Acoustic ranging system
US4596144A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 19, 1985 |
| Grant date | Jun 24, 1986 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 19, 2005 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N2291/02836
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
In an acoustic ranging system, an echo signal received following a shot is repeatedly sampled and the samples digitized to produce a statistical data base representing the received echo profile which can be analyzed by various methods to determine the point on the time axis of the profile which corresponds to a wanted echo, and the degree of confidence with which the wanted echo has been identified. The number of shots taken depends upon the conditions at the site being monitored and upon the degree of confidence with which the wanted echo has been determined, and the order in which points in a multipoint system are monitored is determined by an adaptive scanning system which directs shots to different points following a system determined by a predetermined hierarchy, by the results provided by previous shots, by the conditions existing at different points, and by the receipt of outside signals. In order to improve resolution beyond that permitted by the sampling rate selected, the data base produced may be used as an adjunct to an analog determination of the actual elapsed time before receipt of a wanted echo, either by using the data base to determine a temporal "window" within w…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.