US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Gary W Carhart

Mikhail Alexseevich Vorontsov

Leonid Alexseevich Beresnev

Jony Jiang Liu

Mathieu Aubailly

Jennifer C Ricklin

John W Gowens, Ii

A method and apparatus for coherent beam combining in an array of laser beam collimators. The array of laser beam collimators includes an array of a plurality collimating lenses, each lens intercepting a respective one of a plurality of divergent laser beams. Each collimating lens is joined with adjacent collimating lenses such that an output aperture is formed with a common vertex of the adjacently joined collimating lenses. A concave mirror is positioned a distance from the common vertex for receiving a fraction of each of the collimated laser beams that passed through a portion of each of the collimating lenses that are adjacent to the common vertex, and then providing reflected fractional collimated laser beams. A sensor intercepts the reflected fractional collimated laser beams so as to provide a signal that is applied to synchronize the phase of each of the collimated laser beams.

Apparatus for coherent beam combining in an array of laser collimators

A method for mitigating image distortions induced by optical wave propagation through a random media (e.g., atmospheric turbulence or volume of water) from a stream of video data provided by a single shortexposure image sensor is described. The method is based on the two following sequential steps: (1) enhancement of the raw video stream and (2) fusion of the enhanced stream using the lucky region fusion (LRF) technique. The first step enhances features of the raw image stream the LRF method success is based on and especially mitigates the effect of low light level, aerosol pollution, dust, haze, and other deteriorating factors. The second step, fusion of the enhanced stream, is realized by sequentially merging image regions with highest quality within a temporal buffer into a single image before sliding the temporal window forward. The process is continuously repeated in order to generate a stream of fused images. The resulting fused stream hence has an image quality superior to that of any image within the buffer and demonstrates improved contrast as well as increased detail visualization. In addition, the disclosed invention offers a method for automated extraction of random media (atmospheric turbulence for example) characteristics needed for optimizing the LRF method performance. Based solely on analysis of the enhanced video stream, this has the advantage to eliminate the need for turbulence strength characterization devices (e.g., scintillometer) and it allows the invention to provide an optimal fused stream even when operating within an evolving environment.

Automated video data fusion method

An adaptive free-space laser communication system and a method of communication between laser communication transceivers of the system. Communication channel condition information communicated via laser beams transmitted between a first laser communication transceiver and a second laser communication transceiver is monitored and the information is shared between the transceivers. A wave-front phase of the laser beams is shaped with wave-front correctors of the first and second laser communication transceivers.

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Elkton, MD, United States of America

Gary W Carhart