Systems and methods for illumination and observation
First Claim
1. An aerial surveillance and reconnaissance system, comprising:
- a primary optical system having a primary mirror disposed to collect incoming light passing through a primary aperture, a secondary mirror disposed to receive the reflected light from the primary mirror, and a secondary aperture in the primary mirror;
a secondary optical system comprising;
a movable mirror having a first position and a second position, wherein the first position is configured to direct inbound light received from the secondary mirror to a first detector having sensitivity to ultraviolet light, and positioned functionally behind an ultraviolet bandpass filter, wherein the second position is configured to direct inbound light received from the secondary mirror to a second detector having sensitivity to visible light, and wherein the movable mirror is configured to transition between the first position and the second position when commanded;
a deformable mirror functionally disposed between the secondary aperture and the movable mirror, wherein the deformable mirror is configured to provide optical correction under computer control, and wherein the computer control is based on a predictive algorithm utilizing atmospheric factors; and
an ultraviolet laser illumination system capable of sending laser illumination out through the secondary aperture.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
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).
6 Citations
8 Claims
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1. An aerial surveillance and reconnaissance system, comprising:
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a primary optical system having a primary mirror disposed to collect incoming light passing through a primary aperture, a secondary mirror disposed to receive the reflected light from the primary mirror, and a secondary aperture in the primary mirror; a secondary optical system comprising; a movable mirror having a first position and a second position, wherein the first position is configured to direct inbound light received from the secondary mirror to a first detector having sensitivity to ultraviolet light, and positioned functionally behind an ultraviolet bandpass filter, wherein the second position is configured to direct inbound light received from the secondary mirror to a second detector having sensitivity to visible light, and wherein the movable mirror is configured to transition between the first position and the second position when commanded; a deformable mirror functionally disposed between the secondary aperture and the movable mirror, wherein the deformable mirror is configured to provide optical correction under computer control, and wherein the computer control is based on a predictive algorithm utilizing atmospheric factors; and an ultraviolet laser illumination system capable of sending laser illumination out through the secondary aperture. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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Specification