Abstract: An imaging system as disclosed can include multiple bistatic radar sensors configured to transmit electromagnetic waves towards a surface of a target object and configured to measure the electromagnetic waves reflected from the surface of the target object. The imaging system includes a computing device that determines time of flight estimates based on the measured waves. The computing device can draw, within an image model for the target object, multiple candidate surface portions of the surface of the target object based on the TOF estimates and predetermined positions of the bistatic radar sensors. Further, the computing device can assign weights to the candidate surface portions. The computing device can determine points where the candidate surface portions meet with a predetermined probability based on the weights. The computing device is configured to define an estimated surface of the target object in the image model based on the determined points.

Abstract: An imaging system as disclosed can include multiple bistatic radar sensors configured to transmit electromagnetic waves towards a surface of a target object and configured to measure the electromagnetic waves reflected from the surface of the target object. The imaging system includes a computing device that determines time of flight estimates based on the measured waves. The computing device can draw, within an image model for the target object, multiple candidate surface portions of the surface of the target object based on the TOF estimates and predetermined positions of the bistatic radar sensors. Further, the computing device can assign weights to the candidate surface portions. The computing device can determine points where the candidate surface portions meet with a predetermined probability based on the weights. The computing device is configured to define an estimated surface of the target object in the image model based on the determined points.

Abstract: A spectroscopic chemical compound identification system includes a container, a memory, a spectrometer, and a processor. The container receives unknown chemical compound. The memory stores a plurality of spectral signatures corresponding to known chemical compounds. The spectrometer measures a spectral signature of the unknown chemical compound through the container. The processor is connected to the memory and the spectrometer, performs a comparison of the spectral signature with at least one of the plurality of spectral signatures, and determines the identity of the unknown chemical compound from the comparison. The system can be housed in a portable handheld housing. A chemical compound can include a pharmaceutical or controlled substance. The system can be also be used to determine if a pharmaceutical or controlled substance is present within an unknown mixture of chemical compounds.

Abstract: A fiber optic input receives light reflected from an unknown compound. An input mask encodes the light received with a one-dimensional input code. A spectral imaging subsystem images the input coded mask and disperses the image. An output mask receives the dispersed image on a row and, at each time step of a plurality of time steps, changes the code of the row to further encode the image. An illumination subsystem collects the additionally encoded light from the row at each time step. A point detector receives the collected light from the illumination subsystem and converts it to an electrical signal at each time step. A memory stores the electrical signal at each time step. A processor calculates a spectral signature for the unknown compound from the electrical signals stored, the one-dimensional input code, and the different additional one-dimensional codes applied.

Abstract: A pharmaceutical solid in a prescription vial is identified from an optical property of the pharmaceutical solid using light reflected from two different light sources. For each known pharmaceutical solid, an optical property of the known pharmaceutical solid is stored. The prescription vial is illuminated with a first light source and a first image is recorded. The prescription vial is then illuminated with a second light source and a second image is recorded. The first image and the second image are processed to find an optical property of the pharmaceutical solid. The optical property found is compared to the stored optical properties. The identity of the pharmaceutical solid is determined from the comparison. The first light source and the second light source are selected to remove artifacts of the prescription bottle or to enhance or suppress two-dimensional or three-dimensional effects on the surface of the pharmaceutical solid.

Abstract: A system and method are provided for imaging a test substrate having a test surface that is configured to enable spectroscopic detection of one or more chemical or biological species, wherein the test surface includes a testing site disposed thereon according to a predetermined spatial pattern. The test substrate is provided in an image plane or a Fourier Transform plane of a sensor. The invention provides high throughput and high spectral resolution.

