News Article
Goodrich Low SWaP Shortwave Infrared Camera is "The Smallest"
The compact lightweight camera enables 24-hour imaging capabilities in unmanned vehicles.
Goodrich Corporation claims it has introduced the smallest SWaP (size, weight and power) shortwave infrared (SWIR) camera for unmanned vehicles.
The camera weighs less than four and a half ounces and has a total volume of less than 4.9 cubic inches, making it suitable to fit most unmanned aerial or ground vehicle. Currently it is installed in the nosecone of a Raven hand-launched unmanned aerial system (UAS).
The new camera, developed by Goodrich's ISR Systems team in Princeton, N.J., features the company's proprietary indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) technology to see light wavelengths from 0.7 to 1.7 microns. Goodrich says traditional night vision cameras can detect wavelengths up to roughly 1.0 microns. The Goodrich SWIR camera's expanded capabilities allow the user to detect and track a wide range of military lasers, day or night, with exceptional clarity.
Cutaway of low SWaP SWIR camera mounted in the nosecone of a Raven unmanned aerial system
The camera is installed on the Raven UAS with a 320 x 240 resolution long-wave infrared (LWIR) microbolometer. The camera augments the microbolometer's thermal night imaging capabilities by enabling visual verification of laser location and imaging during thermal crossover - the hours of sunrise and sunset - when the performance of traditional thermal imaging systems is degraded.
According to Martin Ettenberg, director of business development for Goodrich's ISR Systems Princeton team, "The Goodrich SWIR camera combined with the LWIR microbolometer on the same platform allows 24-hour coverage from a single unmanned aerial system. This provides warfighters new capabilities and new concept of operations while meeting the low-SWaP requirements of the modern battlefield. It also eases the physical burden on warfighters by allowing them to carry a single camera payload."
Goodrich will be showcasing its SWIR cameras for UAV applications at AUVSI's Unmanned Systems North America show from Aug. 24-27, 2010 at the Colorado Convention Center, Denver at booth #2215.
Goodrich ISR Systems team in Princeton, N.J. (formerly Sensors Unlimited, Inc.) has produces NIR and SWIR cameras and systems utilizing advanced indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) imaging technology. These products are used for industrial, commercial, military, agricultural, and scientific markets.
