The Boeing Company

United States of America as Represented by the Secretary of the Air Force

Georgia Tech Research Corporation

Steven Fulton Griffin

Steven A Lane

Adam Robert Weston

Joel D Gussy

Edward Andrew Whalen

Benjamin K Henderson

Daryn David Kono

Steven M Huybrechts

Christopher R Shurilla

Shawn Haar

Paul W Alexander

Marthinus Van Schoor

David Roderick Gerwe

Cary Dean Munger

Mark M Gmerek

Jacob A Lucas

Daniel Paul Brzozowski

Alexander C Klein

Brandoch Calef

Zackary L Endsley

Dino Sciulli

Conor Clery

Ryan D Majkrzak

Jennifer A Gruits

Karl N Schrader

Elizabeth L C Jensen

Richard K Davies

David M Stevens

Robert Erik Grip

Robert J Atmur

Richard William Aston

Nathan D Hiller

Frederick Theodore Calkins

Alan Zachary Ullman

Michael John Langmack

Justin Cleve Hatcher

Richard B Holmes

Matthew S Stauffer

Joshua M Montgomery

James Benjamin Turner

Jazzmin P Martinez

Jed Eden Donaldson

Peter M Wegner

Todd Harding Tomkinson

David Bossert

Trent M Kyono

James L Clayton

Naval Kishore Agarwal

Matthew Aaron Novick

Nicholas Samuel Lee Smith

Alok Das

Troy E Meink

Stefan P Hovik

Darby Grant Cooper

David Edmund Ellis

Eric Y Reichenbach

Sudhakar Prasad

Stephen Tsai

Eric Herup

Edwin P Walker

Guy D Granger

Kitt Reinhardt

Sirirak Denover

John C Mooney

Matthew A Edwards

Steven Buckley

Keith Denover

Jeffrey T Baker

Michael S Salisbury

John P Nicholson

Robert E Richard

Arturo A Jacobs

Remy Dubreus

Daniel Niedermaier

Garry R Marions

Kevin P Moore

Timothy John Paulitz

Sathya V Hanagud

Chance C McColl

Eugene Fosness

Edward A Whalen

Marthinus Cornelius Van Schoor

Shawn M Haar

A flight path clearing system comprising a laser beam system in an aircraft and a controller. The controller is configured to select a number of characteristics for a laser beam based on an object type. The controller is configured to control the laser beam system to emit the laser beam with the number of characteristics in a direction relative to a flight path of the aircraft. The controller is configured to control the laser beam system to move the laser beam with the number of characteristics selected for the object type to scan an area using a pattern that is based on a sequence of locations in the pattern being nearest to a center of the area, wherein a number of objects of the object type hit by the laser beam is cleared from the flight path.

Laser beam based flight path clearing system

A retrofittable subassembly that enhances the operational availability of a terrestrial optical surveillance system is disclosed. In various embodiments, the subassembly comprises a diffusely reflective and insulating external cover, a highly uniform plate-glass cover, an wide angle FOV camera and a passive thermal control system.

Method and apparatus for extending operational availability for terrestrial optical surveillance systems

An apparatus and method for suppressing free play chatter of a control surface of an aircraft. The free play chatter suppression apparatus includes a containment vessel connected to a control surface of an aircraft. A lossy material is contained within the containment vessel. A body is positioned within the lossy material. The deceleration of the body by the lossy fluid is transmitted to the control surface to dampen vibrations of the control surface.

Free play chatter suppression

A deployable panel is provided comprising a first subpanel, a second subpanel, and a shape memory alloy hinge connecting the subpanels. The shape memory alloy hinge enables the subpanels to move between a position in which the first and second subpanels are folded over each other and an unfolded position in response to an energy source that changes the shape of the shape memory alloy hinge, wherein the unfolded position is trained into the shape memory alloy hinge to ensure precise kinematic mating between the subpanels. Shape memory alloy springs are connected to the first subpanel and respective tethers connect the shape memory alloy springs to the second subpanel. The shape memory alloy springs contract in response to a second energy source to pull the subpanels together via the tethers when the subpanels are in the unfolded position to produce a seamless, featureless surface of the deployable panel.

Large deployable panel with shape memory hinge and load elements

A system and method are provided for super-resolution imaging beyond the Rayleigh spatial resolution limit of an optical system. In the context of a system, first and second pinhole assemblies are configured to be controllably positioned. The first and second pinhole assemblies define respective pinholes and being configured to be backlit. The system also includes a collimating lens configured to collimate at least a portion of the signals passing through the respective pinholes of the first and second pinhole assemblies. The system further includes an amplitude/phase mask configured to provide amplitude and phase modulation to signals received from the collimating lens and an imaging lens configured to focus the signals received from the amplitude/phase mask upon an image plane to permit objects to be separately identified.

System and method for super-resolution imaging

A method for feedforward noise cancellation in an enclosed space within a structure is provided. The method comprises placing a microphone array inside an inner surface of the enclosed space and conducting modal testing on an outside surface of the enclosed space, wherein the modal testing comprises multiple incoherent noise sources corresponding to locations of microphones in the microphone array. Noise generated by the modal testing is processed to create a number of acoustic mathematical models of the enclosed space. In response to incoherent noise within the enclosed space, a noise canceling signal is generated according to an output of the mathematical models.

