fSONA Receives Patent for Innovative Compact Telescope Design.Business Editors/Technology Writers VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 30, 2004 New Design Dramatically Reduces Telescope Footprint for Free Space Communications Space communications Communications between a vehicle in outer space and Earth, using high-frequency electromagnetic radiation (radio waves). Provision for such communication is an essential requirement of any space mission. , Astronomy, Laser Radar laser radar n. See lidar. , Remote Sensing, Military and Microscopy Applications fSONA Communications, a leading provider of optical wireless networking See wireless network. equipment, today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO or USPTO) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides patent protection to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property has granted the company a patent for its innovative compact telescope design. fSONA's invention, U.S. Patent No. 6,667,831, covers a compact optical system described as a modified Gregorian telescope. The compact telescope is derived from a standard Gregorian system by flipping the secondary mirror over a folding mirror in the middle of the optical path between the primary and secondary mirrors. In this manner, the primary mirror is constructed with a concentric "double-curved" geometry. The result is a Compact Gregorian Telescope that can be as short as 1/7th the focal length Focal length A measure of the collecting or diverging power of a lens or an optical system. Focal length, usually designated f ′ of the system. Although the Gregorian telescope was first developed in the 17th century, a Compact Gregorian Telescope was not possible until recently, when techniques for producing diamond-turned mirrors were readily available. This diamond-turning process is what allows for the production of a "double-curved" mirror surface. "The Compact Gregorian Telescope dramatically decreases the footprint for a Gregorian telescope but, more importantly, it eliminates the need for expensive and time-consuming alignments between two curved surfaces," comments Vladimir Draganov, fSONA's Sr. Optical Engineer and the inventor of the Compact Gregorian Telescope. "An added bonus is that, because there is only one curved surface to machine, manufacturing costs are greatly reduced." In addition, both reliability and response to temperature change is improved due to the accuracy of the diamond turning process. fSONA's SONAbeam product line has always provided the best link margins and availability in the industry due to the high-powered 1550nm lasers in each system. Recently, fSONA improved the link margins of their already powerful systems by switching from PIN to more sensitive APD APD atrial premature depolarization (see atrial premature complex, under complex ); pamidronate. detectors. The addition of the diamond-turned mirrors from the Compact Gregorian Telescope design adds a further layer of reliability to an already outstanding system. Applications for the Compact Gregorian Telescope in addition to free space communications include astronomy, night vision, laser radar, remote sensing Deriving digital models of an area on the earth. Using special cameras from airplanes or satellites, either the sun's reflections or the earth's temperature is turned into digital maps of the area. , military, space (telescopes), and microscopy. In addition to being incorporated into fSONA's SONAbeam product line, a modified version of our telescope is currently in use by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories for a variety of applications. (Photographs available, contact fSONA.) About fSONA fSONA Communications was founded in 1997 to deliver wireless solutions that simplify and speed network deployments for carrier, service provider and enterprise customers. The SONAbeam(TM) series of free space optical (FSO (Free Space Optics) Transmitting optical signals through the air using infrared lasers. Also known as "wireless optics," FSO provides point-to-point and point-to-multipoint transmission at very high speeds without requiring a government license for use of the spectrum. ) networking products use an unlicensed, wireless technology operating at speeds up to 2.5 Gbps and distances up to 5km. SONAbeam(TM) avoids the cost of digging to lay fiber, licensing for radio frequencies, is immune to interference, and is extremely secure. SONAbeam(TM) is operational in 28 countries around the globe and is an ISO (1) See ISO speed. (2) (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, Switzerland, www.iso.ch) An organization that sets international standards, founded in 1946. The U.S. member body is ANSI. 9001 registered company. For more information visit www.fsona.com or www.free-space-optics.org About Lawrence Livermore Labs Lawrence Livermore Labs - Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Founded in 1952, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is a national security laboratory, with a mission to ensure national security and apply science and technology to the important issues of our time. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is managed by the University of California The University of California has a combined student body of more than 191,000 students, over 1,340,000 living alumni, and a combined systemwide and campus endowment of just over $7.3 billion (8th largest in the United States). for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration. fSONA and SONAbeam(TM) are trademarks of fSONA, Inc. All other trademarks are properties of their respective companies. |
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