Rasterization laser system for countering low-slow-small target and working method of rasterization laser system

Abstract

The invention discloses a rasterization laser system for countering a low-slow small target. The rasterization laser system comprises a plurality of laser node devices deployed in a rasterization mode and a comprehensive management and control center in communication connection with the laser node devices. The laser node equipment comprises a detection tracking unit, a laser damage unit, a node control unit and a node guarantee unit; the detection tracking unit comprises an infrared detection tracking module, a visible light detection tracking module, a visible light fine tracking module and a laser ranging module; the laser damage unit comprises a plurality of air-cooled laser light sources, a light beam space energy synthesis module and a light beam positioning module, and laser beams emitted by the air-cooled laser light sources are subjected to light beam energy convergence through the light beam space energy synthesis module; and the light beam orientation module emits the high-energy laser beam sent by the light beam space energy synthesis module at the same angle according to target angle information provided by the detection tracking unit, and realizes laser target damage according to an attack target distance and a matching light spot focusing distance.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of anti-drone technology, and in particular relates to a gridded laser system for countering low, slow and small targets and its working method. Background Technology

[0002] Low-altitude, slow-moving, and small targets, such as drones, loitering munitions, and micro-aircraft, are characterized by low-altitude / ultra-low-altitude penetration, slow hovering, and small size. Traditional air defense systems face significant challenges in countering them due to their high cost and difficulty. For example, these targets typically fly at extremely low speeds, making them susceptible to interference from complex ground clutter, hindering timely target detection. Furthermore, their small size presents challenges in interception, particularly regarding the timely detonation of fuses during missile encounters. Secondly, the increasing cost of drones, coupled with the rising performance of existing air defense weapons, creates a significant cost asymmetry when using traditional missiles for anti-drone operations, resulting in high countermeasure costs. As drone and anti-drone warfare intensifies, a low-cost, high-precision detection and tracking system for low-altitude, slow-moving, and small targets is urgently needed. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the problem of laser destruction of small, slow, and regional targets, the present invention aims to provide a low-cost, precisely detectable and trackable gridded laser system for countering small, slow, and regional targets, as well as its operating method.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0005] A gridded laser system for countering low-speed, small targets includes: a plurality of gridded laser node devices and a comprehensive control center that is communicatively connected to the laser node devices via a communication data transmission module;

[0006] The laser node device includes a detection and tracking unit, a laser destruction unit, a node control unit, and a node support unit. The detection and tracking unit includes an infrared detection and tracking module, a visible light detection and tracking module, a visible light precision tracking module, and a laser ranging module. The laser destruction unit includes multiple wind-cooled laser sources, a beam spatial energy synthesis module, and a beam positioning module. The laser beams emitted by the multiple wind-cooled laser sources are converged by the beam spatial energy synthesis module. The beam positioning module emits high-energy laser beams from the beam spatial energy synthesis module at the same angle according to the target angle information provided by the detection and tracking unit, and matches the beam focusing distance according to the distance to the target to achieve laser destruction of the target.

[0007] The integrated control center includes a node device monitoring and management module, a comprehensive situation display module, a node deployment analysis module, a task coordination and allocation module, an external information receiving module, and a power supply module. The node device monitoring and management module is used to remotely monitor the status of the laser node devices. The comprehensive situation display module is used to display coarse external information and the target information and location information tracked by the laser node devices. The node deployment analysis module is used to provide a reference for the task coordination and allocation module's decision-making based on the location information of the laser node devices and the laser damage airspace range of the laser node devices sent by the node device monitoring and management module. The task coordination and allocation module is used to allocate tasks to the laser node devices.

[0008] The laser node devices are deployed in M' rows along the horizontal length and N' columns along the vertical width of the grid area, achieving a horizontal length of M'×L. max Vertical width N'×L max Laser damage coverage capability for typical UAV targets in areas below altitude H, L max This represents the maximum deployment interval between adjacent laser node devices. R' in the formula max H represents the maximum damage distance of the laser node device to a typical UAV-type target, and H represents the maximum altitude of the typical UAV-type target.

