and interests to achieve meaningful results, the college appointed him executive associate dean in 1989. He retired in 1994 but remained a special assistant to the dean through 2000.

Bob was recognized nationally and internationally for his achievements. In 1966, he was co-recipient of the Charles G. Woodbury Award of the American Society for Horticultural Science, and in 1988 he was awarded a Doctor Honoris Causa by the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid. He was also a much sought-after consultant; he participated in research programs in Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the former USSR.

The American Society of Agricultural Engineers (ASAE) bestowed numerous honors on Bob: five Outstanding Paper Awards (1966, 1968, 1969, 1976, and 1986), Outstanding Young Researcher Award for Engineering Achievement (1972), Pacific Coast Region Engineer of the Year (1974), Engineering Concept of the Year Award (1976), ASAE Fellow (1978), and three Presidential Distinguished Service Awards (the latest in 1988). He served as president of the ASAE Foundation (1993 to 1996) and president of ASAE (1997 to 1998).

In 1985, Bob was elected to the National Academy of Engi-

Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
×

neering “for his managerial ability and research toward the mechanization of tree harvests,” becoming the fourth faculty member from UC Davis to be so honored. From 2000 to 2002, he served on the National Research Council Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources. The UC Davis Cal Aggie Alumni Association awarded him a Citation for Excellence Award (1990), and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences honored him with an Award of Distinction (2005).

Bob was also a devoted family man and was able to balance his professional success with success at home. He and his wife of over 50 years were true partners in life. Together, they (quite literally) built their first home and raised three sons who eventually followed in their father’s engineering footsteps. While the engineering community will remember Bob’s many professional accomplishments, his family will remember “Papa Bob” with stories of backpacking and fishing trips, golf, and singing “Sneaky Snake” and other Tom T. Hall songs for his grandchildren. In his retirement, Bob and Jean enjoyed traveling the world, visiting family, and enjoying sunsets over Lake Tahoe together.

Bob is survived by his wife, Jean, three sons, James, Michael, and Kenneth (all of whom are in engineering positions), and eight grandchildren. Bob seemed to thrive on seemingly unresolvable problems, nearly impossible-to-achieve objectives, and high-responsibility positions. Bob Fridley never expressed any doubts that these difficult objectives could be achieved.

Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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Page 127
Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
×
Page 128
Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
×
Page 129
Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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Page 130
Suggested Citation:"Robert Fridley." National Academy of Engineering. 2007. Memorial Tributes: Volume 11. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11912.
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Page 131
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This is the 11th Volume in the series Memorial Tributes compiled by the National Academy of Engineering as a personal remembrance of the lives and outstanding achievements of its members and foreign associates. These volumes are intended to stand as an enduring record of the many contributions of engineers and engineering to the benefit of humankind. In most cases, the authors of the tributes are contemporaries or colleagues who had personal knowledge of the interests and the engineering accomplishments of the deceased. Through its members and foreign associates, the Academy carries out the responsibilities for which it was established in 1964.

Under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering was formed as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. Members are elected on the basis of significant contributions to engineering theory and practice and to the literature of engineering or on the basis of demonstrated unusual accomplishments in the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology. The National Academies share a responsibility to advise the federal government on matters of science and technology. The expertise and credibility that the National Academy of Engineering brings to that task stem directly from the abilities, interests, and achievements of our members and foreign associates, our colleagues and friends, whose special gifts we remember in this book.

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