Patents by Inventor Ian Ward Frank

Ian Ward Frank 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: 11119383
    Abstract: Acousto-optical modulators, such as a SAW modulators, with telescope arrays and superimposed volume gratings for light field generation are disclosed. These devices can employ pixelated demagnification and have layers of output optics, such as reflective gratings and/or arrays of transmissive refractive or diffractive lenses that manipulate the light emitted by the SAW modulator. In other cases, superimposed volume gratings are used, in which pixilation occurs in angle space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2021
    Assignee: The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc.
    Inventors: Steven J. Byrnes, Gregg E. Favalora, Ian Ward Frank, Joseph J. Register, Michael G. Moebius
  • Patent number: 11054676
    Abstract: A system and method for improving spatial light modulator (SLM) devices such as Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) modulators are disclosed. The SAW modulators can improved angular bandwidth and suppress unwanted diffractive orders. In one example, a coating layer(s) is applied to a proximal face of the SAW modulator to improve coupling of guided modes into leaky modes. Additionally, applying coating layers(s) such as a hybrid anti-reflective/highly reflective coating to an exit face of the SAW modulator can suppress transmission of undesired diffractive order(s).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc.
    Inventors: Ian Ward Frank, Jeffrey A. Korn, Steven J. Byrnes, Dennis M. Callahan, Jr.
  • Patent number: 10935868
    Abstract: A light steeling system and method for diffractive steering of electromagnetic radiation such as visible light is disclosed. Embodiments of the light steering system include leaky-mode SAW modulators as light modulator devices. The SAW modulators preferably include reflective diffractive gratings. The gratings are mounted to/patterned upon an exit face that opposes an exit surface of the SAW modulator, in one example. Steering of light signals emitted from the SAW modulators in these systems can be accomplished by varying wavelength of light signals introduced to the SAW modulators, and/or by varying frequency of RF drive signals applied to the SAW modulators. In addition, light field generators that incorporate SAW modulators of the proposed light steering system within displays of the light field generators are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2021
    Assignee: The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc.
    Inventors: Steven J. Byrnes, Gregg E. Favalora, Ian Ward Frank, Anthony Kopa, Jeffrey A. Korn, Michael G. Moebius
  • Publication number: 20190384221
    Abstract: SAW modulators are used as components of diffractive imaging systems. Arrays of the modulators can be used to detect the light field from a scene. In specific applications, they can be used to provide matched filtering for object recognition.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 12, 2019
    Publication date: December 19, 2019
    Inventors: Gregg E. Favalora, Juha-Pekka Laine, Joseph J. Register, Dennis M. Callahan, Jr., Ian Ward Frank
  • Publication number: 20190354871
    Abstract: A parallelized chain-synthesizing technique includes capillary tubes, where each tube provides multiple locations or addresses where a specific arbitrary sequence for polymeric chains can be synthesized. An optical addressing system selectively delivers light to the locations to mediate or control reactions in the tubes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2019
    Publication date: November 21, 2019
    Inventors: Kirsty A. McFarland, Andrew P. Magyar, Ian Ward Frank, Kenneth T. Kotz, Stacey Markovic, Haiyao Huang, Steven J. Byrnes, Gregg E. Favalora, Melissa M. Sprachman, Ryan A. Dubay, Emma Vargo, Peter Cavanagh, Erin Rosenberger
  • Publication number: 20190094652
    Abstract: A light steeling system and method for diffractive steering of electromagnetic radiation such as visible light is disclosed. Embodiments of the light steering system include leaky-mode SAW modulators as light modulator devices. The SAW modulators preferably include reflective diffractive gratings. The gratings are mounted to/patterned upon an exit face that opposes an exit surface of the SAW modulator, in one example. Steering of light signals emitted from the SAW modulators in these systems can be accomplished by varying wavelength of light signals introduced to the SAW modulators, and/or by varying frequency of RF drive signals applied to the SAW modulators. In addition, light field generators that incorporate SAW modulators of the proposed light steering system within displays of the light field generators are also disclosed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 25, 2018
    Publication date: March 28, 2019
    Inventors: Steven J. Byrnes, Gregg E. Favalora, Ian Ward Frank, Anthony Kopa, Jeffrey A. Korn, Michael G. Moebius
  • Publication number: 20190025667
    Abstract: Acousto-optical modulators, such as a SAW modulators, with telescope arrays and superimposed volume gratings for light field generation are disclosed. These devices can employ pixelated demagnification and have layers of output optics, such as reflective gratings and/or arrays of transmissive refractive or diffractive lenses that manipulate the light emitted by the SAW modulator. In other cases, superimposed volume gratings are used, in which pixilation occurs in angle space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 20, 2018
    Publication date: January 24, 2019
    Inventors: Steven J. Byrnes, Gregg E. Favalora, Ian Ward Frank, Joseph J. Register, Michael G. Moebius
  • Publication number: 20190025666
    Abstract: A system and method for light field generation is disclosed. A proposed holographic display system encodes views of a scene into surface acoustic waves (SAW signals) that propagate along waveguides of SAW modulators and/or optical signals propagating in the waveguides. Each view provides a different perspective of the scene when the views are projected as light fields out of the SAW modulators and are viewed at different locations by an observer. In some examples, the system encodes the brightness information for each view into the light signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 20, 2018
    Publication date: January 24, 2019
    Inventors: Steven J. Byrnes, Gregg E. Favalora, Ian Ward Frank, Anthony Kopa, Michael G. Moebius, Joseph J. Register
  • Publication number: 20190009240
    Abstract: A parallelized chain-synthesizing technique includes an array of wells, each well in the array providing a location where a specific arbitrary sequence for polymeric chains can be grown. An optical addressing system selectively delivers light to the wells to mediate or control reactions in the wells.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 10, 2018
    Publication date: January 10, 2019
    Inventors: Andrew P. Magyar, Ian Ward Frank, Jeffrey A. Korn, Neil Sunil Patel
  • Publication number: 20180341127
    Abstract: A system and method for improving spatial light modulator (SLM) devices such as Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) modulators are disclosed. The SAW modulators can improved angular bandwidth and suppress unwanted diffractive orders. In one example, a coating layer(s) is applied to a proximal face of the SAW modulator to improve coupling of guided modes into leaky modes. Additionally, applying coating layers(s) such as a hybrid anti-reflective/highly reflective coating to an exit face of the SAW modulator can suppress transmission of undesired diffractive order(s).
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 25, 2018
    Publication date: November 29, 2018
    Inventors: Ian Ward Frank, Jeffrey A. Korn, Steven J. Byrnes, Dennis M. Callahan, JR.
  • Publication number: 20180329271
    Abstract: A system and method for a Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) spatial light modulator module, or SAW device that provides varying acoustic wave speed are disclosed. The SAW device includes a substrate of a material such as lithium niobate, and a coating layer is applied to the substrate. A SAW transducer of the device is configured to produce SAW signals that propagate with a propagation velocity around an interface between the substrate and the coating layer. The SAW signals couple light signals of a light source into modulated light signals that are emitted from the bottom face and/or edge face of the substrate. In embodiments, a frequency of RF drive signals applied to the SAW transducer in conjunction with the propagation velocity of the SAW signals produces a decrease in a SAW wavelength of the SAW signals as compared to current SAW device systems and methods.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 10, 2018
    Publication date: November 15, 2018
    Inventors: Ian Ward Frank, Dennis M. Callahan, JR., Steven J. Byrnes, Michael Gerhard Moebius, Gregg E. Favalora