Patents by Inventor Christian Rigal

Christian Rigal has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9154164
    Abstract: An interleaver (ER) is dedicated to interleaving of interleaving units representing a selected number of services grouped into periodic frames within a long period time interleaving radio communication network. The said interleaver (ER) comprises processing means (MT1) responsible for decomposing each frame into a chosen number of group(s) of service of constant respective durations, and then for distributing the interleaving units of each group into so-called spreading time intervals of constant respective durations spaced apart within a time interleaving period according to a period equal to the period of the frames.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2015
    Assignee: Alcatel Lucent
    Inventors: Erwan Corbel, Olivier Courseille, Christian Rigal, Laurent Roullet
  • Patent number: 9013359
    Abstract: An onboard directional plane antenna comprises at least one array of radiating-slot waveguides comprising an alternating succession of three superposed metallic plates and of two dielectric substrates. The two substrates each comprise at least four adjacent waveguides, corresponding and communicating with one another pairwise by way of coupling slots. Each waveguide of the upper substrate furthermore comprises a plurality of radiating slots passing through the upper metallic plate, all the radiating slots of one and the same waveguide being parallel to one another and oriented in one and the same direction, the radiating slots of two adjacent waveguides being disposed in chevrons. Each waveguide of the lower substrate comprises an internal individual feed circuit comprising an individual electronic circuit for phase shifting and amplification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Thales
    Inventors: Régis Lenormand, Xavier Denis, Jacques Decroix, Nicolas Chuberre, Christian Rigal, Gilles Garnier, Jean-Luc Almeida
  • Publication number: 20130057431
    Abstract: An onboard directional plane antenna comprises at least one array of radiating-slot waveguides comprising an alternating succession of three superposed metallic plates and of two dielectric substrates. The two substrates each comprise at least four adjacent waveguides, corresponding and communicating with one another pairwise by way of coupling slots. Each waveguide of the upper substrate furthermore comprises a plurality of radiating slots passing through the upper metallic plate, all the radiating slots of one and the same waveguide being parallel to one another and oriented in one and the same direction, the radiating slots of two adjacent waveguides being disposed in chevrons. Each waveguide of the lower substrate comprises an internal individual feed circuit comprising an individual electronic circuit for phase shifting and amplification.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 27, 2011
    Publication date: March 7, 2013
    Applicant: THALES
    Inventors: Régis Lenormand, Xavier Denis, Jacques Decroix, Nicolas Chuberre, Christian Rigal, Gilles Garnier, Jean-Luc Almeida
  • Patent number: 8351471
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for transmitting signals termed useful signals via a satellite by means of connection stations. To this end, a first connection station (CNX1) carries out the generation of a first service signal on a service carrier frequency dubbed the pilot signal (Fp), and the transmission of this pilot signal to at least one second connection station (CNX2). The use of this pilot signal ensures phase synchronization and temporal synchronization of the signals so as to implement a transmit diversity, that is to say to toggle the transmission of the useful signal by this second connection station without loss of phase synchronization between the two stations. The invention applies to the Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) signal communications by satellites.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Thales
    Inventor: Christian Rigal
  • Patent number: 8116255
    Abstract: A device (D) is dedicated to data stream processing within a communication satellite of a communication network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2012
    Assignee: Thales
    Inventors: Christian Rigal, Jean-Didier Gayrard
  • Publication number: 20110058624
    Abstract: An interleaver (ER) is dedicated to interleaving of interleaving units representing a selected number of services grouped into periodic frames within a long period time interleaving radio communication network. The said interleaver (ER) comprises processing means (MT1) responsible for decomposing each frame into a chosen number of group(s) of service of constant respective durations, and then for distributing the interleaving units of each group into so-called spreading time intervals of constant respective durations spaced apart within a time interleaving period according to a period equal to the period of the frames.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 26, 2008
    Publication date: March 10, 2011
    Applicant: ALCATEL LUCENT
    Inventors: Erwan Corbel, Olivier Courseille, Christian Rigal, Laurent Roullet
  • Publication number: 20100020743
