The Boeing Company

Jed Eden Donaldson

Richard B Holmes

Bryan Lee Kelchner

Nikolaus McNerney

David Roy Dean

Kirk Alan Lohnes

Bruce Edward Stribling

Kenneth Jerkatis

Steven Fulton Griffin

Joseph Nolan Paranto

Jeffrey T Baker

Richard Brooks Holmes

Nikolaus Mcnerney

A system and a method that isolate a payload from the effects of vibrations by providing an active feedback path that enhances the isolation performance of a passive vibration isolation system at all relevant frequencies. The system comprises a kinematic arrangement of three bipod pairs of hybrid isolation struts to produce a fully kinematic suspension system. The active enhancement mechanism incorporates accelerometer feedback on each of the six hybrid isolation struts, blended with relative displacement measurements, to produce a transfer function that provides a specified alignment of a suspended component (with another component) at low frequency, but inertial stabilization at high frequency. Passive roll-off is produced by a series of disc flexures in each hybrid isolation strut.

Active strut control for vibration isolation of large payloads

An aero-optical disturbance measurement system includes a mirror supported by a gimbal for receiving a light beam from a light emitting source, reflecting the light beam to a first periscope fold mirror and therefrom reflecting the light beam directly to a second periscope fold mirror. A first concave off-axis paraboloid mirror receives the light beam reflected from second periscope fold mirror and therefrom a first fold mirror receives the light beam reflected directly from first concave off-axis paraboloid mirror. A second fold mirror receives the light beam reflected directly from the first fold mirror. A second concave off-axis paraboloid mirror receives the light beam reflected directly from second fold mirror which reflects the light beam to a fast steering mirror. A fine tracker camera coupled to an embedded processer receives portion of light beam from fast steering mirror. Embedded processor controls movement of fast steering mirror and gimbal.

Aero-wave instrument for the measurement of the optical wave-front disturbances in the airflow around airborne systems

An optical telescope is provided that includes a steering mirror configured to receive and redirect optical signals. The steering mirror is configured to be controllably oriented so as to control a direction in which the optical signals are redirected and to correspondingly control a line of sight. The optical telescope also includes a beam tube that includes a turning mirror configured to receive the optical signals from the steering mirror. The optical telescope also includes a primary mirror downstream of the turning mirror and configured to collimate the optical signals. Further, the optical telescope includes an output mirror configured to receive the optical signals from the primary mirror and to redirect the optical signals from the optical telescope. The output mirror is configured to be controllably oriented so as to control a direction in which the optical signals are redirected and to correspondingly control the line of sight.

Off-axis optical telescope

A method and apparatus for stabilizing a line of sight of a radiant energy system. The line of sight of a main beam is positioned using a first reflector and a second reflector based on a reference beam that is inertially stabilized in a selected direction. The line of sight of the main beam is stabilized using the reference beam to counteract a number of disturbances created within an optical path of the main beam.

Method and apparatus for stabilizing a line of sight of a radiant energy system

The aircraft includes a fuselage and at least one aerodynamic interface surface. It further includes a gimbaled mirror system which includes a mirror supported by a gimbal to receive a light beam from a light emitting source and reflect the light beam to a first periscope fold mirror. A wave front measuring system includes at least five reflective which reflects the light beam to a fast steering mirror. The fast steering mirror reflects the light beam directly to a beam splitter wherein the light beam is split into a transmitted portion and a reflected portion of the light beam.

A self-monitored controlled optical component system may include an electrostrictive actuator, a capacitor matched in capacitance to the electrostrictive actuator, a current source connected to the electrostrictive actuator and to the capacitor that supplies an electric current to the electrostrictive actuator and to the capacitor, an optical element connected to be moved by the electrostrictive actuator, and a comparator connected to receive a first output current from the electrostrictive actuator and a second output current from the capacitor, and output a differenced sensoriactuator signal proportional to the difference between the first output current and the second output current, the sensoriactuator signal representing a current associated with movement of the optical element by the electrostrictive actuator.

Laser with a self-monitoring controlled optical component system

A heliostat including a mirror configured to reflect light directed towards a first surface of the mirror, the light being external to the heliostat, the first surface being opposite a second surface of the mirror. A control mechanism is connected to the mirror and configured to change at least two angles of the mirror. An inertial reference unit is in communication with the control mechanism and configured to produce a beam and use the beam to optically sample the second surface of the mirror, the beam at least reflecting from the second surface. The control mechanism is configured to use data from the beam and the inertial reference unit to control the least two angles such that a virtual beam from the inertial reference unit remains about co-aligned with a line of sight vector of the mirror when the heliostat is subjected to an exogenous disturbance.

Growing community of inventors

Bernallilo, NM, United States of America

Jed Eden Donaldson