[0009] Furthermore, the wavelength interval of the air-cooled laser source is not less than 10 nm.

[0010] Furthermore, the node control unit includes an equipment monitoring module, a detection and tracking control module, a laser control module, a damage assessment module, an external information receiving module, and a situation display module. The equipment monitoring module is used to monitor the working status of each unit, the detection and tracking control module is used to control the operation of each module of the detection and tracking unit, the laser control module is used to control the laser damage unit to accurately damage the target, the damage assessment module is used to determine whether the target has been damaged, and the external information receiving module is used to receive coarse external information about the target sent from the external network and convert it into angle, distance, speed, and type information of the laser anti-radio system deployment location.

[0011] Furthermore, the node support unit includes an energy storage battery module, which provides instantaneous high-power DC power to the air-cooled laser source, and each air-cooled laser source is configured with one energy storage battery module.

[0012] Furthermore, the node support unit also includes a direct power supply module, a positioning and orientation module, and a high-precision turntable. The direct power supply module supplies power to the energy storage battery module, the positioning and orientation module provides timing and positioning for the laser anti-radio system, and the tracking and detection unit and the laser destruction unit are mounted on the high-precision turntable.

[0013] Furthermore, the lowest cost F of a gridded laser system min (X,Y,H) is:

[0014] F min (X,Y,H)=m·n·C(a,b,c,R′ max )+S′+m·n·Q;

[0015] In the formula, m is the number of detection and tracking units required in the horizontal length direction, n is the number of detection and tracking units required in the vertical width direction, Q is the additional cost of managing a single set of laser node equipment, S' is the basic cost of the integrated control center, and C(a,b,c,R') max ) represents the cost of a single set of the laser node equipment.

[0016] The present invention also provides a method for operating a gridded laser system, including the control process of the integrated control center over each laser node device and the control process of the laser node device after receiving a task;

[0017] The control process of the integrated management and control center over each laser node device includes the following steps:

[0018] S1. The system is powered on, and the integrated control center communicates with the laser node device through the communication data transmission module;

[0019] S2. The node device monitoring and management module monitors the status of each laser node device;

[0020] S3. The laser node devices report their respective location information to the node device monitoring and management module, and the node device monitoring and management module sends the location information of the laser node devices to the node deployment analysis module.

[0021] S4. The external information receiving module receives the target's external coarse information and converts it into a recognizable data format before sending it to the task coordination and allocation module.

[0022] S5. The task coordination and allocation module assigns the task of intercepting different low, slow and small targets to the laser node device;

[0023] S6. The laser node device performs target search and tracking according to the assigned task, and determines whether it has the ability to damage the target. Then, it feeds back the tracking status and whether it has the ability to damage the target to the task coordination and allocation module, which decides whether the task needs to be reassigned.

[0024] S7. The node device monitoring and management module controls the shutdown of all modules of each laser node device except for the power supply module, communication data transmission module and device monitoring module; after the task coordination and allocation module allocates tasks to the laser node device, the node device monitoring and management module controls the startup of all modules of the laser node device except for the power supply module, communication data transmission module and device monitoring module.

[0025] After receiving the assigned task, the laser node device operates as follows:

[0026] S101. After powering on and completing timing and positioning, the node control unit receives rough external information about the target from the external network and converts it into angle, distance, speed, and type information of the laser system deployment location.

[0027] S102. For a target to be destroyed, the detection and tracking unit sends the target's rough external information to the infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module. The infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module search for and track the target. When either the infrared detection and tracking module or the visible light detection and tracking module searches for and tracks the target, the other module simultaneously searches for and tracks the target to confirm its location, and outputs the target's angle information based on the target's center point position, which is then sent to the node control unit.

[0028] S103. The node control unit determines whether it has the capability to kill the target based on the target type. If it does, it guides the visible light precision tracking module to search and track the area near the angle information output in step S102. When the visible light precision tracking module tracks the target, it outputs the high-precision angle information of the target and sends it to the node control unit. If it is determined that the laser anti-nuclear system does not have the capability to kill the target, it sends the information to the task coordination and allocation module to determine whether the task needs to be reassigned.

