Patent · US Expired

Wavelength agile receiver with noise neutralization and angular localization capabilities (WARNALOC)

US5771092A · kind A · utility

11Cited by
7References
10Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMay 8, 1997
Grant dateJun 23, 1998
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 8, 2017

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG01J3/26
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A tunable wavelength agile opto-electronic device for detecting and determining an angle of arrival of a collimated beam of radiation comprising a linearly variable optical filter superimposed over an elongated detector having at least one radiation detector element in each quadrant of the detector. Radiation that transverses that filter projects an image of a first portion of the filter onto two adjacent detector elements in separate quadrants at a first end of the elongated detector and an equal size image of a second portion of the filter onto two adjacent detector elements in separate quadrants at a second end of the elongated detector. A signal generated by radiation that transverses the filter onto a detector element in a quadrant at the second end is subtracted from a signal generated by radiation that transverses the filter onto an aligned detector element at the first end of the elongated detector to provide two difference signals, one for each side of the elongated detector. That subtraction reduces noise generated by background radiation to enable easier detection of a collimated beam and processing electronics use the two difference signals to determine the angle of arr…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.