Mirror-ring assembly for bi-directional optical communication between a rotor and a stator
US10326561B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 24, 2015 |
| Grant date | Jun 18, 2019 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 24, 2035 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L1/1809
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An optical rotary joint communication apparatus for communicating between a rotor and a stator. Optical sources and detectors are arranged on both the rotor and the stator to provide bi-directional communication. As the rotor rotates, downlink detectors on the rotor sequentially communicate via line-of-sight optical channels with corresponding downlink receivers on the stator. Each downlink receiver is provided a curved mirror reflecting the downlink beam onto the downlink receiver when the rotation angle of the rotor is within a corresponding angle interval. When the rotation angle moves past the angle interval, the downlink beams transition to another mirror and another downlink receiver. The downlink beams are directed predominantly tangential to the rotor circumference. Adjacent downlink transmitters transmit redundant data, and transitions between downlink receivers are staggered for adjacent downlink transmitters to occur at non-overlapping rotation angles in order to prevent loss of data during transitions.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.