Executive team - Signal Advance, Inc.

Chris Hymel, Ph.D., Engineer/Scientist, Director/CEO/CFO

Dr. Hymel is the founder, President, and Principal Investigator of Signal Advance, Inc., and a nationally recognized innovator in analog signal processing and neuro-engineering. He holds B.S. and M.E. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University and a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Texas Health Science Center, where his doctoral research first demonstrated real-time, temporally advanced detection of bioelectric signals, the theoretical foundation later published in IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine. He is the sole inventor of U.S. Patent No. 8,452,544 and co-inventor of U.S. Patent No. 12,126,720, which underpins the Analog Guard^® encryption platform, and holds additional patents covering analog signal transformation, secure signal processing, and analog-digital synchronization. His innovation has earned the Goradia Innovation Prize, Texas Inventor of the Year, and Oklahoma Innovator of the Year.

Dr. Hymel took Signal Advance from startup to public listing (OTC: SIGL) and leads the company’s technical direction, patent strategy, and commercial vision, guiding Analog Guard toward FIPS, ITAR, and DoDIN-certifiable, AI- and quantum-resilient cybersecurity for fintech, defense, and critical infrastructure.

Ron Stubbers, B.S.E.E., M.B.A., Director/COO

Mr. Stubbers is Chief Operating Officer of Signal Advance, Inc., bringing over 30 years of engineering, regulatory, and commercialization leadership to the company’s Analog Guard platform. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an M.B.A. with a concentration in engineering management and regulatory operations, and is a named inventor on multiple U.S. and international patents, including co-inventor of U.S. Patent No. 12,126,720 for Analog Guard. Mr. Stubbers has led teams through FDA, CE, and ISO 13485 compliance for Class I–III medical devices, guiding products from prototype through global manufacturing, including executive roles at InGeneron, Compumedics USA, and Neurosoft.

At Signal Advance, he oversees regulatory, product development, and commercialization pathways, developing certification roadmaps for FIPS 140-3, SP 800-90B, and DFARS/ITAR/DoDIN, translating simulation outputs into functional prototype schematics, and leading engagements with OEM partners and secure hardware vendors. He is a co-author of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine feature article on Signal Advance’s technology and serves on multiple academic advisory boards.

Naser A. Otman, Ph.D., Engineer/Scientist

Dr. Otman brings extensive expertise in electrical and optical communications system design, simulation, and implementation to Signal Advance’s engineering efforts. He is highly skilled in analog and digital electronic circuit design and embedded systems programming, with professional experience in laser electronics and optoelectronic circuit design, including optical transceivers, semiconductor laser diode driving circuits, and switching circuits for solid-state lasers, as well as digital wireless optical communications systems built on programmable embedded platforms.

His research and teaching background includes digital signal processing for image segmentation and recognition, and extensive simulation experience for electronic circuits, communication systems, and optical nanostructures using MATLAB, RSoft, Optiwave, and PSpice, work directly applicable to the analog circuit modeling and secure signal processing underlying Signal Advance Technology and Analog Guard. Dr. Otman holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Dalhousie University, an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Belgrade, and a B.S. from the University of Tripoli, and has authored numerous papers in high-impact journals.

Richard Seltzer, J.D., LL.M., Director/Secretary

Richard Seltzer, Secretary and Director of Signal Advance, Inc., is licensed to practice law and is an approved mediator in the State of Texas, with an LL.M. in Taxation. He received his J.D. from South Texas College of Law in 1981 and his LL.M. in Taxation from the University of Florida in 1982.

For more than thirty years, Mr. Seltzer has represented established and startup businesses in mergers and acquisitions, contract and license negotiations, capital financing, and shareholder disputes, experience directly relevant to Signal Advance’s licensing and commercialization strategy for Analog Guard. His practice has included arranging capital infusions for growing companies, negotiating business contracts, and licensing proprietary information for client organizations, and he continues to represent corporations and individuals before the Internal Revenue Service. Mr. Seltzer is a frequent invited speaker on general business topics and has served on the boards of directors of numerous Texas corporations and nonprofit organizations, bringing broad governance and corporate-structuring experience to Signal Advance’s board.

Advisory Board

Gary Bucek, B.S., Business / Commercialization

Mr. Bucek graduated from Texas A & M University in 1976. His entire career has been business related including 8 years of project management in the industrial sector. He is credited with the development of build process procedures for the construction of cryogenic vessels. Also included is the management of several shutdowns and turnarounds in the petrochemical industry in the Houston area from 1976 – 1982. Mr. Bucek also has over 25 years as a successful business entrepreneur experienced in IP, SBA, ad/branding, and regional manufacturing locations of Tele-Flow Inc. As a business entrepreneur, he started the HVAC manufacturing company with a partner, grew it to 298 employees with facilities in Pearland, TX, Ontario CA, and Jefferson, GA. before selling to Deflecto Corporation in Indianapolis IN. With the San Jacinto College District, under the UH-SBDC network, Mr. Bucek consults with respect to development and review of business plans, market research/analysis and licensing/consulting business models for revenue generation and funding sources.

