John A Banks

US Patent:

6229136, May 8, 2001

Filed:

May 17, 1999

Appl. No.:

9/313017

Inventors:

John E. Banks - Arlington TX

Assignee:

Lockheed Martin Corporation - Grand Prairie TX

International Classification:

G02B 702

US Classification:

250216

Abstract:

A rotary lens positioning mechanism with lens position feedback, in one embodiment, includes a worm-gear drive motor assembly, a Geneva gear drive assembly, a lens carrier disk, and a lens position feedback means. The worm-gear drive motor assembly includes a drive motor, which for some applications can be an N-scale model-train locomotive electric drive motor, and a worm pinion gear. The lens position feedback means, in one embodiment, includes two sensors each comprising an emitter-detector light-emitting diode (LED) pair, two reflective surfaces, and a computer. As the lens carrier disk rotates, the LED emitter of the sensor emits light to the reflective surface. If the light hits a reflective surface, it is reflected back to the LED detector of the sensor, turning that particular sensor on. The on and off signals of the respective sensors are translated into binary "words" to indicate which lens is currently intersecting the light. The computer reads the binary words and compares them to a table of known lens positions to determine whether the lens carrier disk is in a desired lens position.

US Patent:

58297154, Nov 3, 1998

Filed:

Nov 12, 1996

Appl. No.:

8/748149

Inventors:

John Edward Banks - Arlington TX

Assignee:

Lockheed Martin Vought Systems Corp. - Grand Prairie TX

International Classification:

B64C 356

US Classification:

244 49

Abstract:

A mechanism (100) is disclosed for deploying wing air foils about mutually perpendicular axes. Air flow initiates deployment of the wings by causing pivoting motion of a T-joint fitting (112). Meshed gear teeth between the wing (122) and the elevation plate (108) also causes the elevation plate to pivot. The axis of pivotal motion of the elevation plate (108) and the T-joint fitting (112) are offset so that the gear teeth on the elevation plate (108) causes the wing to move from the folded position to the elevated position. A pair of wings are deployed simultaneously by use of a cross shaft (134) that interconnects the elevation plates (108) of each wing deployment apparatus. A hydraulic damper (146) can be operated by the cross shaft (134) to allow control of the rate of deployment of the wings.