Abstract: A spectroscopic chemical compound identification system includes a container, a memory, a spectrometer, and a processor. The container receives unknown chemical compound. The memory stores a plurality of spectral signatures corresponding to known chemical compounds. The spectrometer measures a spectral signature of the unknown chemical compound through the container. The processor is connected to the memory and the spectrometer, performs a comparison of the spectral signature with at least one of the plurality of spectral signatures, and determines the identity of the unknown chemical compound from the comparison. The system can be housed in a portable handheld housing. A chemical compound can include a pharmaceutical or controlled substance. The system can be also be used to determine if a pharmaceutical or controlled substance is present within an unknown mixture of chemical compounds.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention relate to systems and methods for spectral imaging. Electromagnetic energy emanating from an object is passed through a first dispersive element, a coded aperture, and a second dispersive element to a detector plane. A wavelength-dependent shift is created by the first dispersive element. The coded aperture modulates the image emanating from the first dispersive element. The wavelength-dependent shift is removed from the modulated image by the second dispersive element producing a wavelength-independent image measured by the detector. A spectral image of the object is calculated from the measured image, a wavelength-dependent shift of the first dispersive element, the code of the coded aperture, and a wavelength dependent shift of the second dispersive element. A spectral image can be calculated from measurements obtained in a single time step and from a number of measurements that is less than the number of elements in the spectral image.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention relate to systems and methods for communicating pharmaceutical verification information between a server and a node using a network. A node includes a pharmaceutical identification and verification system. The verification information includes a known spectral signature of a known pharmaceutical and a corresponding known pharmaceutical name and dosage strength of the known pharmaceutical. The server stores the verification information in a server database. The node receives the verification information from the server, stores the verification information in the client database, reads a pharmaceutical name and dosage strength from a container enclosing a pharmaceutical, obtains a detected spectral signature for the pharmaceutical, and compares the detected spectral signature to the at least one known spectral signature. The pharmaceutical identification and verification system includes a static multimodal multiplex spectrometer.

Abstract: An optical wavemeter includes a slit, a diffraction grating, a mask, a complementary grating, and a detector. A monochromatic source is incident on the slit. The diffraction grating produces an image of the slit in an image plane at a horizontal position that is wavelength dependent. The mask has a two-dimensional pattern of transmission variations and produces different vertical intensity channels for different spectral channels. The complementary grating produces a stationary image of the slit independent of wavelength. The detector measures vertical variations in intensity of the stationary image, and the mask is created so that the number of measurements made by the detector is less than the number of spectral channels sampled.

Abstract: An imaging polarimeter includes a polarization dispersing element, a spatial light modulator, a complementary polarization dispersing element, a polarization analyzer, an electronic detection plane, and a processor. The polarization dispersing element polarimetrically disperses an image of an object. The spatial light modulator spatially modulates the polarimetrically dispersed image. The complementary polarization dispersing element polarimetrically combines the spatially modulated and polarimetrically dispersed image. The polarization analyzer mixes orthogonal input polarizations with the polarization states of the polarimetrically combined spatially modulated image. The electronic detection plane measures the polarimetrically combined spatially modulated image that includes mixed polarization states.

Abstract: An optical spectrometer and/or a method of optical spectroscopy is described herein. One exemplary spectrometer includes a planar spectral filter, a dispersion system, and a detector array having at least two dimensions. The planar spectral filter filters incident light to generate a plurality of wavelength dependent spatial patterns. The dispersion system disperses the spatial patterns along at least one dimension in a wavelength dependent fashion onto the detector array. As a result, spatial patterns corresponding to different wavelengths are centered at different locations on the detector array. The dispersed spatial patterns superimpose at the detector array in an offset but overlapping relationship, creating an asymmetric image that facilitates the spectral analysis of a wide range of light sources, including diffuse or spectrally complex light sources.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention can estimate an image using an encodement provided by an optical component, an encodement provided by a detector array, or both an encodement provided by an optical component and an encodement provided by a detector array. The original image can be encoded with a dispersed point spread function created by the optical component. The detector array can be encoded with a pixel sampling function. The encoded image is measured using the detector array. An estimated image can be calculated from the pixel sampling function and the measured image, the dispersed point spread function and the measured image, or the dispersed point spread function, the pixel sampling function, and the measured image. The number of pixels in the estimated image is greater than the number of measurements in the measured image.

