William Millier, left, and Michael F. Walter, chair of the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, show the plaque commemorating Millier's invention of slotted inlet ventilation. Nicola Kountoupes/University Photography
It brought a breath of fresh air.
That was the achievement of a remarkable agricultural invention called slotted inlet ventilation, dreamed up by Cornell Professor William F. Millier. Now the 50th anniversary of the discovery has been celebrated by ASAE, formerly known as the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, an international society for engineering in agricultural, food and biological systems, and the Cornell Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering with a symposium Nov. 23 in 125 Riley-Robb Hall.
"Few advances in animal housing have had as important an impact," said Norman Scott, Cornell professor of agricultural engineering.
Because effective air inlets are essential to farm animal ventilation, the development of mechanical ventilation methods was a crucial step in the evolution of modern animal agriculture, keeping animals healthy.
In recognition of the importance of the slotted inlet, invented by Millier, now professor emeritus of agricultural and biological engineering at Cornell, a plaque was presented by Melissa Moore, ASAE executive vice president, which will be placed on Riley-Robb Hall.
Millier delivered a talk at the symposium, titled "How the Slot Got Slit."
In 1948, Millier, then a graduate student working under Cornell professor Clesson Turner, tested and published the concept of the slotted inlet, a simple air-inlet system. The inlet is part of the building structure, providing uniform distribution of air pressure, inducing air mixing and preventing stale-air zones throughout the building. After its introduction in a Dryden dairy barn, the slotted inlet was adopted throughout the world and became the most widely used air-inlet control mechanism for mechanically ventilated agricultural buildings.
The symposium also included talks by Louis Albright, Cornell professor of agricultural engineering; John Ogilvie, of the University of Guelph, Canada; and Michael Kelley, of the Scottish Agricultural College, Scotland.
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