Patents by Inventor William E. Westell

William E. Westell 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: 5036398
    Abstract: A film writer and viewer system operable to reduce the exposure requirements of the writer and thereby extend its life by providing a pre-exposure lamp to increase the density of the film to a first value and by providing an image enhancer on the output of a video camera viewing the film to increase the contrast between the information on the film and the background for subsequent viewing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 1989
    Date of Patent: July 30, 1991
    Assignee: Honeywell Regelsysteme GmbH
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 5028998
    Abstract: Electronic detector-array synthesis techniques provide fast, precise and accurate digital control of electronic zoom for electro-optical scanning systems. Exponentially-arrayed detector elements with binary-tree size-synthesis and size-interpolation, coupled with logarithmic size-control, offer optimum implementation efficiencies (hardware minimization). Alternative implementations offer different tradeoffs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 1989
    Date of Patent: July 2, 1991
    Assignee: Honeywell Regelsysteme GmbH
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4841317
    Abstract: A web storage and handling system employing two concentric rings of rollers. The web is wound around the outer of the concentric arrangement and therefrom wound around the inner of the concentric arrangement. From the inner of the concentric arrangement the web passes over two canted idlers to be removed from the plane of the concentric rings to permit viewing and final storage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 1988
    Date of Patent: June 20, 1989
    Assignee: Honeywell Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4797745
    Abstract: A video image enhancer is disclosed for use in surveillance at low light levels to enhance dark and/or low contrast segments of a composite video signal of a surveyed scene by subjecting the dark and/or low contrast segments thereof to high gain and bright and/or high contrast segments to low gain. The video image enhancer includes an input designed to receive the composite video signal, a device provided with a dc restorer circuit and a variable potentiometer to yield an adjustable-bias dc clamp of the composite video signal, a second variable potentiometer for adjusting the high-gain slope of the device, a diode clamp connected to the device's output, and a pair of drivers coupled to the device's output to provide a low impedance output video signal with its dark and/or low contrast segments enhanced. Preferably, the device is a non-inverting operational amplifier. Preferably, the pair of drivers comprise a pair of NPN transistors connected in an emitter-base configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 1985
    Date of Patent: January 10, 1989
    Assignee: Baird Corporation
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4782228
    Abstract: An improved optical system having an opto-mechanical scanner for increasing the duty cycle of the scanner while maintaining a constant optical aperture throughout the scan. Two alternating optical paths are provided between the scanner and a transducer by use of an optical multiplexer synchronized with the scanner rotation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 1987
    Date of Patent: November 1, 1988
    Assignee: Honeywell Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4385839
    Abstract: An electro-optical device for generating data signals representing relative displacement between a master reticle with an optical aperture pattern in an object plane and a workpiece with an image of the aperture pattern in an image plane comprises a reference detector for sensing reference radiation directed towards the aperture pattern and a convolution detector for sensing the reference radiation reflected by the image pattern. A processor compares the phase of a signal generated by the convolution detector to the phase of a signal generated by the reference detector and generates the data signals defining the relative displacement between the master and the workpiece.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 1980
    Date of Patent: May 31, 1983
    Assignee: Baird Corporation
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4197583
    Abstract: A display system in which a video signal derived from digital data is processed in a processor in order to produce an analog image of the digital data on a cathode-ray tube display by intensity modulation of the display beam according to an approximate two-dimensional Gaussian spread function centered about each digital data point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 1978
    Date of Patent: April 8, 1980
    Assignee: Baird Corporation
    Inventors: William E. Westell, Raymond P. Grenier, Johan A. Govaert
  • Patent number: 4156914
    Abstract: A computer image display system in which digital sampled data, generated by an image transducer and processed by a computer, is convolved with a Gaussian function in a display processor in order to produce a continuous analog image presentation on a diplay. First, the Gaussian function is convolved vertically with computer stored intensities in a vertical slice of interest, that is, multiplied by those intensity values in the vertical slice and summed to derive a resultant intermediate value on a given horizontal line. Then, the Gaussian function is convolved with the resultant intermediate value on a given horizontal line in order to derive final values which are to be displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 1977
    Date of Patent: May 29, 1979
    Assignee: Baird Corporation
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4037161
    Abstract: An electro-optical device for generating data signals representing relative displacement between an aperture pattern in a reference plane and a reflective pattern in a measurement plane comprises a reference detector for sensing reference radiation directed towards the aperture pattern and a convolution detector for sensing the reference radiation reflected by the reflective pattern. The phase of a signal generated by the convolution detector is compared to the phase of a signal generated by the reference detector for generating the data signals defining the relative displacement between the aperture pattern and the reflective pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 1975
    Date of Patent: July 19, 1977
    Assignee: Baird-Atomic, Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 4030817
    Abstract: Improved apodization filter serving as the field stop of a scanning radiometer and attenuating unwanted light modulation signals when scanning edges of any field of view resulting in more accurate radiometric measurements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 1976
    Date of Patent: June 21, 1977
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army
    Inventor: William E. Westell
  • Patent number: 3951548
    Abstract: An electro-optical device for generating data signals representing relative displacement between an aperture pattern in a reference plane and a reflective pattern in a measurement plane comprises a reference detector for sensing reference radiation directed towards the aperture pattern and a convolution detector for sensing the reference radiation reflected by the reflective pattern. The phase of a signal generated by the convolution detector is compared to the phase of a signal generated by the reference detector for generating the data signals defining the relative displacement between the aperture pattern and the reflective pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 1974
    Date of Patent: April 20, 1976
    Assignee: Baird-Atomic, Inc.
    Inventor: William E. Westell