Abstract: Fabrics are cleaned by treating at least a portion of the piece of fabric with a particulating chemical, and agitated by a gas jet of a particle-dislodging gas to dislodge the particulated soil. The particulating chemical loosens embedded non-particulate soil and converts it to a particulate form, which is then separated from the fabric by the particle-dislodging gas.

Abstract: An optically-pumped laser having a gain medium configured to provide a low loss, three-dimensional integrated optical pump cavity that substantially confines optical pump radiation within the lasing volume, which is particularly useful for efficiently pumping solid state gain media that has low pump dopant concentration. The integrated pump cavity includes a plurality of boundaries contiguous with the gain medium. An optical pump source such as a laser diode array supplies optical pump radiation that is input into the gain medium through one or more pump cavity windows with a propagation direction transverse to a laser axis defined through the gain medium. In some embodiments, an optical surface is situated opposite the window to approximately recollimate the input pump radiation. The optical pump cavity may be designed to concentrate the optical pump radiation and approximately uniformly pump the entire volume of the lasing medium.

Abstract: A concentrator including a volume of at least partially transmissive material and a plurality of facets disposed at at least one surface thereof. Each of the facets is disposed at a position dependent angle relative to the surface effective to cause an internal reflection of energy applied to the layer whereby the density of the applied energy varies as a function of position. In the illustrative implementation, the volume is an active medium, i.e., a slab. The slab has substantially parallel, planar upper and lower surfaces and first and second edges therebetween. A plurality of cladding layers are disposed on the upper and lower surfaces of the slab. The facets are provided in the cladding layers on the upper and lower surfaces of the slab and angled as a function of distance relative to the first or the second edge. The facets provide a Fresnel reflecting surface or a binary optic surface.

Abstract: An imaging processing system and method. In accordance with the invention, the illustrative method includes the steps of providing a transfer function between scene excitations and voltage returns based on geometry, beam pattern and/or scan rate; ascertaining a set of scene excitations that minimize a penalty function of the transfer function; and ascertaining a set of scene intensities based on the scene excitations, and a set of optimal weights for the penalty function based on the scene reflectivities. The inventive method provides significantly enhanced image sharpening. In the illustrative embodiment, the inventive method uses an iterative convergence technique which minimizes a penalty function of the sum of square errors between the scene excitations corrupted by the radar system (i.e. the antenna pattern and processing) and the radar voltage returns.

Abstract: An external pupil lens system (200) with an entrance pupil distance at least three times that of the effective focal length. The lens system is comprised of several conventional lenses and a diffractive optical element (DOE) for secondary chromatic aberration correction. In the illustrative embodiment, the system includes an entrance pupil (50), followed by a lens group (52) containing two refractive elements for primary color correction. Next along the optical axis is lens group (54), which contains two refractive elements for astigmatism and higher order coma correction, followed by lens group (60), which contains one refractive element (62) and one DOE (64) for secondary color correction.

Abstract: A collimating optical device utilizes a reflective beamsplitter in the form of a linear polarizing beamsplitter to achieve a wide field of view. One form of the wide-angle collimating optical device includes, in order from an image source, a first absorptive linear polarizer; a first quarter-wave plate; an optical doublet including a piano-concave singlet, a plano-convex singlet whose convex surface has the same curvature as the curvature of the concave surface, and a first reflective beamsplitter joining the concave surface of the plano-concave singlet to the convex surface of the plano-convex singlet; a second quarter-wave plate; and a second reflective beamsplitter. One of the reflective beamsplitters is a linear polarizing beamsplitter, most preferably a wire grid polarizer.

Abstract: An incoherent ladar transmitter (12) adapted for use with synthetic aperture processing. The system (12) includes a first mechanism (44, 48, 50) for generating a laser beam (18). A second mechanism (44, 68) records phase information pertaining to the laser beam (18) and subsequently transmits the laser beam (18) from the system in response thereto. A third mechanism (40) receives a reflected version (20) of the laser beam and provides a received signal in response thereto. A fourth mechanism (72) corrects the received signal based on the phase information recorded by the second mechanism (44, 68). In a more specific embodiment, the ladar system (12) includes a synthetic aperture processor (46) for correcting the received signal based on the phase information and providing a corrected laser signal in response thereto.

