P007853 revised AU-VU:EOAS Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation

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 English AACR2 Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules Corporate Body created 2025-09-12 human Gavan McCarthy updated 2025-12-31 human https://www.eoas.info/biogs/P007853b.htm CA 153 corporateBody Central Inventions Board [Department of Defence] Commonwealth of Australia AACR2 1 September 1940 6 November 1941 Start Place Victoria, Australia End Place Victoria, Australia Location Historical agency address c/- Department of Defence Co-ordination, Victoria Barracks, St Kilda Road, Melbourne On 9 August 1940 the Chief of the General Staff, Sir Brudenall White wrote to the Defence Committee (CA 289) setting out the following recommendations for the consideration of the Defence Committee: (a) That a Central Inventions Board be established to examine and report upon all inventions for Defence purposes. (b) That the present machinery for dealing with inventions at the headquarters of the three Services be absorbed in the Central Board. (c) That the Central Inventions Board should consist of representatives from: (i) each of the three services (ii) Department of Supply and Development [I] (CA 33) (iii) Universities (iv) Industrial organisations. It appears that the new Army Inventions Directorate (CA 537), announced by the Minister for the Army on 29 January 1942, took on the functions, or some of the functions of, the Central Inventions Board.

In accepting this recommendation the Defence Committee expressed the view that the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CA 2506) was the appropriate Commonwealth Scientific Authority for representation on a central inventions board and accordingly proposed that such representatives should replace those of universities and industrial organisations. At the same time the Defence Committee conceded that representatives from the latter would be co-opted when necessary.

The new Central Inventions Board replaced the Army Headquarters Inventions Board (CA 118) which had been in existence since 1932. The new Board also inherited responsibility for naval and airforce inventions work but further research is required to determine which agencies carried out these functions before September 1940.

The members of the Board were:

Engineer Rear-Admiral P.E. McNeil, (Department of the Navy)
Captain L.A.W. Spooner, (Director of Ordnance, Torpedoes and Mines)
Colonel G.P.W. Meredith, (Department of the Army)
Pilot Officer S.R. Bell, (Department of Air)
Sir George Julius, (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)

On 6 November 1941 the Prime Minister, Mr Curtin, announced that as Sir David Rivett, Chief Executive Officer of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, and Sir George Julius, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research representative on the Board, did not favour its continuance, it was accordingly decided that the Central Inventions Board should be abolished.

 Army Headquarters Inventions Board, Commonwealth of Australia (1932 - 1940) Royal Australian Navy, Commonwealth of Australia (1911 - ) Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Commonwealth of Australia (1921 - ) Julius, George Alfred (1873 - 1946) Rivett, Albert Cherbury David (David) (1885 - 1961) Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Commonwealth of Australia (1926 - 1949) Australian Army (1903 - ) Army Inventions Directorate, Commonwealth of Australia (1942 - 1946) 'Central Inventions Board [Department of Defence]', in Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation, Centre for Transformative Innovation, Swinburne University of Technology Central Inventions Board [Department of Defence] Swinburne University of Technology, Centre for Transformative Innovation Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation Book: The Role of Science and Industry, Australia in the War of 1939-1945, Volime 5 of Series 4 (Civil) Mellor, D. P. The Role of Science and Industry, Australia in the War of 1939-1945, Volime 5 of Series 4 (Civil) Canberra Australian War Memorial 1958