Time Domain Corporation

Tdc Acquisition Holdings, Inc.

Mark Andrew Barnes

Larry W Fullerton

Herbert U Fluhler

Soumya K Nag

Hans Gregory Schantz

David M Dickson

Charles G Gilbert

Mark D Roberts

James Lee Richards

Ivan A Cowie

Vernon R Brethour

Donald David Mondul

Irina Dodoukh

The present invention is an improved system and method for detecting the leading edge of a waveform. More specifically, the invention relates to detecting the leading edge of an ultra wideband waveform. The invention requires locking to the ultra wideband waveform at a lock reference time, and sampling the ultra wideband waveform during one or more time windows relative to the lock reference time to identify one or more leading edge candidate times based on one or more detection criterion. The ultra wideband signal is sampled at a band limited Nyquist rate that avoids aliasing within a band of interest of the ultra wideband waveform, but allows aliasing outside of the band of interest to minimize the number of samples for leading edge detection processing.

Enhanced system and method for detecting the leading edge of a waveform

An antenna array comprising a ground plane and a plurality of elements mounted thereon, said elements being capable of emitting and receiving ultra wideband emissions. Elements are arrayed on the ground plane in two parallel rows, a transmitting row, and a receiving row, such that a given element in the receiving row is aligned in at least one direction with a corresponding element in the transmitting row. Additionally, the elements are configured on the ground plane to elicit a symmetrical product response in the azimuthal plane, and to produce horizontally polarized signals. An alternative embodiment places the elements with unique inter-element spacing within the rows. An embodiment comprises a fence structure between rows. A method for use comprises the step of transmitting a signal via an element in the transmitting row and receiving said signal through an element in the receiving row, not aligned with the transmitting element.

Impulse radar antenna array and method

A method for mitigating interference in impulse radio communication conveying a message from a transmitting station to a receiving station. The method comprises the steps of: (a) conveying the message in packets; (b) repeating conveyance of selected packets to make up a repeat package; and (c) conveying the repeat package a plurality of times at a repeat period greater than twice the occurrence period of the interference. The communication may convey a message from a proximate transmitter to a distal receiver, and receive a message by a proximate receiver from a distal transmitter. In such a system, the method comprises the steps of: (a) providing interference indications by the distal receiver to the proximate transmitter; (b) using the interference indications to determine predicted noise periods; and (c) operating the proximate transmitter to convey the message according to at least one of the following: (1) avoiding conveying the message during noise periods; (2) conveying the message at a higher power during noise periods; (3) varying error detection coding in the message during noise periods; (4) retransmitting the message following noise periods; (5) avoiding conveying the message when interference is greater than a first strength; (6) conveying the message at a higher power when the interference is greater than a second strength; (7) varying error detection coding in the message when the interference is greater than a third strength; and (8) retransmitting a portion of the message after interference has subsided to less than a predetermined strength.

Method for mitigating effects of interference in impulse radio communication

An ultra-wideband magnetic antenna includes a planar conductor having a first and a second slot about an axis. The slots are substantially leaf-shaped having a varying width along the axis. The slots are interconnected along the axis. A cross polarized antenna system is comprised of an ultra-wideband magnetic antenna and an ultra-wideband dipole antenna. The magnetic antenna and the dipole antenna are positioned substantially close to each other and they create a cross polarized field pattern. The present invention provides isolation between a transmitter and a receiver in an ultra-wideband system. Additionally, the present invention allows isolation among radiating elements in an array antenna system.

Ultra-wideband magnetic antenna

A time domain communications system wherein a broadband of time-spaced signals, essentially monocycle-like signals, are derived from applying stepped-in-amplitude signals to a broadband antenna, for example, a reverse bicone antenna or a pulse-responsive dipole antenna. When received, the thus transmitted signals are multiplied by a D.C. replica of each transmitted signal and thereafter are successively short time and long time integrated to achieve detection.

Pulse-responsive dipole antenna

A method of detecting objects reflecting impulse waveforms of generating a detection envelope by receiving a reflected waveform, delaying said waveform by a peak-to-zero delay (PZD) interval. The PZD interval is the time between a maximum energy displacement in the impulse waveform and an adjacent zero crossing. The reflected waveform and its delayed version are squared and then summed to create the envelope. If the envelope is to be defined in terms of voltage, the root of the sum of the squares may be found. Also a method for generating an image using the PZD interval in back-projection techniques is described wherein a sampling point is chosen on each of a plurality of reflected waveforms. The values of the samples are summed and the waveforms are delayed by the PZD interval and the values of the sampling points are again summed. The two sums are squared and added together to generate an image envelope.

Method of envelope detection and image generation

A system and method for high resolution radar imaging using a sparse array of time modulated ultra wideband (TM-UWB) radars. Two or more TM-UWB radars are arranged in a sparse array. Each TM-UWB radar transmits ultra wideband pulses that illuminate a target, and at least one receives the signal returns. The signal return data is processed according to the function being performed, such as imaging or motion detection. The TM-UWB radar array operates in several modes. In a first mode, each TM-UWB radar transmits and receives back scattering returns, and at least one TM-UWB radar receives forward scattering returns. In a second mode, each TM-UWB radar transmits but only one of the radars receives signal returns, both back and forward scattering. In a third mode, each TM-UWB radar transmits and receives back scattering signal returns, but neither receives forward scattering returns. TM-UWB radios can be used to perform other functions, such as handling communications between the radars and determining the distance separating one radar from another.

Wide area time domain radar array

A time domain communications system wherein a broadband of time-spaced signals, essentially monocycle-like signals, are derived from applying stepped-in-amplitude signals to a broadband antenna, in this case, a reverse bicone antenna. When received, the thus transmitted signals are multiplied by a D.C. replica of each transmitted signal, and thereafter, they are, successively, short time and long time integrated to achieve detection.

Time domain radio transmission system

Chiral and dual polarization techniques for an ultra-wide band communication system provide an ultra-wide band signal having signal components in two dimensions. The polarization techniques utilize two signal paths to excite a pair of linear, orthogonal antennas. The pulses transmitted along one signal path are delayed with respect to the pulses transmitted along the second signal path such that one antenna is excited with a pulse that is out of phase with respect to the pulse that is exciting the other antenna. With chiral polarization, one signal is delayed in time by an amount such that it reaches a maximum when the other signal is at an adjacent minimum. With dual polarization, one signal is delayed by more than a pulse width. Because the signal is split and transmitted using two orthogonal, linear antennas, the transmitted signal has an electric field component in two dimensions. Because the signal in one signal path is delayed, the transmitted signal, the transmitted signal appears to rotate about the axis of propagation in the right-hand or left-hand direction (depending on the orientation of the antennas relative to one another and on which signal path is delayed). Because chiral and dual polarized signals have signal components in two dimensions, they can be received by receiver systems using either a single linear antenna, or a pair of orthogonal, linear antennas.

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Madison, AL, United States of America

Mark Andrew Barnes