Systems and Methods for Illumination and Observation
First Claim
1. An aerial surveillance and reconnaissance system, comprising:
- a primary optical system having a primary aperture, an incoming light path, and including at least three mirrors;
a first detector coupled to the incoming light path, having sensitivity to ultraviolet light, and behind an ultraviolet bandpass filter;
a second detector coupled to the incoming light path, having sensitivity to visible light;
a movable minor which can be commanded to direct light to either the first detector or the second detector; and
an ultraviolet laser illumination system capable of sending laser illumination out through the primary optical system.
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Abstract
An aerial surveillance and reconnaissance system includes a gimbal-stabilized ISR imaging sensor with 0.8-1.2 microradian optical resolution, using pulsed ultraviolet laser (0.330-0.380 micrometer wavelength) radiation to illuminate the observed target, and a narrow-band-pass filter at the focal plane detector to remove light at frequencies other than the illuminating frequency. Preferred sensors can be operated in a snapshot mode using intermittent illuminating pulses, with timing of the pulses selected for minimum detectability based on observations made with a lower-resolution sensor, or in a video-mode with illuminating pulses selected to generate full-motion video at operator-selectable frame rates. Some sensor embodiments may further combine the UV system described above with conventional daylight optical and sensor systems, though alternative arrangements could also include an IR sensor as well (either using a common aperture with the UV system or with a separate set of light-gathering optics).
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Citations
13 Claims
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1. An aerial surveillance and reconnaissance system, comprising:
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a primary optical system having a primary aperture, an incoming light path, and including at least three mirrors; a first detector coupled to the incoming light path, having sensitivity to ultraviolet light, and behind an ultraviolet bandpass filter; a second detector coupled to the incoming light path, having sensitivity to visible light; a movable minor which can be commanded to direct light to either the first detector or the second detector; and an ultraviolet laser illumination system capable of sending laser illumination out through the primary optical system. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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Specification