Raytheon Company

John D Bloomer

Ian S Robinson

Bradley A Flanders

Michael D Vahey

Mark T Busch

Ian N Robinson

Methods and systems are disclosed for compensating for image motion induced by a relative motion between an imaging platform and a scene. During an exposure period, frames of the scene may be captured respectively in multiple spectral bands, where one of the spectral bands has a lower light level than the first spectral band, and contemporaneous frames include a nearly identical induced image motion. Image eigenfunctions are utilized to estimate the induced image motion from the higher SNR spectral band, and compensate in each of the multiple bands.

Self correcting adaptive low light optical payload

Systems and methods for identifying root causes for and/or correcting pointing error in moving platform imaging. Scene frames captured by a sensor (e.g., a focal plane array, etc.) are digitally transformed to compensate for relative motion between the scene and platform, then motion residuals are computed based on inter-frame scene gradients, and image eigenfunctions are fit to the motion residuals to compute coefficients that may be used to efficiently correct future image acquisition, determine root cause(s) of pointing (e.g., sensor pointing error, scene mean altitude, platform altitude, etc.) errors, and further digitally correct the captured images. Comparisons may be made to a database of residual transformation coefficients based on known or expected relative motion of the platform to the scene and a known or expected pointing angle. Truly moving targets may be identified, removed and re-added after image digital transformation processing.

Video geolocation

A multimode configurable imaging spectropolarimeter in which the polarimetry function can be activated and deactivated on demand.

Configurable combination spectrometer and polarizer

An imaging platform minimizes inter-frame image changes when there is relative motion of the imaging platform with respect to the scene being imaged, where the imaging platform may be particularly susceptible to image change, especially when it is configured with a wide field of view or high angular rate of movement. In one embodiment, a system is configured to capture images and comprises: a movable imaging platform having a sensor that is configured to capture images of a scene, each image comprising a plurality of pixels; and an image processor configured to: digitally transform captured images with respect to a common field of view (FOV) such that the transformed images appear to be taken by a non-moving imaging platform, wherein the pixel size and orientation of pixels of each transformed image are the same. A method for measuring and displaying 3-D features is also described.

Correcting frame-to-frame image changes due to motion for three dimensional (3-D) persistent observations

Interferometric transform spectrometer (ITS) systems and methods of operation thereof. In one example, an ITS system includes a Michelson interferometer that introduces a varying optical path length difference (OPD) between its two arms so as to produce an interferogram, a detector that receives and samples the interferogram, and a scan controller coupled to the detector and to Michelson interferometer. The scan controller controls the Michelson interferometer to vary the OPD in discrete steps such that the detector provides M samples of the interferogram for each of two scan segments. In the first scan segment, the M samples have a uniform or non-uniform sample spacing and the OPD has a first maximum value. In the second scan segment, the M samples have an incrementally increasing sample spacing and the OPD has a second maximum value that is at least twice the first maximum value.

Imaging spectrometer with extended resolution

In accordance with various aspects of the disclosure, a system, a method, and computer readable medium having instructions for processing images is disclosed. For example, the method includes receiving, at an image processor, a set of images corresponding to a scene changing with time, decomposing, at the image processor, the set of images to detect static objects, leaner objects, and mover objects in the scene, the mover objects being objects that change spatial orientation in the scene with time, and compressing, using the image processor, the mover objects in the scene separately at a rate different from that of the static objects and the leaner objects for storage and/or transmission.

Method and apparatus for image processing

An imaging interferometric transform spectropolarimeter configured to simultaneously collect four polarizations. In one example, an spectropolarimeter includes a dual-beam interferometric transform spectrometer configured to receive electromagnetic radiation from a viewed scene, and including first and second focal plane arrays that are spatially registered with one another, a first polarizer coupled to the first focal plane array and configured to transmit only a first pair of polarizations to the first focal plane array, and a second polarizer coupled to the second focal plane array and configured to transmit only a second pair of polarizations to the second focal plane array, the second pair of polarizations being different than the first pair of polarizations.

Imaging spectropolarimeter using orthogonal polarization pairs

An imaging transform spectrometer, and method of operation thereof, that is dynamically configurable 'on demand' between an interferometric spectrometer function and a broadband spatial imaging function to allow a single instrument to capture both broadband spatial imagery and spectral data of a scene. In one example, the imaging transform spectrometer is configured such that the modulation used for interferometric imaging may be dynamically turned ON and OFF to select a desired mode of operation for the instrument.

Growing community of inventors

Redondo Beach, CA, United States of America

John D Bloomer