Feedforward control of an enclosed space with multiple incoherent excitations

Methods and apparatus for variable stiffness supports in aircraft testing are disclosed. A disclosed example apparatus includes a variable stiffness support including a pad to contact and support the aircraft, and a spring operatively coupled to the pad. The apparatus also includes an actuator operatively coupled to the support, a sensor, at least one memory, machine executable instructions and at least one processor. The at least one processor is to execute the instructions to determine at least one of a movement or a displacement of the pad based on information from the sensor, and control movement of the actuator based on the determined at least one movement or distance of the pad to statically support the aircraft while enabling movement of the pad above a threshold frequency.

Methods and apparatus for variable stiffness supports in aircraft testing

A noise cancellation system for cancelling sounds within a vehicle. The noise cancellation system includes microphones, a camera, a controller, and speakers. The microphones are disposed adjacent to occupant locations, and configured to generate microphone signals representative of noise sounds and cancellation audio sounds. The camera is configured to generate a video signal that captures head configurations of the occupants. The controller is configured to receive rotor control signals, calculate hearing locations based on tracking data of the head configurations of the occupants, and generate a speaker signals based on the hearing locations, the microphone signals, and the rotor control signals. The speakers are configured to generate the cancellation audio sounds. The cancellation audio sounds attenuate the noise sounds.

Adaptive noise cancellation for multi-rotor vehicle

An energy harvesting circuit is disclosed and comprises one or more electrical loads that consume direct current (DC) power, a rectifier, and a hybrid acoustic absorber. The rectifier comprises one or more active switching elements that are driven by a gate drive voltage. The hybrid acoustic absorber comprises a diaphragm and a voice coil. The diaphragm is constructed at least in part of a piezoelectric material. The piezoelectric material is configured to generate a diaphragm voltage in response to sound waves deforming the diaphragm. The diaphragm voltage is at least equal to the gate drive voltage to drive the one or more active switching elements of the rectifier. The voice coil is attached to the diaphragm and configured to generate a voice coil voltage that is less than the gate drive voltage of the one or more active switching elements.

Energy harvesting circuit comprising an active rectifier

Embodiments herein describe mitigating flexible modes in an airframe of an aircraft by operating a battery for the aircraft as a tuned mass damper. One embodiment comprises an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The UAV includes a flexible airframe, a plurality of propulsors coupled to the flexible airframe that generate thrust for the UAV, a battery that provides electrical power for the plurality of propulsors, and a suspension system that suspends the battery from the flexible airframe and operates the mass of the battery as a tuned mass damper to dampen flexible modes generated in the flexible airframe during flight.

Tuned mass damper for aircraft

A testing system for monitoring a machine under test is disclosed and includes one or more high frequency sensors configured to generate a sensor signal that is representative of an operating parameter of the machine. The high frequency sensors have a required high frequency sampling rate. The testing system also includes a notification device configured to generate a notification indicating the operating parameter monitored by the high frequency sensors has exceeded a predefined threshold value and a data acquisition control module configured to monitor the high frequency sensors at a first sampling rate. The testing system also includes a monitoring control module in electronic communication with the notification device. The monitoring control module is configured to monitor the high frequency sensors at a second sampling rate that is greater than the first sampling rate and at least equal to the required high frequency sampling rate.

Secondary monitoring system for a machine under test

An example system includes a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored therein instructions that are executable to cause the system to perform various functions. The functions include: (i) acquiring an image of a first aerial vehicle, the image depicting an object of a second aerial vehicle prior to contact between the object and a surface of the first aerial vehicle; (ii) providing the image as input to a data-driven analyzer that is trained in a supervised setting with example images for determining a predetermined point of contact between the object and the surface of the first aerial vehicle; (iii) determining, based on an output of the data-driven analyzer corresponding to the input, an estimated point of contact between the object and the surface of the first aerial vehicle; and (iv) providing the estimated point of contact to a display system.

Virtual laser pointer as a point of contact indicator for machine learning assisted aerial refueling or other targeting

An impact-compensating bucking bar and its use to reduce impacts during riveting, where the bucking bar includes a body; a strike surface on a distal portion of the body, a compensating inertial mass coupled to the body by a flexible and resilient mass support, and a handgrip coupled to the body and configured for the user to urge the strike surface of the bucking bar against a tail of a rivet to facilitate upsetting the rivet tail during riveting. A relative movement of the compensating inertial mass of the bucking bar in response to a strike on the rivet head at least partially dissipates energy imparted to the body during riveting, reducing impact stresses on the bucking bar user.

Impact-compensating bucking bar

A method for visual signal processing of a signal includes subdividing a signal, by a signal processor, into a selected number (n) of sets of data. The method also includes assembling the signal, by the signal processor, into an image. The image includes a matrix. The matrix includes a plurality of cells in a predetermined number (m) of columns and the selected number (n) of rows. Each cell of the matrix includes a particular color corresponding to an amplitude of a sample of the signal represented by the cell. The method also includes analyzing the image, by the signal processor, using an image detection algorithm to determine frequency information of the signal.

Visual signal processing of signals

Neutralizing deflection in a transportation system comprising connecting a number of support structures to ground. A tube is coupled to the support structures via a number of actuators, wherein the tube defines an interior enclosure through which a vehicle can travel. Utilizing a number of sensors, directional displacement of the support structures can be sensed, and the actuators are controller to counter the sensed displacement of the support structures by producing a directionally-opposite displacement of the tube relative to the support structures.

Active control deflection neutralizer

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Kihei, HI, United States of America

Steven Fulton Griffin