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US 9,851,255 B2Granted
Windowless microbolometer array
AssigneeThe Aerospace Corporation
InventorsJames Hart Clemmons, Brian Blaise Brady, Jeffrey Louis Hall, Thomas Jay Curtiss
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A windowless microbolometer for use in terrestrial applications and non-terrestrial applications is provided. The windowless microbolometer array may interact with a flow of gas such that a pixel-based image of the gas is generated when the flow of gas impinges upon the windowless microbolometer array. The windowless microbolometer array may also interact with a molecular beam to provide information related to density, shape, and propagation of the molecular beam.
Claims23
An apparatus, comprising:
- a windowless microbolometer array configured to interact with a flow of gas such that a pixel-based image of the gas is generated when the flow of gas impinges upon the windowless microbolometer arrays, wherein the interacting is with bulk of the gas.
An apparatus, comprising:
- an aperture configured to admit a flow of gas into a housing such that bulk of the gas impinges on a windowless microbolometer array;
- and
- a computing system configured to generate a pixel-based image of the bulk gas that provides information related to density, temperature, and wind vector of the bulk gas when the bulk of the gas impinges upon the windowless microbolometer array.
An apparatus, comprising:
- a windowless microbolometer array configured to interact with a molecular beam to provide information related to density, shape, and propagation of the molecular beam, wherein the interacting is of bulk molecular beam with the windowless microbolometer array.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.