Abstract: A collimator positioning system for positioning a collimator on a base member. The positioning system includes a first support rod and a second support rod. The first support rod has a general elongated length with at least two cam surfaces spaced from each other along the length. The second support rod is movable relative to the first support rod to form a variable collimator support area therebetween. The support rods are adapted to be moved relative to each other for varying an angle of inclination or a height of the collimator on the base member.

Abstract: A structure (22) is located relative to a reference surface (26a, 42) using an optical target (28) affixed to the structure (22) and having a reflective angular-reference hologram (30) thereon with an effective angular orientation. An alignment light beam (38) is directed perpendicular to the reference surface (26a, 42) and incident upon the angular-reference hologram (30) on the optical target (28), and a signal return of the alignment light beam (38) is received at a measurement location. The angular orientation of the structure (22) is adjusted to achieve a signal return of the alignment light beam (38) corresponding to an alignment of the alignment light beam (38) to the effective angular orientation of the reflective angular-reference hologram (30). Multiple reflective angular-reference holograms (30) may be spatially superimposed upon each other in the optical target (28) or spatially separated from each other on the optical target (28).

Abstract: A method of integrating MEMS devices with non-MEMS circuitry requires fabricating non-MEMS devices on a substrate in a conventional fashion. A thick dielectric layer is deposited on the completed devices, and the MEMS devices fabricated on the dielectric layer. Vias through the dielectric layer interconnect the MEMS devices to the non-MEMS electronics. The interposed dielectric layer allows the common substrate to have characteristics that best suit the non-MEMS components, without degrading the MEMS performance. Another approach involves bonding together two separate wafers—one for the MEMS devices and one for non-MEMS electronics. A package lid, having filled vias formed therethrough, is bonded to the MEMS wafer, sealing the MEMS devices within. The non-MEMS wafer is mounted to the lid, with the vias effecting the necessary interconnections between the two wafers.

Abstract: A sensor system includes a sensor, and an optical train adjustable to provide an optical beam to the sensor from a selected line of sight that may be varied. The optical train includes a wavefront error-introducing element in the optical train, which introduces a wavefront error that is a function of the selected line of sight. There is further a rigid-body wavefront error-correcting element in the optical train. The rigid-body wavefront error-correcting element has a spatially dependent correction structure with the nature of the correction being a function of the selected line of sight. The adjustment of the optical train to the selected line of sight moves the optical beam to the appropriate location of the rigid-body wavefront error-correcting element to correct for the corresponding introduced wavefront error of the wavefront error-introducing element at that selected line of sight.

Abstract: A high power PIN diode single pole double throw (SPDT) switch for use in radar systems transmitting at over 50 watts of power. These systems require a switch that will provide adequate isolation for the sensitive amplifier circuits in the receiver subsystem of the radar from the high power transmit pulses in the event there is a bias failure such that the PIN diodes are at zero bias. By utilizing one single pole single throw (SPST) switch assembly between the transmitter and the antenna and at least two SPST switch assemblies between the antenna and the receiver, this isolation is achieved.

Abstract: Vertical solenoid inductors have windings or layers which are arranged to minimize interwinding capacitance between adjacent layers. Each layer occupies a surface area, and adjacent layers are arranged to occupy different surface areas, except where necessary to provide electrical connection between adjacent layers. The inductors are high power inductors which have high inductances L and high current capabilities. The inductors of the present invention also have high self resonant frequencies and quality factors, while minimizing component volume.

Abstract: A convertible multipurpose missile launcher includes a launch rail structure on the launcher body with a first-missile launch rail on the bottom side of the launcher body extending in a longitudinal direction. The first-missile launch rail is dimensioned for a first missile. A second-missile launch rail is positioned on the bottom side of the launcher body and extends in the longitudinal direction. The second-missile launch rail is dimensioned for a second missile different from the first missile. The second-missile launch rail includes a stationary second-missile forward launch rail segment, and a movable second-missile aft launch rail segment. The movable second-missile aft launch rail segment is slidable on the launcher body, and preferably on the first-missile launch rail, between a forward position and an aft position and may be locked in these positions.

