Color night vision apparatus

• US 20020175268A1
• Filed: 05/22/2001
• Published: 11/28/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Elbit Systems of America LLC (Elbit Systems Limited)
• Original Assignee: ITT Manufacturing Enterprises, Inc. (ITT, Inc.)
• Inventors: Smith, Arlynn Walter
• Granted Patent: US 6,570,147 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/208.1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 23/12 with means for image conversion or intensification

Abstract

There is disclosed a color night vision device, which employs a separate image intensifier for each primary color. Thus, the apparatus employs an image intensifier for red, an image intensifier for green and an image intensifier for blue. In one embodiment, each image intensifier produces an image of that color from light which is distributed to the input of the image intensifier through a dichroic X-Cube system. The output of each image intensifier produces an image corresponding to the input image of a corresponding color. Thus, the green image intensifier produces a green image, the red image intensifier produces a red image and the blue image intensifier produces a blue image. The three images are superimposed or combined to produce a true color output image. Superimposition of the images can occur by means of a suitable dichroic output device which is similar to the dichroic input device or in alternate embodiments, the use of bent fibers or charge coupled display devices.

Claims

1. A color night vision apparatus, comprising:

at least three image intensifier tubes, each one associated with a different one primary color, each tube having an input for receiving a low light image and an output for providing an intensified image,

an input dichroic frequency splitter positioned between the input of each tube and having an input port for receiving said low light image, and directing said input signal to said input of each tube, to cause each tube to provide an intensified output signal of said input signal and according to the primary color content in said input signal as associated with said respective tube, and

means responsive to said output signals of each tube for combining said signals indicative of each primary color to provide an output color image indicative of said low light image.

2. The color apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said first tube is associated with green, said second tube associated with blue and said third tube associated with red.

3. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means responsive to said output signals comprises an output dichroic frequency splitter positioned at the output of each tube and operative to combine the outputs into a single color signal indicative of said low light image.

4. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said means responsive to said output signals comprises first and second bent fiber optic bundles each having a first and second end with said first end of said first bundle positioned at said output of the first image intensifier for providing an output image indicative of the primary color green (G) and with the said first end of said second fiber optic bundle positioned at said output of said second tube providing an image indicative of the primary color blue (B), with a dichroic cube coupler having first, second and third inputs and an output, with the second end of said first bundle coupled to said first input of said coupler, with said second end of said second bundle coupled to said second input of said coupler, and with the output of said third tube indicative of the primary color red coupler to said third input of said dichroic coupled, to provide a full color image of said low light image at said output of said dichroic cube coupler.

5. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means responsive to said output signals includes first, second and third CCD'"'"'s, each having an input for receiving an image and an output for generating an image of a predetermined primary color, with said outputs of said charge coupled devices combined to provide a color image of said low light image.

6. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 further including an optical element coupled to one of said image intensifiers and operative to adjust the path length of at least one of said primary colors with respect to the path length of other primary colors to maintain the same first plane for each color.

7. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 2 further including a filter positioned at the input of said image intensifier associated with the primary color red to eliminate near infrared photons.

8. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said input dichroic frequency splitter is a dichroic X-Cube having a first input for receiving said low light image and first, second and third outputs for providing at each output an associated different primary color image obtained for said input image.

9. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising:

an objective lens positioned at said input port of said input dichroic filter to provide a collimated light image to said input port.

10. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means responsive to said output includes at least one ocular lens positioned with respect to said output color image to enable a user to view said image through said device.

11. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said output dichroic frequency splitter comprises a dichroic X-Cube having a first input for receiving the output of said first intensifier, a second input for receiving the output of said second intensifier and a third input for receiving the output of said third intensifier and an output for providing a fused image of said three outputs indicative of a color image of said low light image.

12. The color night vision apparatus according to claim 1 wherein each image intensifier tube is optimized to amplify the particular color wavelength provided at the input of each device.