摘要:
A fiber optically coupled laser rangefinder (LRF) for use in a gimbal system to input/extract a laser beam into/from a camera is disclosed. in one embodiment, the fiber optically coupled LRF includes a gimbal assembly. Further, the gimbal assembly includes a first fiber optic cable for receiving the laser beam from a remote transmitter assembly, a fiber optically coupled laser interface module to receive the laser beam and opposing mirrors to direct the laser beam to a target. In addition, the gimbal assembly includes a second fiber optic cable for transmitting a return laser beam to a remote receiver assembly. The opposing mirrors are further configured to direct the return laser bean from the target to the fiber optically coupled laser interface module. The fiber optically coupled laser interface module is further configured to transmit it to the receiver assembly via the second fiber optic cable.
摘要:
A method and apparatus is provided for increasing the effectiveness of destroying selected objects in a target cloud by prioritizing the objects detected in a large aperture IR detector aboard a carrier vehicle and sequentially illuminating the detected targets with coded laser radiation, followed by the launching of multiple miniature kill vehicles from the carrier vehicle, with each kill vehicle assigned to a differently-coded object in the target cloud due to the reflection back of the coded returns, thus to permit directing of individual miniature kill vehicles to a specific object in the target cloud prior to a handoff to an IR heat seeker in the miniature kill vehicle, actuated to guide the kill vehicle for a final kill.
摘要:
Techniques are disclosed that can be used to increase the dynamic range of a microchannel plate (MCP) device, thereby eliminating the need for conventional techniques such as gating. In one example embodiment, an MCP device is provided that includes a plurality of channels, each channel for amplifying a photoelectron input to the channel and for producing an electron cloud at its output. The device further includes one or more charging switches associated with each channel for allowing charging current to flow so as to charge that channel in response to producing an electron cloud. In some such example cases, the plurality of channels and the one or more switches are implemented in silicon, and the one or more charging switches turn on only in the presence of the electron cloud produced at the corresponding channel output.
摘要:
Techniques are disclosed that can be used to interface a microchannel plate (MCP) with readout circuitry. The techniques can be employed, for instance, with MCP based devices used in a numerous sensing/detection applications, and are particularly suitable for applications where it is desirable to interface an MCP having a relatively large active area to a readout circuit having a relatively smaller active area. The interface effectively decouples anode geometry from ROIC geometry and may also be configured with flexible anode pad geometry, which allows for compensation of optical blur variations as well as a very high fill factor. The interface can be made using standard semiconductor materials and photolithography techniques, and can be configured with thermal expansion qualities that closely track or otherwise match that of the readout circuitry.
摘要:
A telescope design is disclosed that has at least some of its interior facing surfaces configured with corner reflectors, so that a detector operatively coupled to the telescope views itself, instead of those surfaces. The corner reflectors may be on, for example, interior facing surfaces of a conventional baffle appended to the telescope and/or mirror supports or other structures inside the telescope housing that are within the detector's FOV. Likewise, the corner reflectors may be on interior facing surfaces of a baffle that is integrated into the telescope housing. In some such cases, the integrated baffle can be configured as both a baffle and a mirror support. The integrated baffle can be shaped to the F-cone between mirrors of a given telescope design, and/or configured to minimize or otherwise reduce the total obscuration of the baffle to improve the optical throughput.
摘要:
A telescope design having an integrated baffle is disclosed herein. The integrated baffle is configured as both a baffle and a mirror support. The integrated baffle can be shaped to the F-cone between the primary and secondary mirrors of a given telescope design. The baffle design can be adjusted to minimize or otherwise reduce the total obscuration of the baffle to improve the optical throughput. The interior facing surfaces of the integrated baffle can be configured with corner reflectors, so that the detector views itself, instead of the baffle.
摘要:
Techniques are disclosed that can be used to interface a microchannel plate (MCP) with readout circuitry. The techniques can be employed, for instance, with MCP based devices used in a numerous sensing/detection applications, and are particularly suitable for applications where it is desirable to interface an MCP having a relatively large active area to a readout circuit having a relatively smaller active area. The interface effectively decouples anode geometry from ROIC geometry and may also be configured with flexible anode pad geometry, which allows for compensation of optical blur variations as well as a very high fill factor. The interface can be made using standard semiconductor materials and photolithography techniques, and can be configured with thermal expansion qualities that closely track or otherwise match that of the readout circuitry.
摘要:
A single dual mode monolithic focal plane array having an active sensor and a passive sensing capability is switched from one mode to the other by switching the bias across the cells of the array from a passive IR mode to an active LADAR mode, with the monolithic dual mode focal plane array having applications in missile target seekers and laser target designators. The switching is accomplished by increasing the gain of the array by as much as 30 times that associated with IR detection when laser return pulses are expected. Thus, there need be no mechanical changes to the array to afford both passive IR sensing and an active LADAR pulse detector. Nor need there be two different focal plane arrays, one for IR and one for laser radiation, which leads to boresighted alignment problems.
摘要:
A sensor is used to detect and track a plurality of objects by using a separate track window for each object. Such sensors may be electro optical or infrared. Each object of interest (potential target) in the sensor FOV has a unique track window assigned. This allows independent control of video frame summing for each object to maintain a constant (optimized) signal to noise ratio (SNR) over an extremely large signal dynamic range and reduces track jitter by the simultaneous tracking of multiple objects.
摘要:
Techniques are disclosed that can be used to interface a sensor circuit with readout circuitry. The techniques can be employed, for instance, with microchannel plate (MCP) based devices used in numerous sensing/detection applications, and are particularly suitable for applications where it is desirable to interface an MCP having a relatively large active area to a readout circuit having a relatively smaller active area. The interface effectively decouples anode geometry from readout circuit geometry and also may be configured with flexible anode pad geometry, which allows for compensation of optical blur variations as well as a very high fill factor. The interface can be made using standard semiconductor materials and photolithography techniques and can be configured with thermal expansion qualities that closely track or otherwise match that of the readout circuitry.