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US 5,180,122 AGranted
Apparatus for deicing
AssigneeFMC Corporation
InventorsDonald J. Christian, Graham D. Robertson, James M. Tucci, Michael J. Westcott
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention provides an apparatus and method for detecting the presence of ice on a surface. The invention uses cameras to allow ice detection over a large area instead of a single point. The detecting apparatus provides an improved deicing apparatus.
Claims24
An apparatus, comprising:
- an ice detecting camera, comprising:
- a first camera for producing a first signal corresponding to the intensity of reflected light in a first narrow band centered near a wavelength at which ice has a low reflectence;
- and
- a second camera for producing a second signal corresponding to the intensity of reflected light in a second narrow band centered near a wavelength at which ice has a high reflectence;
- and
- means for receiving the first signal and the second signal, processing the first and second signals, and producing an ice indicator signal.
3 more elements
An apparatus, as claimed in 3, further comprising;
- means for rastering the first, second, and third cameras across the plurality of locations synchronously;
- and
- a color video monitor which receives the ice indicator signal.
A method, comprising the steps of:
- generating a first signal which indicates individual intensities of reflected light in a first narrow band, centered near a wavelength at which ice has a low reflectence, from each individual location of a plurality of locations;
- generating a second signal which indicates individual intensities of reflected light in a second narrow band, centered near a wavelength at which ice has a high reflectence, from each individual location of the plurality of locations;
- receiving the first signal and the second signal;
- processing the first and second signals;
- and
- producing a signal that indicates the presence or absence of ice at each of the plurality of locations.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.