Infra red imaging system
US4886330A · kind A · utility
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 7, 1988 |
| Grant date | Dec 12, 1989 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 7, 2008 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02B26/10
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A search apparatus and method for use in conjunction with an electro-optical sensor that does not require its own integral scanning mechanism for searching object space for potential targets. The apparatus of the invention comprises a plano mirror movable azimuthally a line perpendicular to and geometrically centered on the focal plane of the electro-optical imaging sensor and further movable about an elevational axis perpendicularly offset from the azimuthal axis of rotation and outside of the field of view of the electro-optical imaging system. The method of the invention comprises rotating the plano mirror about its azimuthal axis of rotation while inclining (or declining) the mirror about its elevational axis of rotation to produce a spiral, substantially full hemispherical search without any corresponding movement of the electro-optical imaging sensor.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.