Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

Gas Research Institute

Thermo King Corporation

John M Zomp

Anastasios P Goutzoulis

Gary W Sherwin

David K Davies

William H Kasner

William M Hickam

Tod Andrew Oblak

Vincent A Toth

Ching-Yu Lin

Tom Henningsen

Max Garbuny

Francis S McKendree

Robert B Gosser

Thomas E Bernard

Edwin R Mohan

Akis P Goutzoulis

Casey J Coppock

Emile M Roth

L L Altpeter, Jr

A natural gas detection system is provided for use with a vehicle. A natural gas detector apparatus is mounted to the vehicle so that the vehicle transports the detector apparatus over an are of interest at speeds of up to 20 miles per hour. The detector apparatus includes a transmitter section and a receiver section displaced a preselected distance from each other. The transmitter section has a light source transmitting a light beam to the receiver section forming a beam path therebetween. The apparatus is arranged such that natural gas intercepts the beam path and absorbs representative wavelengths of the light beam. The receiver section receives a portion of the light beam onto an electro-optical etalon for detecting the gas. A method of detecting natural gas is also provided. The method has the steps of providing a vehicle and mounting a natural gas detector apparatus to the vehicle. The detector apparatus has a transmitter section and a receiver section displaced a preselected distance from each other. The transmitter section includes a light source. The method includes transmitting a light beam in a beam path from the transmitter section to the receiver section, and driving the vehicle over an area of interest so that natural gas intercepts the beam path and absorbs representative wavelengths of the light beam. Fhe method also includes receiving a portion of the light beam in the receiver section so that the light beam is directed into an etalon, and detecting a gas leak in the area of interest from the portion light beam using the gas detection apparatus mounted on the vehicle while the vehicle is in motion.

Natural gas detection apparatus and method operable in a moving vehicle

A signal manifold having a source signal converter coupled to an RF source for converting a source electronic signal from the RF source into an optical signal. The manifold has an optical coupler, having multiple optical fibers, coupled to the first signal converter; and a sink signal converter coupled to the optical coupler. The sink signal converter converts the optical signal from the coupler into a sink electronic signal and conveys that electronic signal to an RF sink. The manifold can be a transmit manifold, or a receive manifold. In addition, a transmit manifold and a receive manifold can be combined to provide a bi-directional signal manifold. The invention herein also provides low-loss asymmetric fiber-optic combiner which includes multiple optical fibers, each fiber having cladding removed from the respective fiber end, exposing the fiber core. The cores are joined together in a predefined configuration and each are optically coupled to a plenum optical fiber. A method for fabricating the low-loss asymmetric fiber-optic combiner also is provided and includes the steps of etching a portion of multiple optical fibers, and removing the cladding from the optical core, producing multiple exposed optical core segments. An optical core bundle with a bundle end is formed by collaterally joining each of the multiple exposed optical core segments with the others. A planar bundle end is formed from the optical core bundle end by polishing, and rendering coplanar, the bundle end. The bundle end is coupled to a plenum optical fiber.

Transmit-receive fiber-optic manifold for phase array antennas

A fiber optic transmitter having a directly modulated laser diode for transmitting a modulated optical signal, a pin diode for providing a pin diode monitor current representing the output power of the laser diode, an optical power source for receiving an optical signal and providing an electrical signal, a power regulator for providing a laser diode driver current which varies with the pin diode monitor current, an amplifier for receiving an RF signal and providing an amplified RF signal to the laser diode, where the laser diode driver current directly modulates the laser diode and biases the transistor in the amplifier.

Optically-powered directly-modulated fiber optic link

A system for signalling the presence of selected ion species in a gaseous sample of an ion mobility sensor, having a unidirectional field provided between first and second electrodes positioned a selected distance apart. An ionization source generates ions in the sensor and a trigger controller allows ions to enter the region between the first and second electrodes at a time t.sub.1. The ions then arrive at the second electrode at a time t.sub.2. A transimpedance amplifier converts the ion charges to voltage signals. The presence of selected ion species is determined by circuitry that is activated by the trigger controller at t.sub.2. The species are preferably analyzed by directing the amplifier output to an analog to digital converter and then to a digital signal processor. The ions may alternatively be analyzed by generating a logic pulse representing a selected ion species when the amplifier output exceeds a preset value. An alarm signal is output when the logic pulse is coincident at an AND gate with a logic pulse representing the species' travel time from the first electrode to the second electrode.

