Physical Optics Corporation — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: To address the Army"s need for multi-threat passive detection technology for aircraft

Description

To address the Army"s need for multi-threat passive detection technology for aircraft survivability equipment, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to develop a new Stacked Ultraviolet Visible and Infrared Sensor (SUVIS) for multi-spectral imaging based on multi-band spectral image routing and multi-bandUV, visible, NIR, MWIRsensor integration. When combined with a wide field-of-view reflective optics, such as the multi-aperture compound eye optics, the system will provide target detection and location via sensor data processing. Innovations in the single integrated multispectral sensor design with a scalability for other IR bands will allow development of a single missile, laser, hostile-fire, multi-threat warning sensor for the protection of Army rotary wing platforms from these primary threat classes. In Phase I, POC will identify design methodologies, critical design parameters, and key component evaluation of SUVIS technology, develop an initial design, analyze its performance, and demonstrate its novel features through a laboratory prototype. In Phase II, POC plans to optimize the SUVIS system and to build, test, and demonstrate the sensor prototype in a laboratory breadboard configuration against a simulated or real threat environment involving the three threat classes of interest.