Night vision system

• US 8,400,510 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2009
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DevCar, LLC
• Original Assignee: DevCar, LLC
• Inventors: O'Rourke, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): JACOBS, LASHONDA T
• Application Number:
  US12/589,695
• Publication Number:
  US 20100103267A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,239 Days
• Field of Search: 348/158, 348/E07.085, 348/36, 348/135, 348/164, 350/139, 350/145, 350/174, 350/538, 350/540
• US Class Current: 348/164
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0138 comprising image capture systems, e.g. camera
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0176 characterised by mechanical features
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/00 Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/55 Optical parts specially adapted for electronic image sensors; Mounting thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/65 Control of camera operation in relation to power supply
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

A night vision system includes an image intensifier tube and circuitry coupled to a digital storage medium that periodically samples a signal provided by the image intensifier tube and stores the sampled image to be viewed in near real time or at a later date by a data analyst. The night vision system includes a casing surrounding the image intensifier tube and the associated circuitry along with a port for accepting a power and/or signal cable for providing power to the image intensifier tube and image signal data to the digital storage medium. The system may further include a daytime camera and a switch for toggling the image signal data input to the digital storage medium between the daytime camera and the image intensifier tube.

Claims

1. A hands free night vision system comprising:

an image intensifier tube having a first end and a second end, said first end having an objective lens that accepts photons from a low light image of an object of interest and converts said photons into an electronic signal representative of the low light image of the object of interest, an output arranged at the second end of the image intensifier tube that outputs the electronic signal representative of the low light image of the object of interest, said image intensifier including a protective case;

a power source coupled to the image intensifier and providing power thereto to convert the photons into the electronic signal representative of the low light image of the object of interest;

a control unit coupled to the second end of the image intensifier tube and comprising a memory that accepts and stores the electronic signal representative of the low light image of the object of interest;

a mounting device for mounting the image intensifier tube onto a protective helmet; and

a signal cable arranged between the image intensifier tube and the control unit that transmits the electronic signal there between.

2. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said mounting device is a strap that passes from a left side of the helmet to a right side of the helmet to secure the image intensifier tube and the control unit thereto.

3. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said mounting device is a strap fixed to the helmet and passing from a front to a back thereof and securing the image intensifier tube to the top of the protective helmet.

4. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said mounting device is a Velcro strap.

5. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein the control unit comprises a pair of microphones that generate sounds which are recorded in the memory, a pinhole camera which operates during daytime hours to produce images which are sampled and stored in the memory and a switch for switching input to the memory between the image intensifier tube and the pinhole camera.

6. The hands free night vision system of claim 5 wherein the switch for switching the input to the memory between the image intensifier tube and the pinhole camera comprises a photocell that automatically detects whether the system is operating during daytime or nighttime hours.

7. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said memory is a solid state memory.

8. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said control unit includes a positive on/off switch, an erase/format button, and a Universal Serial Bus (USB) output port for use with viewing screens or glasses or downloading stored images from the memory, said USB output port also being used for recharging onboard batteries or power source of the control panel.

9. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said memory is a 16 GB solid state memory.

10. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said objective lens is a wide angle lens having a viewing angle substantially between ninety and one hundred degrees.

11. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein said objective lens is a zoom lens.

12. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein the objective lens is coupled to the image intensifier tube by a threaded C-coupler.

13. The hands free night vision system of claim 1 wherein the image intensifier tube comprises an image sensor that is one of a charge coupled device or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor device.

14. A hands free night vision system that comprises:

a helmet-mounted image intensifier tube having a first end comprising an objective lens that accepts photons and a second end that provides digital image signals that include digital images, said intensifier tube converting a low light image into a plurality of digital image signals that are decoded to create surveillance images;

a first power source that provides power to the helmet mounted image intensifier tube and being connected to the image intensifier tube;

a casing in which the helmet-mounted image intensifier tube is housed, said casing including recesses with access openings for depositing batteries into the recesses to create a voltage potential in the first power source;

a signal-power port arranged in said casing for accepting at least a signal end of a signal cable;

a signal cable having a first signal end arranged in the signal-power port of the casing, said signal cable including a second signal end that transmits at least digital images there through;

an electronic storage medium having a signal port for accepting the second end of the signal cable to receive digital images from said helmet-mounted image intensifier tube; and

a second power source connected to said electronic storage medium and for providing power thereto.

15. The image intensifier tube of claim 14 further comprising:

wide angle objective lens arranged at the first end of the helmet-mounted image intensifier tube, said helmet-mounted intensifier tube further including a circuit that steps up the voltage potential in the first power source to a high voltage potential;

a photocathode arranged in proximity to the first lens, said photocathode converting photons received by the first lens into a first plurality of electrons;

a micro-channel plate arranged in proximity to the photocathode to convert the first plurality of electrons into a second plurality of electrons having a larger magnitude than the first plurality of electrons;

a screen arranged in proximity to the micro channel plate and being struck by the second plurality of electrons, said screen comprising a material that fluoresces when struck by the second plurality of electrons to produce an image representative of the low light image; and

,

a semiconductor image chip that converts said image representative of the low light image into a digital signal; and

a second lens arranged between said screen and said semiconductor image chip to focus the image representative of the low light image onto the semiconductor image chip.

16. The image intensifier tube of claim 14 further comprising:

a zoom lens arranged at the first end of the helmet-mounted image intensifier tube, said helmet-mounted intensifier tube further including a circuit that steps up the voltage potential in the first power source to a high voltage potential;

a photocathode arranged in proximity to the first lens, said photocathode converting photons received by the first lens into a first plurality of electrons;

a micro-channel plate arranged in proximity to the photocathode to convert the first plurality of electrons into a second plurality of electrons having a larger magnitude than the first plurality of electrons;

a screen arranged in proximity to the micro channel plate and being struck by the second plurality of electrons, said screen comprising a material that fluoresces when struck by the second plurality of electrons to produce an image representative of the low light image;

a semiconductor image chip that converts said image representative of the low light image into a digital signal; and

a plurality of fiber optics arranged between said screen and said semiconductor image chip to focus the image representative of the low light image onto the semiconductor image chip.

17. The night vision system of claim 14 wherein said second power source connects to a high voltage power source that surrounds one or more selected from a group consisting of the photocathode and the micro-channel plate and for providing power thereto.

18. A night vision system that comprises:

a helmet-mounted image intensifier tube having a first end that accepts photons and a second end that provides digital image signals, said image intensifier tube converting a low light image into a digital image signal;

a power source that provides power to the helmet mounted image intensifier tube and being remote from the image intensifier tube;

a casing in which the helmet-mounted image intensifier tube is housed, said casing including recesses with access openings for depositing batteries into the recesses to create a voltage potential in the first power source;

a signal-power port arranged in said casing for accepting at least a signal end of a signal cable;

a signal cable having a first end arranged in the signal-power port of the casing, said signal cable including a second end that transmits at least digital images there through; and

an electronic storage device having a database that stores images and a hardened exterior that includes a signal port for accepting the second end of the signal cable to receive digital images from said helmet-mounted image intensifier tube to save said image in the electronic storage device.