Carr & Ferrell > Attorneys > Brent K. Whitlock, PhD

Brent K. Whitlock, PhD
Patent Agent, Carr & Ferrell LLP
Intellectual Property Practice Group
650-812-3406 •

Brent Whitlock is a Patent Agent in the Intellectual Property Practice Group of Carr & Ferrell. Dr. Whitlock specializes in patent preparation and prosecution and strategic IP planning. His recent prosecution experience includes laser systems, photonics, electronic circuits, wireline and wireless communications, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and software. Dr. Whitlock brings an extensive background in engineering, entrepreneurship, and management to the benefit of his clients.

Prior to joining Carr & Ferrell, Dr. Whitlock has over 10 years experience in engineering, product management, and project/program management in high technology companies across the computer, software, telecommunications equipment, semiconductor, aerospace, and defense industries. Dr. Whitlock has worked in the areas of electronic circuit design and test, electronic design automation, wireless and optical communication systems, signal processing, and software engineering. Dr. Whitlock is a co-founder of a leading photonic design automation software company that licensed and commercialized software he developed as part of his doctoral work for design of optical interconnects and communication systems. Dr. Whitlock has also secured and managed numerous federally funded research and development projects.

Dr. Whitlock has been an active participant and leader in international standards bodies, including the TIA (Telecommunication Industry Association), IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers), and SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) Avionic Systems Division. Dr. Whitlock is a published author with a book and over 30 technical publications to his credit, and has made numerous presentations at technical conferences. Dr. Whitlock has also served on the technical conference program committees of SPIE's Physics and Simulation of Optoelectronic Devices and IEEE's International Electronics Manufacturing Technology (IEMT) Symposium, as chair of technical conference sessions of the National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (NFOEC) and IEEE IEMT, and reviewer for technical journals. Dr. Whitlock's academic and professional work has won numerous awards, including the Caterpillar Engineering Open House Award, the IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society Best Student Paper Award, the Lightwave OFC Attendees' Choice Award, and the IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society Chapter of the Year Award.