Abstract: A reconnaissance pod for viewing a scene has a structural backbone extending generally parallel to a pod axis, a forward housing affixed to the backbone, and an aft housing affixed to the backbone. The aft housing is separated from the forward housing along the pod axis. A central housing is mounted between the forward housing and the aft housing along the pod axis. The central housing includes a central body, a window through the central body, and at least a portion of a sensor assembly supported within the central housing from the forward housing and/or the aft housing. A rotational drive assembly has a forward support rotationally supporting the central body from the forward housing, with a forward bearing oriented to permit rotation of the central housing about the pod axis. The rotational drive assembly also includes an aft support rotationally supporting the central body from the aft housing, with an aft bearing oriented to permit rotation of the central housing about the pod axis.

Abstract: A radiation detector, particularly suited for the detection of long wavelength infrared radiation, employs a plurality of multiple quantum well (MQW) superlattices in a unitary stack. The superlattices are electrically connected in parallel, and current outputs are obtained from the parallel connection as an indication of the incident radiation. Electrical contact layers are provided on the opposite sides of each superlattice, with adjacent superlattices sharing a common contact layer. The number of quantum well/barrier layer periods per superlattice is preferably reduced to about 20-30 divided by the number of superlattices in the stack, as compared to a single-superlattice detector with about 20-30 periods. This allows a common bias voltage applied to the superlattices to be similarly reduced by a factor approximately equal to the number of superlattices in the stack.

Abstract: Arrangements of Class AB (push-pull) amplifiers, one in a higher voltage configuration and one in a lower voltage configuration, to achieve a high intercept at low power as well as a low noise figure in a complementary technology allowing for higher performance at lower power. In an illustrative embodiment, the invention includes a first circuit for receiving an input signal; a second circuit for shifting a level of the input signal; and a third circuit for amplifying the input signal. In the illustrative embodiment, the third circuit includes first and second transistors Q3 and Q4 connected in a push-pull configuration. In the illustrative embodiment, the first and second transistors Q3 and Q4 are connected to form Class AB amplifiers and the first transistor Q3 is of a first type and the second transistor Q4 is of a second type. The teachings of the present invention are illustrated in a differential amplifier.

Abstract: An arc-fault detecting circuit-breaker system includes a normally closed line circuit breaker in series with a protected electrical circuit element whose current flow is to be interrupted upon the occurrence of an arc fault. A detector senses the rate of change with time of the current flow in the protected electrical circuit element. A silicon-controlled rectifier has a gate of the silicon-controlled rectifier in electrical communication with a detector output signal of the detector. The silicon-controlled rectifier shorts the current flow in the protected electrical circuit element in the event that the detector output signals that the rate of change of current with time in the protected electrical circuit element is in excess of a permitted maximum rate-of-change value, thereby activating the line circuit breaker.

Abstract: An optical device is positioned by mounting the optical device in a support formed at least in part of a support material which is capable of controllable and permanent mechanical deformation by a non-force-applying agent. Examples of such support materials include shape memory alloys, composite materials, and materials having a residual stress therein. The optical device is mounted to the support in a first position, and then the support is controllably and permanently locally deformed by the non-force-applying agent to reposition the optical device to a second position. The non-force-applying agent is preferably local heating, as with a laser.

Abstract: A system and technique for phased array antenna beam steering for transmitting and receiving without sending the waveform through an actual (physical) time delay when a time varying frequency is used as the waveform. The inventive system is adapted for use with an antenna having an array of radiating elements and includes a plurality of signal sources. Each source is adapted to provide a signal having a predetermined frequency offset signal for an associated radiating element or set of radiating elements. For transmit a plurality of first mixers is provided. Each of the first mixers is coupled to receive an excitation signal as a first input and the output from a respective one of the sources as a second input. The output of each mixer is coupled to a respective subset of the antenna radiating elements. In effect, each of the sources provides a virtual time delay.