[0029] S104. After receiving the high-precision angle information sent by the visible light precision tracking module, the node control unit controls the laser ranging module to measure the target distance and superimposes the high-precision angle information to form the target's high-precision azimuth, elevation, and distance information.

[0030] S105. The node control unit receives the high-precision azimuth, elevation, and distance information of the target, and selects an appropriate wind-cooled laser source to emit laser beam power according to the distance to the target and the target type. Multiple wind-cooled laser sources emit beams to the beam spatial energy combining module, and the beam spatial energy combining module combines multiple laser beams into a high-energy laser beam.

[0031] S106. The node control unit controls the beam orientation module to match the beam spot focusing distance according to the target distance information, and to emit the high-energy laser beam sent by the beam spatial energy synthesis module at the same angle to damage the target according to the high-precision target angle information provided by the visible light tracking module.

[0032] S107. The node control unit observes the damage effect on the target. If the damage effect of the laser on the target is not obvious, it controls the beam orientation module to deflect the beam so that the high-energy laser beam damages different positions of the target.

[0033] S108. The node control unit determines whether the target is damaged. If the target is not damaged, laser destruction continues. If the target is damaged, the destruction result is reported to the task coordination and allocation module via the task receiving and implementation module, and the task coordination and allocation module reassigns the target interception task.

[0034] As can be seen from the above technical solutions, the gridded laser system of this invention utilizes a gridded concept to regionally coordinate the deployment of laser node devices. These laser node devices employ air-cooled laser sources, significantly reducing the weight and portability of the laser source while also lowering costs. Furthermore, by combining the spatial energy of multiple air-cooled laser sources, the system addresses the issue of insufficient power from a single air-cooled laser source. This increases the output power of the entire laser anti-radiation system without increasing the power of individual air-cooled laser sources, thus achieving target destruction. This invention achieves large-area laser destruction of low-, slow-moving, and small targets, breaking away from the approach of solely pursuing increased damage range from a single laser weapon. It achieves a dynamic balance between performance, cost, and deployment quantity, solving the problem of detecting and countering "low-, slow-moving, and small" targets while optimizing economic benefits. Attached Figure Description

[0035] To more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0036] Figure 1 This is a structural block diagram of a gridded laser system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the deployment of the laser node device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the laser destruction unit according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating the control process of the integrated management and control center over the laser node devices according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0040] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the laser node device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0041] Figure 6 The maximum horizontal damage distance R″ of the laser node device in this embodiment of the invention against a typical UAV-type target is [not specified]. max Schematic diagram;

[0042] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram showing the deployment distance between two adjacent sets of laser node devices in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] The specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Detailed Implementation

[0044] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention, for ease of explanation, the drawings illustrating the device structure will be partially enlarged without adhering to the general scale. Furthermore, the schematic diagrams are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention. It should be noted that the drawings are in a simplified form and use non-precise scales, solely for the purpose of conveniently and clearly illustrating the embodiments of the present invention. Additionally, in the description of this application, terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish descriptions and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of indicated technical features. Terms such as "positive," "negative," "bottom," "upper," and "lower" indicate orientation or positional relationships based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the present invention.

[0045] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "connected" and "linked" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can also refer to the internal connection of two components; and they can refer to a wireless connection or a wired connection. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0046] For the defense of "low, slow and small" targets, anti-none systems are mainly deployed in a point-like manner around the protected target. However, since "low, slow and small" targets can penetrate at extremely low altitudes, point deployment inevitably results in some 360° obstruction in certain directions. In particular, vehicle-mounted anti-none equipment can only be deployed in areas that vehicles can reach, making it difficult to overcome the impact of terrain and ground objects on target interception.

[0047] With the large-scale application of lasers in the civilian market, the cost of fiber laser sources is becoming increasingly affordable. Currently, the most common laser sources are water-cooled and air-cooled laser sources. Compared to water-cooled laser sources, air-cooled laser sources are lighter and more conducive to meeting the requirements of portable equipment. However, the continuous emission time of air-cooled laser sources is generally no more than 2 minutes, and the power of a single air-cooled laser source is difficult to achieve above 3kW, making it difficult to meet the needs of laser anti-reflection systems.

