The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 26, 1996
Filed:
Mar. 31, 1993
William O McKeag, Santa Barbara, CA (US);
Russell D Granneman, Goleta, CA (US);
Santa Barbara Research Center, Goleta, CA (US);
Abstract
A focal plane array (10) of radiation detectors (10b) has all features inclined with respect to an illuminating beam of radiation. That is, all features that would be orthogonally disposed with respect to an incoming wavefront are instead inclined to the incoming wavefront, an arrangement referred to as compound tipping. The disclosed embodiments of the invention create a compound tipping of the focal plane array such that there are no features of the array, such as mesa edges and sidewalls, that lie in the plane of the incoming wavefront. As a result, only a small amount of scattered light is observed, and the optical signature is significantly reduced. The invention substantially eliminates the optical signature by simultaneously tipping the focal plane features (optically and/or mechanically) in both major array axes, without degrading the imaging performance of the detective assembly.