Todd Winslow Renak

US Patent:

6492800, Dec 10, 2002

Filed:

Sep 20, 2000

Appl. No.:

09/667116

Inventors:

Gregory K. Woods - Cornelius OR
Todd W. Renak - Idaho Falls ID
James R. Davidson - Idaho Falls ID
Thomas M. Crawford - Idaho Falls ID

Assignee:

Bechtel BWXT Idaho, LLC - Idaho Falls ID

International Classification:

G01R 3100

US Classification:

324 96

Abstract:

The invention is a miniature electro-optic voltage sensor system capable of accurate operation at high voltages without use of the dedicated voltage dividing hardware typically found in the prior art. The invention achieves voltage measurement without significant error contributions from neighboring conductors or environmental perturbations. The invention employs a transmitter, a sensor, a detector, and a signal processor. The transmitter produces a beam of electromagnetic radiation which is routed into the sensor. Within the sensor the beam undergoes the Pockels electro-optic effect. The electro-optic effect produces a modulation of the beams polarization, which is in turn converted to a pair of independent conversely-amplitude-modulated signals, from which the voltage of the E-field is determined by the signal processor. The use of converse AM signals enables the signal processor to better distinguish signal from noise. The sensor converts the beam by splitting the beam in accordance with the axes of the beams polarization state (an ellipse) into at least two AM signals.

US Patent:

58923578, Apr 6, 1999

Filed:

Dec 8, 1995

Appl. No.:

8/569338

Inventors:

Gregory K. Woods - Idaho Falls ID
Todd W. Renak - Idaho Falls ID

Assignee:

Lockheed Martin Idaho Technologies Company - Idaho Falls ID

International Classification:

G01R 3100

US Classification:

324 96

Abstract:

A miniature electro-optic voltage sensor system capable of accurate operation at high voltages. The system employs a transmitter, a sensor disposed adjacent to but out of direct electrical contact with a conductor on which the voltage is to be measured, a detector, and a signal processor. The transmitter produces a beam of electromagnetic radiation which is routed into the sensor where the beam undergoes the Pockels electro-optic effect. The electro-optic effect causes phase shifting in the beam, which is in turn converted to a pair of independent beams, from which the voltage of a system based on its E-field is determined when the two beams are normalized by the signal processor. The sensor converts the beam by splitting the beam in accordance with the axes of the beam's polarization state (an ellipse whose ellipticity varies between -1 and +1 in proportion to voltage) into at least two AM signals. These AM signals are fed into a signal processor and processed to determine the voltage between a ground conductor and the conductor on which voltage is being measured.

US Patent:

61247065, Sep 26, 2000

Filed:

Jun 6, 1997

Appl. No.:

8/870512

Inventors:

Gregory K. Woods - Cornelius OR
Todd W. Renak - Idaho Falls ID
Thomas M. Crawford - Idaho Falls ID
James R. Davidson - Idaho Falls ID

Assignee:

Bechtel BWXT Idaho, LLC - Idaho Falls ID

International Classification:

G01R 3100

US Classification:

324 96

Abstract:

A miniature electro-optic voltage sensor system capable of accurate operation at high voltages without use of the dedicated voltage dividing hardware. The invention achieves voltage measurement without significant error contributions from neighboring conductors or environmental perturbations. The invention employs a transmitter, a sensor, a detector, and a signal processor. The transmitter produces a beam of electromagnetic radiation which is routed into the sensor. Within the sensor the beam undergoes the Pockels electro-optic effect. The electro-optic effect produces a modulation of the beam's polarization, which is in turn converted to a pair of independent conversely-amplitude-modulated signals, from which the voltage of the E-field is determined by the signal processor. The use of converse AM signals enables the signal processor to better distinguish signal from noise. The sensor converts the beam by splitting the beam in accordance with the axes of the beam's polarization state (an ellipse) into at least two AM signals.