[0048] To address the problems of existing vehicle-mounted anti-gravity devices and the need for anti-gravity laser systems to counter low-speed, small targets, this invention proposes a gridded laser system. Multiple laser node devices are deployed in a gridded manner to construct a dense laser array. The laser node devices utilize multiple air-cooled laser light sources for power spatial synthesis. This achieves greater laser power while maintaining portability, meeting the requirements for laser anti-gravity systems. Furthermore, it can be flexibly deployed according to terrain, forming a regional laser anti-gravity capability.

[0049] like Figure 1 As shown, the gridded laser system for countering low-altitude, slow-moving, and small targets in this embodiment includes: a comprehensive control center and several sets of gridded laser node devices. The comprehensive control center is used for managing and controlling the gridded laser node devices, monitoring their status, and assigning targets. Figure 2 As shown, the laser node devices are arranged in a square grid array. Every four laser node devices arranged in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction form a grid area.

[0050] The laser node device in this embodiment includes a detection and tracking unit, a laser destruction unit, a node control unit, and a node support unit. The detection and tracking unit, guided by coarse external target information, searches for, tracks, and identifies low-speed, small targets, providing precise target guidance to the laser destruction unit and offering information such as the target's angle, distance, type, and image. The detection and tracking unit can also provide real-time status information of the target to be destroyed by the laser. The laser destruction unit generates a high-energy laser beam to destroy the target. The node control unit, based on the received coarse external target information, guides the detection and tracking unit to employ a three-class (infrared detection and tracking, visible light detection and tracking, and visible light fine tracking) two-level (coarse tracking and fine tracking) tracking mode to generate high-precision angle and distance information, controlling the laser destruction unit to destroy the low-speed, small targets. The coarse external target information is typically provided by external radar and includes information such as the target's accuracy, latitude, altitude, speed, and time. The node support unit provides power support for the operation of the detection and tracking unit, laser destruction unit, node control unit, and other units, and provides timing and positioning for the entire system.

[0051] The integrated control center in this embodiment includes a node device monitoring and management module, a comprehensive situation display module, a node deployment analysis module, a task coordination and allocation module, a power supply module, and an external information receiving module. The node device monitoring and management module remotely monitors the status of each laser node device, such as the power level of the energy storage power module and the remaining emission time of the air-cooled laser source. When a module failure is detected in a laser node device, it can be replaced / repaired promptly. It can also control the power on / off operation of internal modules of each laser node device as needed. For example, the detection and tracking unit can be turned off when there is no target threat, but can be turned on when a target is approaching. Simultaneously, it acquires the location information of each laser node device. The comprehensive situation display module displays coarse external information, target information tracked by each laser node device, location information, and key laser damage processes in a two-dimensional and three-dimensional situation. The node deployment analysis module, based on the location information of each laser node device sent by the node device monitoring and management module, and combined with the three-dimensional map tool in the comprehensive situation display module, provides a reference for the task coordination and allocation module to make auxiliary decisions based on the laser damage airspace range of each laser node device. The task coordination and allocation module is used to allocate tasks for intercepting different targets to each laser node device based on external coarse information, combined with the laser damage airspace range of each laser node device, the power status of the energy storage power module, and the remaining emission time of the air-cooled laser source module. The power supply module supplies power to all modules in the integrated control center. The external information receiving module receives external coarse information about the targets; this information is sourced from radar by default.

[0052] The detection and tracking unit in this embodiment includes an infrared detection and tracking module, a visible light detection and tracking module, a visible light precision tracking module, and a laser ranging module. The infrared detection and tracking module is used to identify the target type based on its infrared characteristics and to search for and track the target within a small range (1°–3° × 1°–3°). The infrared detection and tracking module can output high-precision angle information (0.1° × 0.1°) and has all-weather operating capabilities.

