Patents by Inventor John J Degnan

John J Degnan 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).

  • Three-dimension imaging lidar
    Patent number: 7248342
    Abstract: This invention is directed to a 3-dimensional imaging lidar, which utilizes modest power kHz rate lasers, array detectors, photon-counting multi-channel timing receivers, and dual wedge optical scanners with transmitter point-ahead correction to provide contiguous high spatial resolution mapping of surface features including ground, water, man-made objects, vegetation and submerged surfaces from an aircraft or a spacecraft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 24, 2007
    Assignee: United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
    Inventor: John J. Degnan
  • Microaltimeter
    Patent number: 6343245
    Abstract: A microaltimeter measures altitude or range highly accurately from an orbiting vehicle. The microaltimeter has a low power solid state laser that is pulsed at a rate above 1 kilohertz. The pulses are delivered to a small telescope which sends them to a planetary surface and receives return reflections. A high efficiency photon detector measures received photons and supplies received photon signals to a process or which makes a time-based bin-wise comparison to find the time of flight and hence the range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2000
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2002
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
    Inventor: John J Degnan