General Atomics has been granted a patent for an imaging polarimeter system. The system includes a polarization modulator, polarizer, and detector system with an optical sensor array and digital read-out integrated circuit. The system is capable of modulating the polarization state of an incident beam and identifying polarization states based on photo-generated counts. GlobalData’s report on General Atomics gives a 360-degree view of the company including its patenting strategy. Buy the report here.
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According to GlobalData’s company profile on General Atomics, welding robots was a key innovation area identified from patents. General Atomics's grant share as of September 2023 was 59%. Grant share is based on the ratio of number of grants to total number of patents.
Imaging polarimeter system with modulated polarization state detection
A recently granted patent (Publication Number: US11774291B1) describes an imaging polarimeter system that can acquire polarization state information of light from a field of view. The system includes a polarization modulator system, a polarizer, and a detector system.
The polarization modulator system is responsible for modulating the polarization state of an incident beam at a repetition frequency and outputting a polarized modulated beam. This modulated beam then passes through a polarizer, which produces an intensity modulated beam. The detector system consists of an optical sensor array, a digital read-out integrated circuit (DROIC), and a polarization state system. The optical sensor array is aligned with the beam path so that the intensity modulated beam impinges on it.
The DROIC, for each pixel of the optical sensor array, separates sets of photo-generated counts over time and within an integration frame rate. The polarization state system then identifies a series of polarization states for each pixel based on these sets of photo-generated counts and according to the integration frame rate.
The patent also mentions that the polarization modulator system can be configured to modulate the polarization state of the incident beam at a repetition frequency that is greater than the integration frame rate of the detector system. Additionally, it describes the use of a dual photoelastic modulator system as part of the polarization modulator system.
The DROIC includes multiple bins for each pixel of the optical sensor array, and the patent explains that the DROIC addresses and outputs the photo-generated counts to each of these bins over time and according to a predefined ordered sequence at a bin sequence frequency. The polarization state system sets the predefined ordered sequence of the bins based on phase and frequency offsets between the retarders of the polarization modulator system and the polarizer.
The patent further describes the identification of the series of polarization states for each pixel based on predefined relationships of the photo-generated counts in each of the bins. These relationships consist of multiple different unique sets of photo-generated counts, where each set corresponds to a different polarization state. The polarization state system identifies the corresponding polarization state by comparing the photo-generated counts to the unique sets within a threshold range.
The imaging polarimeter system can also include an image generating system that receives the series of polarization states for each pixel and generates a corresponding image based on the identified series and the integration frame rate.
In summary, the granted patent describes an imaging polarimeter system that utilizes a polarization modulator system, a polarizer, and a detector system to acquire polarization state information of light. The system employs a digital read-out integrated circuit (DROIC) and a polarization state system to process the photo-generated counts and identify the series of polarization states for each pixel. The patent also mentions the use of a dual photoelastic modulator system and the generation of images based on the identified polarization states.
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GlobalData Patent Analytics tracks bibliographic data, legal events data, point in time patent ownerships, and backward and forward citations from global patenting offices. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