[0053] The visible light detection and tracking module is used to identify the target type based on the target's shape and color characteristics, and to search and track the target within a small range (1° to 3° × 1° to 3°), outputting high-precision angle information (0.1° × 0.1°). In some embodiments, the visible light detection and tracking module can employ a visible light detection camera, which features low cost and strong search and tracking capabilities under visually visible conditions. The visible light detection and tracking module, in conjunction with the infrared detection and tracking module, can improve the detection and tracking unit's ability to detect low-speed, small targets in complex environments.

[0054] The visible light precision tracking module is used to perform small field-of-view search and tracking based on the angle information provided by the infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module. The tracking accuracy of the visible light precision tracking module can reach 20μm to 100μm, and it has a very high data rate, reaching over 200Hz. Its related parameters directly affect the damage effectiveness of the laser damage subsystem.

[0055] The laser ranging module is used to emit a low-power laser beam to measure the distance to small, slow-moving targets tracked by the visible light tracking module, providing a reference for the output power and focusing distance of the laser damage unit.

[0056] like Figure 3 As shown, the laser destruction unit in this embodiment includes M air-cooled laser sources 1 (M≥2), a beam spatial energy synthesis module 2, a beam orientation module 3, and a housing 4. The air-cooled laser sources 1, beam spatial energy synthesis module 2, and beam orientation module 3 are all housed within the housing 4. Currently, the maximum power of a single air-cooled laser source on the market is 3kW, which is insufficient for the requirements of an anti-radio system. This invention employs multiple air-cooled laser sources and generates a high-energy laser beam through beam spatial energy synthesis. By combining beam spatial energy, the output power of the entire laser anti-radio system can be increased without increasing the power of a single air-cooled laser source. Moreover, with the same output power, the weight is only 1 / 2 to 1 / 5 of that of a water-cooled laser source, meeting portability requirements.

[0057] To achieve spatial energy synthesis of multiple laser light sources, the wavelength interval of each air-cooled laser light source 1 in this embodiment is no less than 10 nm. When different air-cooled laser light sources have inconsistent beam wavelengths and different reflection and refraction characteristics, the spatial energy synthesis module 2 converges the laser beam energy of multiple air-cooled laser light sources through different reflection and refraction paths. The beam direction module 3, based on the target angle information provided by the detection and tracking unit (visible light precision tracking module), emits the high-energy laser beam from the spatial energy synthesis module 2 at the same angle, and matches the beam focusing distance according to the target distance to achieve laser damage to the target. The spatial energy synthesis module 2 and the beam direction module 3 can be commercially available products; no limitation is made here.

[0058] The node control unit includes an equipment monitoring module, a detection and tracking control module, a laser control module, a damage assessment module, a situation display module, and a task receiving and execution module. The equipment monitoring module monitors the operational status of each module and can intervene promptly in case of faults to ensure efficient and stable system operation. For example, the equipment monitoring module can use different colors to distinguish the operational status of each module, such as normal (green), fault (red), and degraded (yellow). The detection and tracking control module controls the operation of each module in the detection and tracking unit, providing the laser damage unit with information such as the target's azimuth, elevation, distance, target image, and target type, as well as real-time information after the target is damaged. The laser control module controls the laser damage unit (selecting an appropriate number and power) to precisely damage the target based on the power status of the energy storage power module and the operational status of the air-cooled laser source (operating temperature, remaining emission time, etc.). The damage assessment module determines whether a target has been damaged. The system monitors the laser-damaged target through the detection and tracking unit. When an abnormality in the target's flight attitude is detected, the damage assessment module issues a damage command; otherwise, the target is considered undamaged, and the laser damage unit continues to damage the target. The situation display module displays coarse external information sent by the external information receiving module, including the target's angle, distance, type, and image information from the detection and tracking unit, as well as information on the laser damage process. It can also display information such as the laser source temperature and the duration of laser emission. The task receiving and execution module receives coarse external information about the target from the integrated control center. This coarse external information typically includes the target's longitude, latitude, altitude, speed, and time. It converts this coarse external information into information such as the angle, distance, speed, and type of the laser system's deployment location.

