Patents by Inventor Robert C. Hildebrand
Robert C. Hildebrand 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).
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Patent number: 10957987Abstract: A space deployable antenna apparatus includes an inflatable antenna configurable between a deflated storage position and an inflated deployed position. The inflatable antenna includes collapsible tubular elements coupled together in fluid communication. The collapsible tubular elements in the deployed position include a longitudinally extending boom tubular element, at least one driven tubular conductive element transverse to the boom tubular element, at least one reflector tubular conductive element transverse to the boom tubular element, and at least one director tubular conductive element transverse to the boom tubular element. A foam dispenser is configured to inject a solidifiable foam into the inflatable antenna to configure to the inflated deployed position.Type: GrantFiled: July 14, 2016Date of Patent: March 23, 2021Assignee: HARRIS CORPORATIONInventors: Robert C Hildebrand, William C Adams
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Publication number: 20180019520Abstract: A space deployable antenna apparatus includes an inflatable antenna configurable between a deflated storage position and an inflated deployed position. The inflatable antenna includes collapsible tubular elements coupled together in fluid communication. The collapsible tubular elements in the deployed position include a longitudinally extending boom tubular element, at least one driven tubular conductive element transverse to the boom tubular element, at least one reflector tubular conductive element transverse to the boom tubular element, and at least one director tubular conductive element transverse to the boom tubular element. A foam dispenser is configured to inject a solidifiable foam into the inflatable antenna to configure to the inflated deployed position.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 14, 2016Publication date: January 18, 2018Inventors: Robert C. Hildebrand, William C. Adams
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Patent number: 6754502Abstract: In order to geolocate a wireless communication device (cellular phone) initiating a 911 call, a base station transceiver transmits a supervisory audio tone (SAT), which is automatically looped back by the calling cellular phone. Returned SAT signals are correlated with those transmitted to determine the range of the cellular phone. In addition, incoming signals from the cellular phone, such as the returned SAT signals, are received by a phased array antenna and subjected to angle of arrival processing to determine the direction of the cellular phone relative to the base station. Given this angle of arrival and range information the cellular phone is geolocated.Type: GrantFiled: June 18, 2001Date of Patent: June 22, 2004Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Robert C. Hildebrand, Julian Bartow Willingham, Robert W. Boyd, David A. Hosang
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Patent number: 6504515Abstract: A high capacity broadband base station employs a wideband radio and phased array processing subsystem. The phased array antenna subsystem contains multiple sets or pairs of alternating receive only and transmit/receive elements distributed in a two dimensional spatial array. Each digital wideband radio performs both receive and transmit channel signal processing. In the receive direction, the digital representation of the entire spectrum for each antenna element is divided into channels for the particular waveform of interest. For a 5 MHz PCS GSM, the digital wideband radio separates twenty-four carriers into twenty-four (200 KHz wide) data streams, each of which is representative of a respective channel, and couples each channel to a digital signal processor. In the transmit direction, the radio combines the digital representations of the twenty-four individual channels supplied by the DSP into a single wideband channel for transmission.Type: GrantFiled: May 1, 2001Date of Patent: January 7, 2003Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Brian P. Holt, Robert C. Hildebrand, Julian Bartow Willingham
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Patent number: 6418316Abstract: In order to increase the channel capacity of a wireless local loop network, advantage is taken of the fixed location of each subscriber radio, and the ability to independently configure each subscriber's antenna, to provide antenna cross polarization isolation into the cellular layout of the WLL network, and thereby provide an additional layer of interference rejection. Such a cross polarization assignment scheme, in combination with frequency reuse allocation, provides a substantial increase in the C/I ratio and thereby allows an expansion of the reuse of frequency channels.Type: GrantFiled: August 6, 1998Date of Patent: July 9, 2002Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Robert C. Hildebrand, James H. Chinnick
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Publication number: 20010046865Abstract: In order to increase the channel capacity of a wireless local loop network, advantage is taken of the fixed location of each subscriber radio, and the ability to independently configure each subscriber's antenna, to provide antenna cross polarization isolation into the cellular layout of the WLL network, and thereby provide an additional layer of interference rejection. Such a cross polarization assignment scheme, in combination with frequency reuse allocation, provides a substantial increase in the C/I ratio and thereby allows an expansion of the reuse of frequency channels.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 6, 1998Publication date: November 29, 2001Inventors: ROBERT C. HILDEBRAND, JAMES H. CHINNICK
