USA as Represented by Secretary of the Navy

Cornell University

Robert A York

William Lawrence Ditto

Visarath In

Paul Edward Hasler

Joseph D Neff

Edgar A Brown

Brian Meadows

Richard C Compton

David W Fogliatti

Steve P DeWeerth

Ted H Heath

This invention exploits the synchronization properties of coupled, nonlinear oscillators arrays to perform power combining, beam steering, and beam shaping. This architecture utilizes interactions between nonlinear active elements to generate beam patterns. A nonlinear array integrates the signal processing concurrently with the transduction of the signal. This architecture differs fundamentally from passive transducer arrays in three ways: 1) the unit cells are nonlinear, 2) the array purposely couples the unit cells together, and 3) the signal processing (beam steering and shaping) is done via dynamic interactions between unit cells. The architecture extends to both 1- and 2-dimensional arrays.

Nonlinear beam forming and beam shaping aperture system

An array of coupled microwave oscillators operate at equally spaced output frequencies to produce a train of high-power RF pulses. Each oscillator is embedded in a printed planar radiating structure so that they form a classical antenna array. The oscillators are coupled through weak radiative interactions and by adjusting the frequencies of the oscillators so that adjacent devices operate at equally spaced frequencies, the output from the array is a frequency spectrum of equally spaced pulses. The pulses have a pulse repetition rate which is determined by the frequency spacing and the pulse duration and peak power are a function of the square of the number of oscillators in the array. In addition, the signal scans repetitively through space above the array.

Self-scanning pulsed source using mode-locked oscillator arrays

Growing community of inventors

Goleta, CA, United States of America

Robert A York