[0059] The node support unit includes an energy storage battery module, a direct power supply module, a positioning and orientation module, a high-precision turntable, and a communication and data transmission module. In this embodiment, the energy storage battery module provides instantaneous high-power DC power to the air-cooled laser source. In specific applications, the specifications and model of the energy storage battery module can be selected based on the peak power of the chosen air-cooled laser source. Using an energy storage battery module to power the air-cooled laser source significantly reduces the overall weight of the power supply compared to using a gasoline / diesel engine, achieving a lightweight portable laser anti-reflective system. For example, for a 3kW air-cooled laser source, the corresponding instantaneous power supply needs to reach approximately 10kW. A 10kW gasoline / diesel engine weighs over 80kg, while using an energy storage battery module can reduce its weight to less than 10kg. The weight of the energy storage battery module is closely related to the continuous operating time of the laser source. Considering the portable design requirements, the energy storage battery module only needs to meet the peak power consumption requirement of the air-cooled laser source for 5 minutes. Each air-cooled laser source is equipped with one energy storage battery, and the energy storage battery module adopts an independent packaging design, which effectively avoids the excessive overall weight caused by multiple integrated designs, which is detrimental to portability.

[0060] The direct power supply module powers the detection and tracking unit, laser destruction unit, node control unit, and node support unit. When the current of the energy storage battery module drops to a certain level (70%), the direct power supply module slowly charges the energy storage battery module using AC 220V in a low-current mode. This design reduces the weight of a single energy storage battery module and also solves the problem of insufficient continuous operating time when relying solely on energy storage battery modules to power high-power air-cooled laser sources.

[0061] The positioning and orientation module provides precise time information to the detection and tracking unit, laser destruction unit, node control unit, and node support unit. After the system is powered on, the positioning and orientation module provides time information to the detection and tracking unit and the node control unit. In this embodiment, the positioning and orientation module includes a first positioning and orientation module and a second positioning and orientation module. The two modules have identical structures and functions, and are placed horizontally with a distance of at least 0.6m between them. The azimuth information between the two points is determined based on the azimuth difference between the two modules, serving as the azimuth information for the entire laser anti-radiation system, thus achieving the purpose of system orientation.

[0062] The communication and data transmission module is used to establish communication connections between each laser node device and the integrated control center. The communication and data transmission module can be wireless or wired communication. The integrated control center relies on the network to centrally control the laser node devices deployed in each grid. Through multi-point deployment, a regional laser grid array is formed, realizing a combat mode of small unit large-scale collaboration and decentralized deployment with strong efficiency.

[0063] The detection and tracking unit and the laser destruction unit are mounted on a high-precision turntable. Through high-precision operation, the detection and tracking unit and the laser destruction unit can accurately lock onto and destroy the target in azimuth and elevation angles according to the indicated information.

[0064] The following is combined Figure 4 and Figure 5 The working process of the gridded laser system in this embodiment is described below. The working process of the gridded laser system in this embodiment mainly consists of two stages: one is the control process of the integrated control center over each laser node device, and the other is the control process of each laser node device after receiving its assigned task.

[0065] like Figure 4 As shown, the control process of the integrated control center includes the following steps:

[0066] S1. The system is powered on. The power supply module supplies power to all modules in the integrated control center, and each laser node device is powered by its own direct power supply module. The integrated control center communicates with each laser node device through the communication data transmission module.

[0067] S2, the node device monitoring and management module monitors the status of each laser node device. Different colors such as normal (green), fault (red), and degraded (yellow) can be used to distinguish the status. When a fault occurs, timely intervention can be carried out to ensure that the system works efficiently and stably. For air-cooled laser sources, in addition to displaying the status, information such as the temperature of the laser source and the continuous laser output time can be added.

[0068] S3. Each laser node device reports its location information to the node device monitoring and management module. The node device monitoring and management module of the integrated control center sends the location information of each laser node device to the node deployment analysis module. Combined with the three-dimensional map in the integrated situation display module, the laser damage airspace range of each laser node device is statically analyzed to provide a reference for the task coordination and allocation module to allocate target interception tasks.

[0069] S4. The external information receiving module receives the target's external coarse information and converts it into a recognizable data format before sending it to the task coordination and allocation module.