Abstract: A pharmaceutical solid in a prescription vial is identified from an optical property of the pharmaceutical solid using light reflected from two different light sources. For each known pharmaceutical solid, an optical property of the known pharmaceutical solid is stored. The prescription vial is illuminated with a first light source and a first image is recorded. The prescription vial is then illuminated with a second light source and a second image is recorded. The first image and the second image are processed to find an optical property of the pharmaceutical solid. The optical property found is compared to the stored optical properties. The identity of the pharmaceutical solid is determined from the comparison. The first light source and the second light source are selected to remove artifacts of the prescription bottle or to enhance or suppress two-dimensional or three-dimensional effects on the surface of the pharmaceutical solid.

Abstract: A class of aperture coded spectrometer is optimized for the spectral characterization of diffuse sources. The instrument achieves high throughput and high spatial resolution by replacing the slit of conventional dispersive spectrometers with a spatial filter or mask. A number of masks can be used including Harmonic masks, Legendre masks, and Hadamard masks.

Abstract: An optical signal is compressively sampled. An optical component with a plurality of transmissive elements and a plurality of opaque elements is created. The location of the plurality of transmissive elements and the plurality of opaque elements is determined by a transmission function. A spectrum of the optical signal is dispersed across the optical component. Signals transmitted by the plurality of transmissive elements are detected in a single time step at each sensor of a plurality of sensors dispersed spatially with respect to the optical component. Each sensor of the plurality of sensors produces a measurement resulting in a number of measurements for the single time step. A number of estimated optical signal values is calculated from the number of measurements and the transmission function. The transmission function is selected so that the number of measurements is less than the number of estimated optical signal values.

Abstract: An optical signal is compressively sampled using an optical component to encode multiplex measurements. A mapping from the optical signal to a detector array is created using spatial and/or spectral dispersion. Signals transmitted by a plurality of transmissive elements of the optical component are detected at each sensor of a plurality of sensors of the detector array dispersed spatially with respect to the optical component. Each sensor of a plurality of sensors produces a measurement resulting in a number of measurements. A number of estimated optical signal values is calculated from the number of measurements and a transmission function. The transmission function is selected so that the number of measurements is less than the number of estimated optical signal values.

Abstract: A rotary motor shaft extends through a rheological brake unit through which variable braking resistance to rotation of the motor shaft is applied while it undergoes rotation in response to torque mechanically applied thereto in sequence through a peripheral gear by a selected pair of diagonally aligned electro-magnetically energized push-rod actuators adjustably positioned axially along a varying diameter section of the gear under electrical control for stroke change to yield a variable output torque.

Abstract: A signal is temporally compressively sampled. A plurality of analog to digital converters are assembled to sample the signal. Each analog to digital converter of the plurality of analog to digital converters is configured to sample the signal at a time step determined by a temporal sampling function. The signal is sampled over a period of time using the plurality of analog to digital converters. Each analog to digital converter of the plurality of analog to digital converters produces a measurement resulting in a number of measurements for the period of time. A number of estimated signal values are calculated from the number of measurements and the temporal sampling function. The temporal sampling function is selected so that the number of measurements is less than the number of estimated signal values.

Abstract: An optical signal is copressively sampled using an imaging system. The imaging system is created from a plurality of subimaging systems. Each subimaging system comprises a subaperture and a plurality of sensors. The optical signal is collected at each subaperture of the plurality of subimaging systems at a single time step. The optical signal is transformed into a subimage at each subimaging system of plurality of subimaging systems. The subimage includes at least one measurement from a plurality of sensors of each subimaging systems. An image of the optical signal is calculated from the sampling function and each subimage, spatial location, pixel sampling function, and point spread function of each subimaging system of the plurality of subimaging systems. The sampling function is selected so that the number of measurements from a plurality of subimages is less than a number of estimated optical signal values in the image.