Patents
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1. Projectile Trajectory Determination System: (#5,062,541)
2. X -Ray Based Extensometry: (#5,398,273)
3. X-Ray Based Extensometry for Radiography:
(#5,596,620)
Summary of Each Patent:
1. Projectile Trajectory Determination System: (#5,062,541)
The system is used to determine the three components of velocity of a projectile such as a golf ball, which has been stopped by a target screen. The screen is usually energy absorbent so the ball doesn't bounce back and hurt the user! The basic idea is one of triangulation. The ball then hits the screen and the sound races to each mike. The mikes are all hooked up to counters which record when each mike gets triggered by the sound from the ball hit. The difference between arrival times for each ball can then be determined. From these arrival times, the location of the ball impact is determined. This system can be used in many recreational simulators like those for Golf, Baseball, Tennis etc.
2. X-Ray Based Extensometry: (#5,398,273)
The primary goal here is to measure surface strain on components or test specimens which are in really nasty environments like flames, smoke, flowing gases (stuff found in rocket engines or gas turbines). This has always been a really tough task, since strain gages or other contacting methods get knocked off or burned up at temps above 1800 degrees F. Our system uses a focused x-ray beam to go through the hostile environment and find markers which have been pre-positioned on the test piece. These markers are very tough and are made of a flame sprayed ceramic containing Yttria. We then translate the focused x-ray beam across these markers and when the beam comes in contact with the Ytrria, the Ytrria begins to fluoresce, giving off lots of secondary radiation. This radiation turns off when the beam travels off the target edge. The trick is to measure the position of the focused x-ray beam at all times and monitor the secondary radiation. You can then compare x-ray image position with the amount of the secondary radiation and determine when the x-ray image was on or off a fluorescing marker. If you use two markers on the test piece, you can tell how far apart they are. If you then load the test piece, the marks will move apart (or together depending on whether its in tension or compression), and strain can be measured. The nice thing about x-rays is that they go right through the hostile environment without be diffracted or attenuated.
3. X-Ray Based Extensometry for Radiography: (#5,596,620)
This is essentially an extension of the previous patent. Here, we take the focused x-ray image and scan it across biological specimens, especially breasts, and make radiographs. The reason why this is good for mammography is due to the spectral nature of the focused x-ray image. The best energy level for doing mammograms is about 17 KeV due to the absorption difference between healthy and tumorous breast tissue at this energy. Conventional mammograms are done using filters and absorbers which mask an x-ray source that has lots of other energy components, which only serve to degrade the contrast between healthy breast tissue and tumors, and expose the patient to additional radiation. Our x-ray image consists solely of a very narrow energy band centered around 17 KeV, since we use Bragg focussing optics. This method will greatly reduce patient exposure and should enhance resolution. We are presently pursuing a grant from the Whittaker foundation for funding and are working with the UCONN health center.