Research on long-range laser active imaging system applied in adverse weather conditions

摘要

A low-light level night vision device or thermal infrared imager belonging to passive imaging system is generally used in daily target detection and identification. But in adverse weather conditions of dark of night, poor atmospheric transmission characteristics or strong backscattering (fog, dust, rain, snow, etc.), even the most sensitive low-light level night vision could not provide enough image resolution for detecting and identifying targets, and the thermal infrared imager is also limited by low temperature contrast. A long-range laser active imaging system, in combination with high-power semiconductor pulsed lasers with collimation technology, receiving objective lens of large diameter, long focal length and narrow viewing angle, high-gain image intensifier CCD (ICCD) camera and range-gated synchronization control technology, is developed for long distance target detection and high resolution imaging in adverse weather conditions. The system composition and operating principle are introduced. The extremely powerful and efficient illuminators with collimation technology are able to deliver uniform beams, which are essential for illuminating targets at a distance and generating high-quality images. The particular receiving objective lens, ICCD camera and range-gated synchronization control technology could reduce strong backscattering signal and improve imaging signal-to-noise ratio. The laboratory and outfield experiments have been done to validate imaging effect and imaging quality. The results show that the minimum resolution is about 3-5cm, 10cm, and greater than 20 cm for target far from 1100m, 4700m, and 6700m respectively in dark of night. Furthermore, the minimum resolution could reach to 10cm and 20cm for target far from 2500m and 4800m respectively and the image is too blurred to accurately identify the target when observing the target far from 7200m in rainy condition.