Dr. Robert Adler is best known as the co-inventor (with fellow Zenith engineer Eugene Polley) of the wireless TV remote.

Dr. Adler's "Space Command" ultrasonic remote control for TV sets was introduced by Zenith in 1956.
The outstanding inventor received more than 180 U.S. patents. His most recent patent application, for advances in touch-screen technology was even just awarded on February 1st, 2007. He even already came up with some sort of Laser TV (a hot TV technology today) back in 1966.

Together with Mr. Polley, he was honored in 1997 by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences with an Emmy award for Zenith's introduction of the first wireless TV remote controls 50 years ago.
Dr. Adler was born in Vienna, Austria on Dec. 4, 1913, Dr. Adler emigrated to the United States, settling in the Chicago area in 1941. He died at the age of 93.
More details in this Zenith press-release. See also this AP story on CNN (Thanks Pet D.).