Welcome to Stephens Labs!

R&D and prototyping

As an R&D and rapid-prototyping company, we work with clients to help define systems and deliverables, and provide end-to-end development. In particular, we specialize in:

    • Customized navigation, geolocation, and RTLS solutions
    • Telecommunication systems design, analysis, and simulation
    • Definition of complex algorithms, their analysis and software embodiment

These solutions are developed as part of a full system design process:

    • Product requirements definition and flowdown to engineering requirements
    • Design subsystem components via analysis and performance/cost tradeoffs
    • Provide project management on digital/RF subsystem design and development
    • Develop product software
    • Provide integration and test, including field deployment and follow-on spiral development

Core competencies

Our core competencies include

    • Techniques
      • Estimation: Kalman, sigma-point, SRIF, and particle filters
      • Control systems: phase-locked loops, and other controller feedback
      • Info theory: channel coding and modulation evaluation and optimization; BEP analysis.
      • Communication: phy/link/mac layer design; channel mitigation
    • Modeling
      • RF and optical propagation, including multipath/diffraction, media (dielectric/atmospherics including ion/solar plasma), and antenna/fiber channels.
      • Sensors: inertial (acc, gyro), mag, laser scanning, optical/visual systems
      • Subsystems: GPS and RFID
      • Physical systems: vehicle dynamics, satellite orbits, surface physics sensors
    • Analysis and simulation
      • Analysis via custom tools, Matlab, SPW.
      • Visualization
    • End-to-end development
      • Systems engineering flowdown, cost trades, and project management
      • Proposal drafts: DOD/DARPA, SBIRs, secret/SBI clearances (reinstatable)
      • Integration and test of complex systems
      • Software systems (linux/android, java/C/C++/C#)

For more information on these techniques, please follow sidebar on left.

Past customers and projects

Past customers/projects include:

    • NASA/JPL: deep space receiver design (phy/link layers: acq, tracking algorithms)
    • TRW/NG: geolocation from MEO satellite constellation; satellite broadcast radio
    • Motorola: satellite and terrestrial communication systems
    • John Deere: Navigation for robotic systems, including GPS-denied areas, synthetic-aperture radar mapping and location, and fusing multiple sensors in deliverable software for commerical/military products
    • RFID location using multiple receive points and both phase-coherent beamforming and RSSI

For more examples of past projects, please follow sidebar on left.