LOVE them or hate them - one billion of us worldwide are now slaves to our mobile phones.

But did you know that the creator of one of the most influential communication creations of the 20th century lives right here in Dorset?

And now, thanks to an article in the Daily Echo, inventor John Edwards has a new "baby" which he hopes will save the lives of pilots and passengers in light aircraft.

It was the Echo's coverage of the fatal light aircraft crash just outside the boundary of Bournemouth International Airport last month that gave 64-year-old John the inspiration for his latest invention.

The Socata Tobago aircraft suffered engine failure during take-off and the pilot tried to turn back to the runway.

One passenger died and the pilot and another passenger suffered serious injuries as well as horrendous burns from the fireball that erupted on impact.

"Turning back will cause the aircraft to stall and spin onto the ground," said John, speaking at his Bramshaw Gardens home in Bournemouth.

"It is vital to turn off the fuel from both tanks and isolate the electrical supply, which takes about five seconds."

And John should know because as a pilot in his spare time he survived a similar situation in 1975, flying a Piper Cherokee taking off at Nottingham Tollerton.

He resisted the strong temptation to turn back and made a forced landing on a disused RAF bomber base - he and his aircraft suffering no damage.

"The hand of God was holding me that day," said John.

"When the engine cuts out you have about five seconds to turn off the fuel to prevent an explosion when you hit the ground, and then isolate the electrical supply. After reading the Echo coverage about those poor souls last month I got the idea for the Air Crash Isolator. It turns off the fuel and electrical supply automatically in one second, but leaves power to the radio, allowing the pilot to talk to the tower, as well as power to the stall warning indicator.

"This gives the pilot precious seconds - and these are the moments that save lives - to lower the flaps and make a safe landing."

John's invention is now being developed by an aerospace company in East Anglia.

A self-confessed tinkerer in the shed, John's first creation was as a boy when he constructed a radio network on wheels for the children living on his Liverpool block.

At the age of 21, as an electronics officer in the RAF, John designed an encryption system for V bomber aircraft, allowing 10 planes to communicate at the same time.

"This was during the Cold War and it made it very difficult for the Russians to intercept what was being said."

In 1964, while working for the Home Office, John designed a UHF radio for Merseyside policemen, which was later sold to doctors, vets and journalists - anyone with jobs on the move.

In 1971 came the birth of the forerunner of today's mobile phone.

John's cellular radio unit called Ready Call was featured on the BBC's Tomorrow's World. It was unique because it allowed a caller to contact another individual on the move, and have a secure conversation that no one else could hear.

It sounds obvious in 2004, but back then this was radical stuff.

"Midland Bank turned the idea down and said Ready Call would never catch on," laughed John. "But it started the mobile phone revolution. I eventually earned £1.2m from that."

Next came Voice Type, a machine allowing bosses to dictate to secretaries wherever they were located and see their documents instantly appear on a screen in front of them.

Like an electronic global typing pool, the machine could also translate any document into 49 languages.

With such incredible and influential invention to his name, you have to ask why John and wife of 40 years Helen live in an unassuming tiny house on a Bournemouth housing estate.

In addition to using all his money to finance his next creations, John says he was scammed out of £12.5m when he was developing the Voice Type.

Although the FBI and Dorset Police investigation led to the imprisonment of the three criminals involved, the money was never recouped.

The couple moved to Bournemouth in 1980. He says the house was a Godsend and Bournemouth and the surrounding area a joy.

He currently has three inventions in production - the Air Crash Isolator, an Air Sterilisation Unit for aircraft to stop germ-infested air being re-circulated through passenger cabins, and a unit detecting debris on runways.

"The Concorde crash in France started that one," said John. "When I get an idea it usually takes about 24 hours to work the whole thing out."

With his health now failing from diabetes and Parkinson's, John says his last wish is to see through these three latest inventions. They are all in development with private firms.

He says he hopes to finally earn and keep money from these to provide a future for his wife, children and four grandchildren.

But he cannot get away from the call of mobile phones.

John said: "Sometimes when I've been on TV in the past I apologise for inventing them. But mostly I'm quite pleased really.

"Believe it or not but I don't know how to text, and my wife is going to teach me. When I get a text I just call that person back."