Draft:Jeffrey R. Ponsor

The first digital chess clock and commercially available digital chess clock was invented and patented in 1975 by Joseph Meshi and Jeffrey R. Ponsor, named the Micromate-80[1]. Only a single unit was produced and tested by chess players in multiple tournaments.

In 1978, a significantly improved version, the Micromate-180, was developed, coinciding with Meshi's MBA thesis, "Demand Analysis for a New Product (The Digital Chess Clock)," at San Diego State University. During this period, Meshi and Ponsor continued to advance digital gaming technology.

The Micromate-180 introduced a new timing method where each player received a fixed period at the start of the game, with additional time added after each move. Meshi termed this "Accumulation," a key feature of his patented Micromate-180 (US Patent 4,247,925, 1978). This concept became central to Bobby Fischer's chess clock, patented ten years later. The timing method, initially described and named by Meshi, is also known as "increment," "bonus," or "Fischer."