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for transmitting signals termed useful signals via a satellite by means of connection stations. To this end, a first connection station (CNX1) carries out the generation of a first service signal on a service carrier frequency dubbed the pilot signal Fp, and the transmission of this pilot signal to at least one second connection station (CNX2). The use of this pilot signal ensures phase synchronization and temporal synchronization of the signals so as to implement a transmit diversity, that is to say to toggle the transmission of the useful signal by this second connection station without loss of phase synchronization between the two stations. The invention applies to the FDMA signal communications by satellites.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 15, 2006
    Publication date: January 28, 2010
    Applicant: Thales
    Inventor: Christian Rigal
  • Publication number: 20080252514
    Abstract: A device (D) is dedicated to data stream processing within a communication satellite of a communication network.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2006
    Publication date: October 16, 2008
    Applicant: Thales
    Inventors: Christian Rigal, Jean-Didier Gayrard
  • Patent number: 6430392
    Abstract: A satellite for a satellite telecommunication system transmits signals at different powers on the downlink connection. The powers are chosen to limit the relative dynamic range of signals received on the downlink connection. The relative dynamic range of signals received on the downlink connection is advantageously less than 5 dB and preferably less than 2 dB. A digital processor circuit is used, together with an analog-digital converter, a circuit taking the fast Fourier transform of the converted signals, a circuit for monitoring the gain of the signals, a circuit for switching the signals to at least two amplifier subsystems each including an inverse fast Fourier transform circuit, a digital-analog converter and a power amplifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2002
    Assignee: Alcatel
    Inventors: Régis Lenormand, Eric Clement Belis, Jean Bouin, Luc Delamotte, Christian Rigal, Muriel Aveline
  • Patent number: 5859610
    Abstract: A method and a system for locating ground equipment transmitting signals to a geostationary satellite, the method and the system being based on identifying the arrival directions of such signals within the coverage zone of the satellite. In the method, the arrival directions of the signals are identified by using a beam-forming active-module array antenna system on board the satellite, the system being controlled to define simultaneous beams in the radiation pattern of the antenna, the beams being superposed on one another with small offsets, the superposed beams corresponding to a limited analysis zone being illuminated within the coverage zone of the satellite, the system further being associated with a digital processing program which identifies the arrival directions of the signals which are received in the analysis zone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 1997
    Date of Patent: January 12, 1999
    Assignee: Alcatel N.V.
    Inventors: Regis Lenormand, Henri Favaro, Thierry Quignon, Christian Rigal, Charles Villemur
  • Patent number: 5734349
    Abstract: The invention provides a multibeam antenna comprising:an array 11 of N.sub.e elementary sources 31; energy-focusing optical means comprising a reflector 10 or a lens; the array being situated in the focal zone of said focusing means: and a feed and control circuit cooperating with the N.sub.e primary sources 31 to produce N.sub.b beams each generated from a subgroup of the primary sources, some of which are shared between overlapping beams; the feed and control circuit comprising phase shifter means and attenuator means, said means being organized in N.sub.e feed channels for said N.sub.e primary sources, each feed channel including specific means for acting on the phase and the amplitude of an excitation signal in each feed channel;wherein each required beam is generated by the multibeam antenna solely by acting on the phase and the amplitude of the excitation delivered to each elementary source forming a portion of said beam; andwherein the number of sources N.sub.i contributing to a beam i, 1.ltoreq.i.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: March 31, 1998
    Assignee: Alcatel Espace
    Inventors: Regis Lenormand, Bernard Coulomb, Jean-Philippe Marre, Michel Tatard, Christian Rigal, Charles Villemur
  • Patent number: 5289193
    Abstract: The invention relates to a reconfigurable transmission antenna comprising a reflector (10) for energy focussing, and an array (11) of source elements situated in the focal region of the reflector, so that the electromagnetic field is synthesized in said region, wherein a spot (SPi) is the result of radiation from a number of sources that is fixed and identical for all the spots; any one source participating at any one time in radiating one spot at the most, and high-level switching being used to reconfigure the spots by selecting the sources that participate in a given spot. Application to the space telecommunications field in particular.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 1993
    Date of Patent: February 22, 1994
    Assignee: Alcatel Espace
    Inventors: Regis Lenormand, Didier Rene, Christian Rigal