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:
Feb. 16, 2010
Filed:
Jul. 11, 2007
John L. Lundberg, Springfield, OH (US);
Richard R. Kemp, Urbana, OH (US);
Jeffrey M. Singer, Fairborn, OH (US);
Scott R. Mangum, Dublin, OH (US);
John L. Lundberg, Springfield, OH (US);
Richard R. Kemp, Urbana, OH (US);
Jeffrey M. Singer, Fairborn, OH (US);
Scott R. Mangum, Dublin, OH (US);
Honeywell International Inc., Morristown, NJ (US);
Abstract
Pilot Director Lights (PDLs) mounted on the exterior of a refueling tanker aircraft utilize visible light emitting diodes (LEDs) and infrared LEDs as light sources to provide visual information to the pilot of an approaching aircraft The PDLs are switchable between a visible mode that uses the visible LEDs and a covert mode that uses the infrared LEDs. The PDLs may include a plurality of light emitting devices arranged in arrays, rows, or other patterns, each light emitting device being configured to illuminate a particular symbol/pattern in one example. Each light emitting device may include a plurality of modular banks of LEDs which are configured to emit light through a clear lens within a particular field of view. The PDL arrays may provide visual feedback regarding the elevational and fore-aft position of the approaching aircraft relative to the boom envelope of the tanker aircraft.