Vice President, Video, Communications and Networking Systems
Dr. John Riganati joined Sarnoff in 1993 as Director, Communications Laboratory. In subsequent positions, Riganati served as Technical Director and CTO for the Communications and Networking Business Unit, Senior Technical Director and CTO for Technology Operations, and Vice President and CTO for the Office of Technology Strategy, Innovation and Acquisition.
Previously he was the Director of Systems and Architecture Research at the Supercomputing Research Center [a Division IDA], Chief of the Computer and Communication Systems Components Division at NBS [now NIST], and Chief Scientist of the Communication Switching Systems Division at Rockwell. He has held positions at IBM's Research and Systems Divisions, at GE’s Systems Engineering Division, and was an Instructor at RPI. He was responsible for the Data Encryption Standard and for the creation of a Public Key Infrastructure [while at NBS] and for automation of the FBI’s Identification Division [while at Rockwell].
Activities at Sarnoff in which he has played an especially key role include: development of a novel spread spectrum communication system for commercial applications, prototype development of a low cost digital still camera leveraging technologies from 6 Sarnoff Laboratories, and creation and leadership of the Applied Communications and Information Networking Program [ACIN]. His career has involved work in statistical information systems; computer and communication systems and networks; radar systems; digital circuits; devices for biotechnological applications; high performance computing and communications; security systems addressing authentication, access and accounting [AAA]; biometric identification, verification, and recognition systems involving fingerprints, speech and the human iris; pattern recognition, adaptive and learning algorithms and systems; and free-space and fiber optical systems.
He has served as an elected member of the IEEE Computer Society's Board of Governors, proposed the creation of the Computer Society’s Seymour Cray Award, is cofounder of the international peer-reviewed Journal of Supercomputing, founded Computing in Science and Engineering, and has been a Computer Society Distinguished Lecturer. In 1996 he received the IEEE Computer Society’s Golden Core Member award on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of this 100,000 member Society. This award was "given to 500 persons who have served the Society in significant ways throughout its 50 years". In 1992 he received the Intelligence Community’s Seal Medallion "…(for) solution to a technical problem of great complexity (which) contributed significantly to the provision of intelligence support to U.S. and coalition forces during Operation DESERT SHIELD/DESERT STORM.”
He currently chairs the External Advisory Committee for the Computation Directorate at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory [LLNL], is a member of the External Advisory Committee to the Director of LLNL, and a member of DoD’s Information Science and Technology Technical Area Review Assessment Panel.
Dr. Riganati is the author or co-author of over 75 reports, papers, or book chapters, holds eight extensively referenced patents, and is an inventor on a number of patents in process. He is a member of AAAS, ACM, IEEE, and the IEEE Computer and Communication Societies. He received the BEE (with highest honors), MS in electrical engineering, and Ph.D. in electrical engineering with a minor in mathematics from RPI.