Herbert Joe, J.D., LL.M., Intellectual Property

Mr. Joe is licensed to practice law in Texas and Oklahoma, is a registered patent attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, and is a board certified forensic examiner. He is also an adjunct faculty member teaching graduate law classes at the University of Phoenix. His four degrees include a bachelor’s degree from Baylor University, a master’s degree from the Southern Methodist University, a law (J.D.) degree from the Southern Methodist University School of Law and an advanced law (LL.M.) degree from Regent University School of Law. He is also a diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Examiners and the American Board of Law Enforcement Experts, a member of the Evidence Code Committee of the Oklahoma Bar Association, a member of the College of the State Bar of Texas, a member of the Board of Legal Advisors and Fellow of the American Guild of Court Videographers, a charter member of the Legal Advisory Board of the American College of Forensic Examiners Institute, a member of The Forensic Commission, and a Fellow of the American College of Forensic Examiners. He has been retained as an expert witness in patent infringement cases, and as a forensic expert in civil and criminal cases in state and federal courts throughout the U.S., as well as offering expert testimony overseas. Foreign clients include those in Canada, Mexico, Australia, the United Kingdom, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Past or current clients include Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., United Parcel Service, Georgia-Pacific, LLC and Motorola Corp. He has consulted with or been interviewed by ABC-TV, BBC-TV, FOX-TV, the Associated Press, TMZ, and People Magazine and has served as a consultant to the TV show CSI: Miami. He has given regional, national and international presentations and has authored peer-reviewed publications.

Hue-Teh Shih, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.C., F.A.H.A., Electrocardiology

Dr. Shih is the Director of the Center for Cardiac Arrhythmias, in Houston, Texas. He received his bachelors from the Taipei Medical College (University) and obtained his Master of Public Health from the Harvard University School of Public Health. He is board certified in internal medicine, pediatrics, cardiovascular diseases, and clinical cardiac electro-physiology. He was formerly the Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology Research at the University of Texas – Houston Medical School and Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology at the Baylor College of Medicine before establishing his own clinical practice in 2006. Trained in molecular, basic, and clinical cardiac electrophysiology, Dr. Shih has maintained broad interest in applied electrophysiology, including trials of anti-arrhythmic pharmaceuticals, arrhythmia mechanisms, arrhythmia procedure techniques, equipment design, and signal processing, the latter in collaboration with Dr. Michael Brandt. , Dr. Shih continues to participate in clinical trials involving drugs and devices and has filed several patent applications. Serving the Chinese community in Houston, he has delivered numerous educational speeches. He was President of the Chinese American Doctors Association of Houston from 2010 to 2011 and still collaborates with a local media group to provide medical health information to the Chinese community.

Malcolm Skolnick, Ph.D., J.D.

Theoretical physicist, former tenured professor and director of technology transfer at the University of Texas Health Science Center – Houston, served as president and CEO of a publicly traded biotech firm (10 yrs). Dr Skolnick is also a registered patent attorney, licensed to practice in Texas, and experienced biomedical researcher with related publications and patents.

Dr. Skolnick received his Ph.D. in physics from Cornell University and J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center. He retired in 2008 after ten years as a Director, President/CEO of CytoGenix, Inc., a publicly traded, development stage biotechnology firm in Houston Texas. Prior to joining CytoGenix, Dr. Skolnick, a tenured professor, held academic positions in the Medical School, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Public Health (SPH) of the University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston (UTHSC). In addition to his service as a Department Chair in the Medical School and professorial duties, Dr. Skolnick directed the UTHSC Office of Technology Management, overseeing the University’s activities in protecting and licensing its technology portfolio. He also headed the Neurophysiology Research Center and served as principal investigator of several clinical trials in pain management, smoking cessation and reduction of withdrawal symptoms in drug addiction. Dr. Skolnick also serves as Director and Vice President of the Southwest Health Technology Foundation, Resolution Forum, Inc., Responsible Community Design International, Inc., and Hudson Forest Homeowners’ Association. He has served as an expert witness in intellectual property, product liability, and accident reconstruction matters. Dr. Skolnick is a registered patent attorney, patented inventor and is licensed to practice law in the State of Texas. In addition to his service on various corporate boards, since his retirement from CytoGenix, Inc., he has been active in patent prosecution and licensing for selected clients and has been an invited lecturer at several local universities.

Jonathan Ring

Jonathan Ring is a seasoned technologist with over 45 years of experience, holding multiple patents and a deep expertise in technology, customer needs, and business operations. His leadership spans roles such as CEO, COO, CTO, and VP of Engineering, including founding and leading Caringo as CEO and serving as a senior executive at Siebel Systems, where he contributed to scaling revenue from $4 million to $2 billion annually. His career includes stints at IBM, Booz Allen, and various startups, showcasing versatility across industries. He holds a computer science degree and brings hands-on proficiency in operating systems, networking, databases, enterprise and web applications, storage, secure big data, and user interfaces.

Steven M. Kurzet, BA (Pol Sci)

Steven M. Kurzet, BA (Pol Sci) 15+ yrs.: Investment banking/structured finance. Participated in several hundreds of millions in structured asset/leveraged cash flow deals: 25+ yrs. early-stage business development (C-Level); Consultant to public companies. Several successful exits.

Innovative Ideas

Signal advance technology is unique. There is no other technology quite like ours!

Advanced Technology

“Being one step ahead” – that is what our technology is about. Now imagine the repercussions in the healthcare, industrial and military fields, among others.

Clear Communication

We strive to deliver a clear message. This website is about converting complex scientific language – that is necessarily behind our signal advance technology – into simple, clear words and concepts without over-simplifying. You can always contact us if you need more science than what you see here!

Recent Awards

Signal Advance, Inc. has been recognized by several prestigious organizations.

													
											1st Prize – Goradia Innovation CompetitionAwards

											2012 Innovator of the Year – Intellectual Property Section, Oklahoma Bar AssociationAwards

											2015 Inventor of the Year – State Bar of Texas Intellectual Property SectionAwards

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