Abstract: Recovery of a towed body, in one embodiment in the form of a decoy which is initially stowed in a receptacle or canister and which is allowed to pay out behind an aircraft on a towing cable wrapped around a spindle, is accomplished by snaring or lassoing a portion of the towing cable and by dragging it to a further spindle which is driven so as to cause the lasso and a portion of the towing cable to wind up around the driven spindle. When a sufficient amount of the cable is wound around the driven spindle, the cable end secured to the canister is severed to allow all of the rest of the towing cable to be wound up. In one embodiment, a telescoping saddle or docking cradle is provided which extends from the canister to receive the retracted towed body so that it may be secured to the moving vehicle from whence it can be recovered, refurbished, and redeployed.

Abstract: The determination of the geographical location of a signal emitter by the coherent, time integrated measurement of received signal wavefront phase differences through a synthetic aperture and the reconstruction of the wavefront of the received signal. The location of an emitter is determined by coherently measuring the phase gradient of an emitted signal at measurement points across a measurement aperture. Each measured phase gradient is integrated to determine a vector having a direction from the measurement point to the signal emitter and an amplitude proportional to the received signal. A figure of merit is determined for each possible location of the signal emitter by integrating each vector with respect to a propagation path between the measurement point of the vector and the possible location of the signal emitter, and the location of the signal emitter is determined as the possible location of the signal emitter having the highest figure of merit.

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a thermoelectric cooling mechanism for an integrated circuit is disclosed. Initially, electric circuits are formed on one side of a wafer. Subsequently, thermoelectric cooling devices are formed on an opposite side of the same wafer. Specifically, the thermoelectric cooling devices are formed by depositing a first conductive layer, depositing a layer of Peltier material on top of the first conductive layer, building a set of N30 regions and P30 regions within the Peltier material layer, and depositing a second conductive layer on top of the Peltier material layer.

Abstract: A dual path ring oscillator core includes three dual path inverters, each having a first inverter and a second inverter. Within the first inverter, one transistor is coupled to a first output of a previous dual path inverter, while another transistor is coupled to a second output of the previous dual path inverter. Within the second inverter, one transistor is coupled to the second output of the previous dual path inverter, while another transistor is coupled to the previous dual path inverter's first output. A first and a final dual path inverter are analogously coupled. A transient pulse will not propagate through successive dual path inverter stages. A dual to single path converter is coupled to receive signals output by the final dual path inverter. If a transient signal appears at a dual to single path converter input, stray output node capacitance maintains a correct output signal value.

Abstract: A circuit includes a signal generator and a discriminator. The signal generator generates a plurality of reference signals where a majority of the reference signals have the same phase. The discriminator generates a regulated signal that has the same phase as the majority of the reference signals. Therefore, if an environmental disturbance such as a single-event transient (SET) shifts the phase or phases of a minority of the reference signals, the discriminator maintains the regulated signal at a stable frequency and phase by generating the regulated signal with reference to the undisturbed majority of the reference signals.

Abstract: A self-modulating, remote, moving target detector for intrusion alarms, vehicle detection, and remote speed and distance measurement that includes a remote continuous wave radar transceiver that is used to detect moving targets. The same frequency used for the radar transmission is modulated in a continuous manner in order to transmit radar data concerning a moving target to a remote location away from the radar transceiver. The transceiver oscillator is self-modulated by the reflected signal received from a moving target in the transceiver and retransmitted such that the primary radar signal becomes the information carrier concerning the moving target, which is received remotely, in order to activate an alarm or a display system showing the moving target. The system could be utilized with any frequency from audio to light, with RF and microwave of primary interest.

Abstract: A method for providing a fill pattern for integrated circuit designs is disclosed. A keepout file having keepout data is generated from a chip design layout file having chip design layout data. The keepout file includes a map of areas of an integrated circuit design where fill patterns cannot be placed. The map of areas from the keepout file is then overlaid with a fill pattern to yield a fill-pattern file. Fill patterns from the fill-pattern file is removed from locations that coincide with locations as defined by the keepout data to yield a final-fill file with crucial fill pattern data. The crucial fill pattern data from the final-fill file is overlaid on the design layout data in the chip design layout file to yield a complete design layout file. Finally, the design rule integrity and logical to physical correspondence of the complete design layout file is verified.

Abstract: The present invention pertains to radiant energy systems and more particularly to systems exhibiting the retroreflection principle wherein the system comprises a focusing means and a surface exhibiting some degree of reflectivity positioned near the focal plane of the device, and wherein incident radiation falling within the field-of-view of said system is reflected back in a direction which is parallel to the incident radiation. The present invention has great applicability in military optical system applications for detecting the presence of an enemy employing surveillance equipment and for neutralizing this surveillance capability.

Abstract: A system for increasing data transmission capacity over a wireless mobile link while at the same time providing improved jamming resistance utilizes discrete trellis-coded modulation involving frequency hopping individual symbols, along with encoding the phase of a symbol as a frequency offset to the hopped carrier frequency. This modulation system permits coherent demodulation in which both phase and amplitude of a symbol is robustly decoded and in which each phase of a quadrature amplitude modulated signal is decoded by the detected frequency offset, thus to provide reliable recovery of phase in the demodulation section. The resulting system improves spectrum efficiency and permits fast frequency hopping for improved jamming resistance, with the utilization of frequency offset coding permitting the coherent demodulation that improves the error-rate without the introduction of additional reference bits.

