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:
Sep. 19, 2017
Filed:
Dec. 08, 2014
The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc., Cambridge, MA (US);
Juha-Pekka Laine, Boston, MA (US);
Gregory Blasche, Burlington, MA (US);
Robin Dawson, Waltham, MA (US);
Sean McClain, Somerville, MA (US);
Stephen P. Smith, Acton, MA (US);
Robert Larsen, Somerville, MA (US);
Charles Arant, Wesley Chapel, FL (US);
William Ostrowski, Land O Lakes, FL (US);
The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc., Cambridge, MA (US);
Abstract
A device and method for selectively illuminating and designating multiple targets in the air or on the ground simultaneously. The device comprises a light source, a switching array and a ball lens. Light from the light source is routed through the switching array, which can addressably output multiple light beams simultaneously. The light beams from the switching array illuminate the backside of a low F-number ball lens. The ball lens creates highly collimated output beams independently (and simultaneously) from any of the output source points of the switching array. These output beams can be used to simultaneously designate multiple targets. When the target illuminating device includes an optional detector array, light scattered from targets can be refracted by the balls lens to impinge on the detector array. Signals from the detector array representing the received light beams can be used for target imaging.