Founded in 1955, Decatur Electronics has consistently led the traffic enforcement industry with a focus on technological innovation. Decatur Electronics, Inc. began with entrepreneur Bryce K. Brown, a farmer who grew up in Hutchinson, Kansas. He attended Southwestern College in Winfield, studying math and physics and worked on the Manhattan Project during WWII, after which he became an educator at the university level, for 33 years.

From 1946 to 1964, Mr. Brown taught at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. Instead of pursuing a doctorate, he immersed himself in business. In 1955, Mr. Brown started Muniquip, making speed timers and soon branched out into radar. By 1963, the radar portion of Muniquip had an annual sales of over a million dollars. In 1964, Mr. Brown left Millikin University to focus on his new radar company. A Toronto firm was interested in his other offerings and purchased the company two years later. Mr. Brown retained the rights for his radar technology and renamed the company Decatur Electronics Inc. Mr. Brown expanded the business by developing new products, including speed timers to control traffic and a radar guns specifically designed for the Baseball industry.