Gerald W. Askew was born in Battle Creek, Michigan on February 20th, 1971. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Kettering University while working at Spartan Motors Corporation as a Project Engineer. While at Spartan, Gerald progressed to the Advanced Engineering Department, where he enjoyed the opportunity to design complete bus and motor home chassis. This experience culminated in an undergraduate thesis, wherein Gerald oversaw the design of a modular heavy vehicle front independent suspension. Gerald then joined Utilimaster Corporation, where he acted primarily as liaison between Utilimaster and several chassis manufacturers, including Ford, GM, Freightliner, and International. Additionally, while at Utilimaster, Gerald designed air conditioning packages for walk-in vans.In June of 1997, Gerald joined Navistar, Inc., as a design engineer, where he was involved in the design of various chassis systems, including frames, fuel systems, exhaust, and powertrain systems. In October of 2003, while completing his MBA at Indiana Wesleyan University, Gerald joined the Intellectual Property Group of Navistar's Law Department, first as a Patent Engineer, and then in August 2005 as a licensed Patent Agent. During this time, Gerald ran the Truck Group Patent Management Committee and was the Intellectual Property point of contact for the entire engineering staff of the Truck Group. Once licensed as a Patent Agent, Gerald wrote and prosecuted patent applications, as well as conducting training, developing supporting engineering processes, and conducting competitive patent analysis. Ultimately, Gerald led the Intellectual Property Group in its transition to first filing PCT patent applications.Gerald obtained his law degree from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis, while continuing his duties as Patent Agent for Navistar's Intellectual Property Group. Once licensed as a Patent Attorney, Gerald expanded his responsibilities to include clearance studies and design around consultation for Integrated Product Development, trademark licensing, portfolio management, and general agreement work having Intellectual Property involvement.