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Publication number: 20010029185Abstract: In order to geolocate a wireless communication device (cellular phone) initiating a 911 call, a base station transceiver transmits a supervisory audio tone (SAT), which is automatically looped back by the calling cellular phone. Returned SAT signals are correlated with those transmitted to determine the range of the cellular phone. In addition, incoming signals from the cellular phone, such as the returned SAT signals, are received by a phased array antenna and subjected to angle of arrival processing to determine the direction of the cellular phone relative to the base station. Given this angle of arrival and range information the cellular phone is geolocated.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 18, 2001Publication date: October 11, 2001Applicant: Harris CorporationInventors: Robert C. Hildebrand, Julian Bartow Willingham, Robert W. Boyd, David A. Hosang
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Patent number: 6292665Abstract: In order to geolocate a wireless communication device (cellular phone) initiating a 911 call, a base station transceiver transmits a supervisory audio tone (SAT), which is automatically looped back by the calling cellular phone. Returned SAT signals are correlated with those transmitted to determine the range of the cellular phone. In addition, incoming signals from the cellular phone, such as the returned SAT signals, are received by a phased array antenna and subjected to angle of arrival processing to determine the direction of the cellular phone relative to the base station. Given this angle of arrival and range information the cellular phone is geolocated.Type: GrantFiled: October 8, 1998Date of Patent: September 18, 2001Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Robert C. Hildebrand, Julian Bartow Willingham, Robert W. Boyd, David A. Hosang
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Patent number: 6226531Abstract: A high capacity broadband base station employs a wideband radio and phased array processing subsystem. This phased array antenna subsystem contains multiple sets or pairs of alternating receive only and transmit/receive elements distributed in a two dimensional spatial array. Each digital wideband radio performs both receive and transmit channel signal processing. In the receive direction, the digital representation of the entire spectrum for each antenna element is divided into channels for the particular waveform of interest. For a 5 MHz PCS GSM, the digital wideband radio separates twenty-four carriers into twenty-four (200 KHz wide) data streams, each of which is representative of a respective channel, and couples each channel to a digital signal processor. In the transmit direction, the radio combines the digital representations of the twenty-four individual channels supplied by the DSP into a single wideband channel for transmission.Type: GrantFiled: August 24, 1998Date of Patent: May 1, 2001Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Brian P. Holt, Robert C. Hildebrand, Julian Bartow Willingham
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Patent number: 6147657Abstract: The elements of a spatially aperiodic phased array antenna have an unequally spaced circular distribution, that is effective to decorrelate angular and linear separations among elements of the array. For any radial direction passing through an element of the array, the vector distance from any point along that radial direction to any two elements of the array is unequal and uniformly distributed in phase, modulo 2.pi.. Angular separation between successively adjacent antenna elements varies in accordance with an Nth root of two, wherein N is the number of antenna elements in the array. To locate each element, a first element is placed at any arbitrary location along the circumference of the array. The angular spacing .alpha..sub.1 of a second element relative to the first element is defined such that .alpha..sub.1 =2.pi.*(2.sup.1/N -1). The angular spacing .alpha..sub.j of each additional element relative to the first element is defined by .alpha..sub.j =.alpha..sub.j-1 *2.sup.1/N, where j varies from 2 to N.Type: GrantFiled: May 19, 1998Date of Patent: November 14, 2000Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Robert C. Hildebrand, Gayle P. Martin
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Patent number: 5455960Abstract: A satellite communications scheme for enhancing the communications system with existing satellites is disclosed. The existing satellites include a transponder having a phase locked loop phase demodulator at the front end thereof. The present invention discloses a technique wherein the phase demodulator is locked by transmitting a relatively high-power carrier from the ground to the satellite transponder. Once the demodulator has been locked, remote ground terminals operating at much lower power levels can access the satellite transponder by transmitting at carrier frequencies spaced apart from the primary high-power carrier. These are down-converted by the transponder phase demodulator and then typically amplitude and frequency limited before being remodulated and retransmitted.Type: GrantFiled: January 16, 1992Date of Patent: October 3, 1995Assignee: Harris CorporationInventors: Guy M. Pelchat, Stephen G. Powers, Raymond F. Cobb, Robert C. Hildebrand
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Patent number: 4792808Abstract: The surface area utilization efficiency of an array of antenna elements distributed over a prescribed geometrical surface is increased by configuring that surface as an ellipse of revolution. Preferably, the ellipsoid surface over which the antenna elements are distributed has a shape such that the major axis of the ellipse in rotation is twice the length of the minor axis. This results in an optimal, near constant illuminated surface area for any angle in the hemisphere. Because a more efficient use of the antenna surface area is provided, the number of antenna elements that is required to obtain the same array gain in all directions in the hemisphere can be reduced substantially when compared with spherical or tetrahedral configurations of conventional hemispherical coverage arrays.Type: GrantFiled: December 14, 1982Date of Patent: December 20, 1988Assignee: Harris Corp.Inventor: Robert C. Hildebrand