Patent Application
20130050560
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to field of view elevation selection and more particularly to a system for electronically selecting the field of view.
Brief Description of Related Art
The portion of a scene called a field of view can be acquired at any time in a combat vehicle uncooled thermal imaging long wave infrared periscope assembly and is expressed in elevation and azimuth angles. The total scene area viewable by such acquisition, in driver enhancer applications, is referred to as a field of regard and is frequently larger than the field of view.
Existing techniques of selecting an elevational field of view in the combat vehicle uncooled thermal imaging long wave infrared periscope assembly use either a tilting periscope minor, or a vertically sliding focal plane assembly. Each of these techniques is used extensively and has moving mechanical parts that either tilt the minor or slide the focal plane assembly. Such moving parts may increase the complexity of the design and may result in reduced reliability over time.
An electronic vertical adjustment focal plane assembly for electronic selection of a field of view from a larger field of regard is disclosed. According to one aspect of the present subject matter, the electronic vertical adjustment focal plane assembly includes a lens assembly, a fixed focal plane assembly, a video controller and a video display module. Further, the electronic vertical adjustment focal plane assembly includes a housing configured to house the lens assembly and the fixed focal plane assembly. In operation, the lens assembly is configured to focus radiation coming from an external field of view on to the focal plane assembly. Further, the fixed focal plane assembly, that is oversized to substantially cover an entire field of regard, is configured to receive the focused radiation from the lens assembly and to output a signal. Furthermore, the video controller, electronically coupled to the signal from the fixed focal plane assembly, is configured to generate an image based on an electronically selected desired elevational field of view. Alternatively, the electronically desired elevation field of view is selected within the focal plane assembly by the read out integrated circuit (ROIC),In addition, the video display module is configured to receive the generated image and display the generated image.
The advantages and features of the present disclosure will become better understood with reference to the following detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like elements are identified with like symbols, and in which:
The exemplary embodiments described herein in detail for illustrative purposes are subject to many variations in structure and design.
Referring now to
Referring now to
In operation, the lens assembly 302 is configured to focus radiation coming from an external field of view 308, selected from a larger elevation adjustment range 306. Further, the fixed focal plane assembly 304, that is oversized to substantially cover the entire field of regard, is configured to receive the focused radiation from the lens assembly 302 and to output a signal. In one embodiment, the elevation field of view is electronically selected over the entire elevation adjustment range 306.
Referring now to
In operation, the lens assembly 302 is configured to focus radiation coming from an external field of view on to the focal plane assembly. Further, the fixed focal plane assembly 304, that is oversized to substantially cover an entire field of regard, is configured to receive the focused radiation from the lens assembly 302 and to output a signal. In one embodiment, the fixed focal plane assembly 304 is configured to produce a 640×480 resolution video signal. In one exemplary implementation, electronically adjusted elevational field of view can be produced by the fixed focal plane assembly 304 producing the 640×480 resolution video signal, rotated such that the 640 elements are oriented vertically. The instantaneous vertical field of view may consist of 360 elements selected from the 640 available giving a 30 degree instantaneous vertical field of view, with a 30 degree field of regard, ±11.7 degrees. In another embodiment, the fixed focal plane assembly 304 is configured to produce a 1024×768 resolution video signal. Furthermore, the video controller 404, electronically coupled to the signal from the fixed focal plane assembly 304, is configured to generate an image based on an electronically selected desired elevational field of view. In addition, the video display module 402 is configured to receive the generated image and display the generated image. Exemplary video display module 402 includes a flat panel display and the like.
The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the present disclosure and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the present disclosure and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is understood that various omission and substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstance may suggest or render expedient, but such are intended to cover the application or implementation without departing from the spirit or scope of the claims of the present disclosure.
This Application claims rights under 35 USC §119(e) from U.S. application Ser. No. 61/526,512 filed Aug. 23, 2011, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61526512 | Aug 2011 | US |