Practical implementations for ion mobility sensor

An improved phased array radar system has a plurality of bias binary fiber optic delay lines each connected between the transmit/receive cells and at least one of signal input means and signal processing means. A plurality of electronic binary delay lines are connected to at least one of the signal input means and the signal processing means and each bias binary fiber optic delay line.

Hybrid electronic-fiberoptic system for phased array antennas

A detector for aligning a laser beam has been provided. The detector includes an insulative substrate, and a thermally conductive planar face attached to the substrate. The face is divided into thermally isolated sectors, each sector having the same shape and area. A corresponding thermal sensitive device is provided for each sector. Each sector is in thermal contact with a corresponding one of the thermal sensitive devices, and each thermal sensitive device produces a response proportional to the amount of laser energy impinging thereon to thereby provide indication of the misalignment of the laser beam relative to the transport path.

Detector for aligning high power lasers

An evoked potential autorefractometry system includes a computer driving an alternating checkerboard mirror stimulus to project a stimulus pattern directly to a patient through a continuously variable focus lens controlled by the computer and which maintains a constant image size on the patient's retina. The evoked potentials produced by the patient are amplified, asychronously filtered both in an analog and digital fashion to allow peak to peak detection of the evoked potentials to determine amplitude. The digital filter includes a 255 point running sum. The peak to peak amplitudes are asychronously digitally filtered using a 16 point running sum to produce an amplitude measure of the evoked potentials. The lens is swept rapidly from one extreme of focus to the other extreme in relatively large steps to determine the area in which the peak amplitude occurs. The lens is then subsequently swept in smaller and smaller range sweeps using smaller and smaller steps around the peak amplitude until the peak in the amplitude is pinpointed within a desired diopter at which point the lens position is printed out on the printer as the patient's prescription.

Evoked potential autorefractometry system

A low noise, high gain differential amplifier suitable for EEG amplification is constructed in a shielded metal enclosure, preferably on a ground plane circuit board. The amplifier is battery powered to eliminate all possibility of noise from the power system. The amplifier utilizes a pair of operational amplifiers to provide high input impedance for each of two input signals. A differential amplifier generates an internal signal which is filtered and amplified by a pair of bandpass amplifiers and overlapping low pass and high pass amplifiers.

Electromagnetically shielded narrow band electroencephalographic

A portable acoustic intensity measuring device comprising a pair of electroacoustic transducers at a positioned predetermined distance from one another. The measuring device utilizes analog summing, subtraction, integration and multiplier means for measuring an acoustic intensity vector midway between the two electroacoustic transducers. The acoustic intensity measuring device further comprises error correction means connected in circuit with a preamplifier means and a meter means. The error correction means includes switching means comprising a first switch connected in circuit with the preamplifier and summing means and subtraction means and a second switch connected in circuit with the multiplier and the meter for simultaneously switching the first and second preamplified analog signals at the summing input and subtraction input and for simultaneously switching the polarity of the acoustic intensity signal at the meter. The error correction means eliminates any errors induced by phase mismatch and/or any inherent DC component of the device.

Portable acoustic intensity measuring device

A circuit means in combination with a conventional oxygen ion conductive solid electrolyte cell establishes the cell in a voltage mode for the purposes of measuring excess oxygen and developing a voltage signal indicative thereof, and switching the cell to a current mode of operation in response to an excess combustible environment wherein current drawn by the cell to pump oxygen for combustible reaction with the excess combustibles environment is measured as an indication of the combustibles content of the gas.

Combined O.sub.2 /combustibles solid electrolyte gas monitoring device

Method and apparatus for measuring the charge energy available from electrochemical cells (batteries) of the type that exhibits a substantially constant discharge voltage characteristic over its charge life, such as zinc-silver oxide cells. Within several seconds following a brief period of shorting out for reactivation, two to four seconds in the case of zinc-silver oxide cells, short circuit current from the test cell flowing for a period of time just sufficient for complete charging of the internal capacitance of such test cell is sensed, integrated over such period, and used to control display of information as to the charge level of the cell under test.

Growing community of inventors

North Huntingdon, PA, United States of America

John M Zomp