Wide field-of-view imaging spectrometer
US5768040A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Aug 26, 1996 |
| Grant date | Jun 16, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 26, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01J3/2823
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
The invention provides an imaging spectrometer that provides a wide field-of-view camera and spectrometer for spectral imaging of a large two-dimensional area of the Earth's surface from an orbiting satellite or airplane. The wide field-of-view camera fore-optics includes spherical optical elements arranged monocentrically. The spectrometer includes an all-reflective coupling design that transfers the curved optical image to one or more compact imaging spectrometers. The spectrometers preferably comprise a spherical convex holographic grating and associated reflective optics for dispersing a collimated optical beam into its spectral components and focusing the spectral image onto a planar detector array. The instrument described herein is designed to operate in a "pushbroom" fashion, that is, the forward motion of the satellite or airplane generates the spatial dimension of the resulting image. Because of its compact optical design and because no additional scanning equipment is required to scan the Earth's surface, the instrument is very compact and light-weight.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.