Flextronics Assigned Patent

Flextronics AP, LLC, Broomfield, CO, has been assigned a patent (9,651,360) developed by Fordham, Mark, Chapel Hill, NC, and Hancock, Stephen, Wake Forest, NC, for a “optical methods for determining positions of optical discs in tightly packed cylindrical arrays.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: “A cylindrical array of tightly spaced optical discs is arranged such that all optical discs in the array share the same axis of symmetry. An optical system is aligned with the optical disc array. The optical system includes a light source, such as a diffuse reflector, and a photo detector, such as a photo detector. The photo detector is aligned to receive either light transmitted through the optical disc array or light reflected off the optical disc array. Illumination directed at the optical disc array results in a pattern of alternating light and dark illuminations, or bands. The photo detector focusing on the cylinder surfaces of the optical discs detects the light/dark transitions and thus enables counting of discrete optical discs.“

The patent application was filed on October 21, 2015 (14/919,619).