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Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Infrared Phased-Array Antenna-Coupled Tunnel Diodes, Brian Alan Slovick
Infrared Phased-Array Antenna-Coupled Tunnel Diodes, Brian Alan Slovick
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Infrared (IR) dipole antenna-coupled metal-oxide-metal (MOM) tunnel diodes provide a unique detection mechanism that allows for determination of the polarization and wavelength of an optical field. By integrating the MOM diode into a phased-array antenna, the angle of arrival and degree of coherence of received IR radiation can be determined. The angular response characteristics of IR dipole antennas are determined by boundary conditions imposed by the surrounding dielectric or conductive environment on the radiated fields. To explore the influence of the substrate configuration, single dipole antennas are fabricated on both planar and hemispherical lens substrates. Measurements demonstrate that the angular …
Design Of A Monocular Multi-Spectral Skin Detection, Melanin Estimation, And False-Alarm Suppression System, Keith R. Peskosky
Design Of A Monocular Multi-Spectral Skin Detection, Melanin Estimation, And False-Alarm Suppression System, Keith R. Peskosky
Theses and Dissertations
A real-time skin detection, false-alarm reduction, and melanin estimation system is designed targeting search and rescue (SAR) with application to special operations for manhunting and human measurement and signatures intelligence. A mathematical model of the system is developed and used to determine how the physical system performs under illumination, target-to-sensor distance, and target-type scenarios. This aspect is important to the SAR community to gain an understanding of the deployability in different operating environments. A multi-spectral approach is developed and consists of two short-wave infrared cameras and two visible cameras. Through an optical chain of lenses, custom designed and fabricated dichroic …
Passive Ranging Using Atmospheric Oxygen Absorption Spectra, Michael R. Hawks
Passive Ranging Using Atmospheric Oxygen Absorption Spectra, Michael R. Hawks
Theses and Dissertations
The depth of absorption bands in observed spectra of distant, bright sources can be used to estimate range to the source. A novel approach is presented and demonstrated using observations of the oxygen absorption band near 762 nm. Range is estimated by comparing observed values of band-average absorption against curves derived from either historical data or model predictions. Curves are based on fitting a random band model to the data, which reduces average range error by 67% compared to the Beer's Law model used in previous work. A new modification to existing band models for long, inhomogeneous paths is presented …
Non-Imaging Infrared Spectral Target Detection, Matthew R. Whiteley
Non-Imaging Infrared Spectral Target Detection, Matthew R. Whiteley
Theses and Dissertations
Automatic detection of time-critical mobile targets using spectral-only infrared radiance data is explored. A quantification of the probability of detection, false alarm rate, and total error rate associated with this detection process is provided. A set of classification features is developed for the spectral data, and these features are utilized in a Bayesian classifier singly and in combination to provide target detection. The results of this processing are presented and sensitivity of the class separability to target set, target configuration, diurnal variations, mean contrast, and ambient temperature estimation errors is explored. This work introduces the concept of atmospheric normalization of …
Enhanced Tracking Of Airborne Targets Using Forward Looking Infrared And Laser Return Measurements, Patrick J. Grondin
Enhanced Tracking Of Airborne Targets Using Forward Looking Infrared And Laser Return Measurements, Patrick J. Grondin
Theses and Dissertations
The Air Force Institute of Technology has been involved in developing Kalman filter based trackers of ballistic missiles for 15 years. The goal of this thesis is to develop a Multiple Model Adaptive Estimator MMAE that tracks the missile plume using a forward looking infrared sensor and the missile hardbody center-of-mass additionally using low energy laser returns for the purpose of directing a high power laser to incapacitate the missile. The missile plume pogos about an offset equilibrium point relative to the hardbody center-of-mass with an amplitude and frequency of oscillation that are not precisely known a priori. The MMAE …
Development Of A Model For An Objective Minimum Resolvable Temperature Difference Characterization Of An Infrared Camera, Christine Issa Mourad
Development Of A Model For An Objective Minimum Resolvable Temperature Difference Characterization Of An Infrared Camera, Christine Issa Mourad
Theses
The parameter almost universally adopted by the infrared community for describing the overall performance of a thermal imaging camera is the minimum resolvable temperature difference. Unfortunately, this criterion is subjectively determined by a group of observers and as a consequence significantly varying results can be obtained at different times. This project describes work on an approach which ultimately aims to replace the observers by a computer-aided installation that simulates the human process by which the MRTD is estimated. The simulation is based on a direct measurement of signal to noise ratio in the image of the target and a determination …