Abstract: An oscillator includes an oscillator circuit that receives a control signal having a signal level. The oscillator circuit generates an oscillator signal having a frequency that is proportional to the signal level and that is within a frequency range. A compensation circuit stabilizes the oscillator circuit such that the frequency range includes first and second predetermined frequencies. Thus, such an oscillator can be used to generate an oscillator signal having a first frequency in one application and having a second frequency in another application. The compensation circuit stabilizes the frequency range of the oscillator signal so that it includes the first and second frequencies over broad ranges of operating conditions such as temperature and supply voltage and over broad ranges of component characteristics such as gate dielectric thickness.

Abstract: An improved communications jamming receiver is disclosed wherein time division multiplexing techniques are utilized that permit monitoring enemy radio frequency transmissions while in essence concurrently transmitting signals to jam selected enemy transmissions. The time division multiplexing alternately enables the communications receiver and a jamming transmitter at a frequency higher than the Nyquist rate of the threat signal being received to effectively continuously receive enemy transmissions while preventing reception of the jamming signals from the associated jammer transmitter. The multiplexing is carried on in a random fashion that prevents the enemy from determining the rate and transmitting during the period that the improved receiver is disabled.

Abstract: An integrated resistor includes a resistor body region and a resistor contact region that is aligned with the body region. Because the resistor includes an aligned body and contact, it often occupies a smaller area than prior integrated resistors having a similar resistance value. A method for forming such a resistor is also disclosed.

Abstract: An expendable jammer is ejected as a decoy from a target in which the jammer includes a single port, keyed primed oscillator which is primed with the low level signal received at its antenna. The priming signal is injected directly into the tank circuit of the oscillator which is rapidly turned on and off (keyed) to produce a rapidly pulsed signal which tracks the frequency of the priming signal. The resultant signal from the oscillator is transmitted back to the receiving section of the radar initiating the signal in such a manner that the receiver cannot distinguish the individual pulses of returned energy due to the high PRF of the returned signal. Thus the signal from the jammer is detected as a CW signal. The expendable jammer also has a multiple threat capability in which simultaneously arriving signals from different sources result in a jammer output at each of the different frequencies of the incoming signals with sufficient jamming power at each frequency.

Abstract: Apparatus for providing simultaneous jamming of a number of missiles is disclosed comprising a plurality of reticles each having a pattern therein which provides necessary spin frequency and carrier frequency (if required) for the missile to be jammed. The reticles are arranged in series and modulate a source of radiation and generate the spin and carrier frequencies by blocking or rejecting radiation within the spectral passband of the missile to be jammed.

Abstract: A high resolution cross correlation, coherent integration type spectrum analyzer for use in obtaining detailed spectral signatures of subsurface and surface vessels correlates short discontinuous records of the incoming signal with reference signals of known frequencies and accumulates the results to establish cross correlation over a relatively long total record made up of the short discontinuous record segments, with the long combined record being responsible for the high resolution of the system.

Abstract: A silent radar system which detects a target and its position without the countermeasure operator located at the target being able to detect the presence of the radar. The silent radar operates by transmitting signals with specific characteristics which allow optimum processing by the radar while taking advantage of the limitations inherent in typical signal receiving equipment. The silent radar transmits low energy per cycle signals which are wideband, purely random noise, e.g. spread spectrum signals.

Abstract: A modulated infrared source is disclosed in which spatial modulation is accomplished by the rotation of beam forming optics about an infrared source in which a portion of the energy in the beam produced includes energy coming directly from the IR source without being reflected. Close to 100% of the energy from the infrared source is focused by rotating parabolically shaped elements, such that energy losses due to the modulation technique are minimized. The speed of the rotation of the reflective optics is minimized while maintaining sufficiently high modulation frequencies by the provision of four beams from a single source.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for jamming radar and other electromagnetic signals is disclosed in which the jammer includes a single port, keyed primed oscillator which is primed with the low level signal received at its antenna. In one embodiment the priming signal is gradually shifted in frequency to introduce a false doppler and is then injected into the tank circuit of the oscillator which is rapidly turned on and off (keyed) to produce a rapidly pulsed signal which tracks the frequency of the shifted priming signal. In this embodiment the oscillator keying unit is itself keyed to modulate the output signal of the oscillator to provide false bearing information. In another embodiment, the priming signal is injected directly into the tank circuit of the oscillator and the frequency of the output signal from the oscillator is varied to induce false doppler information. In both embodiments the pulsed signal from the oscillator is detected as a CW signal.

Abstract: A modulated infrared source is disclosed in which spatial-on-spatial modulation is accomplished by the rotation of two sets of beam forming optics about an infrared source. Close to 100% of the energy from the infrared source is focused by rotating two sets of parabolically shaped mirrors about the IR source such that energy losses due toe modulation technique are minimized. The speed of the rotation of the reflective optics is minimized while maintaining sufficiently high modulation frequencies the initial provision of four beams from a single source. This is accomplished by the first set of beam forming optics. Moreover, the effects of unwanted reflection are minimized by the four beam configuration. The four beams are then themselves modulated by the second set of beam forming optics.

Abstract: A method of countermeasuring heat seeking missiles is disclosed in which an infrared source is spatially modulated by providing a beam from the source which is swept past a point in space to produce pulsed infrared energy at this point. In one embodiment the beam is swept around a 360° azimuth for omnidirectional protection.