[0070] S5. The task coordination and allocation module sends the received external coarse information to the comprehensive situation display module. Combined with the laser damage airspace range of each laser node analyzed by the node deployment analysis module, as well as the power status of each laser node's energy storage power module and the remaining light emission time of the wind-cooled laser source, the task of intercepting different low, slow and small targets is allocated to each laser node device. That is, only the target (coarse target information) that the corresponding laser node device needs to intercept is sent to itself. If the target is not to be intercepted, it is not sent.

[0071] S6. Each laser node device conducts target search and tracking according to the assigned interception task, and determines whether it has the ability to damage the target. It then feeds back the tracking status and whether it has the ability to damage the target to the task coordination and allocation module, which decides whether the task needs to be reassigned.

[0072] S7, the node device monitoring and management module, in conjunction with the location information of each laser node and taking full account of the system startup time, controls the shutdown of all modules of each laser node device except for the power supply module, communication data transmission module and equipment monitoring module; after the task coordination and allocation module assigns tasks to each laser node device, the node device monitoring and management module remotely controls the startup of all modules of each laser node device except for the power supply module, communication data transmission module and equipment monitoring module.

[0073] like Figure 5 As shown, after each laser node device receives its assigned task, the working process is as follows:

[0074] S101. After the system is powered on, the detection and tracking unit and the node control unit complete the timing and positioning. The node control unit (task implementation and receiving module) receives the external coarse information of the target and converts it into the angle, distance, speed, and type information of the location where the gridded laser system is deployed. In some embodiments, the detection and tracking management module converts the received coarse target information into the angle, distance, speed, and type information of the location where the gridded laser system is deployed (distance and speed are important bases for whether the target is within the detection range of the infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module, and angle information is the central angle reference guiding the infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module to search within the angle range).

[0075] S102. For a target to be destroyed, the node control unit (detection, tracking and control module) sends the target's rough external information to the infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module. The infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module search for and track the target (coarse tracking). When either the infrared detection and tracking module or the visible light detection and tracking module searches for and tracks the target, the other module simultaneously searches for and tracks the target to confirm its position. Based on the position of the target's center point, the module outputs the target's angle information (azimuth and elevation) and sends it to the node control unit (detection, tracking and control module). The accuracy of the output angle information is around 0.1° × 0.1°.

[0076] S103, the node control unit (detection, tracking, and control module) determines whether the laser system has a killing capability against the target based on the target type. If so, it guides the visible light precision tracking module to search and track (precise tracking) the area near the angle information output in step S2. When the visible light precision tracking module tracks the target, it outputs high-precision angle information of the target (accuracy within the range of 20μm to 100μm) and sends it to the control unit (detection, tracking, and control module). If it determines that the laser system does not have a killing capability against the target, it sends the information to the task coordination and allocation module to determine whether the task needs to be reassigned.

[0077] S104. After receiving the high-precision angle information from the visible light tracking module, the node control unit (detection, tracking and control module) controls the laser ranging module to emit a laser beam to measure the target distance, superimposes the high-precision angle information to form the target's high-precision azimuth, elevation and distance information, and sends it to the node control unit (laser control module).

[0078] S105, the node control unit (laser control module) receives high-precision azimuth, elevation, and distance information of the target, controls the energy storage battery module to provide high-power power to each wind-cooled laser source, and selects an appropriate power for the laser beam emitted by the wind-cooled laser source according to the distance and type of the target, usually between 10% and 100%; multiple wind-cooled laser sources emit beams to the beam spatial energy combining module, which combines the multiple laser beams into a higher-power laser beam;

[0079] S106, the node control unit (laser control module) controls the beam orientation module to match the beam spot focusing distance according to the target distance information, and emits a high-energy laser beam sent by the beam space energy synthesis module at the same angle to damage the target according to the high-precision target angle information provided by the visible light tracking module.

[0080] S107, Node Control Unit (Laser Control Module): Based on the target's image information, observe the damage effect on the target. When it is found that the laser's damage effect on the target is not obvious, it can control the beam orientation module to deflect at a certain angle according to the target image information, so that the high-energy laser beam damages different positions of the target until the best damage effect is achieved.

[0081] S108, the node control unit (detection, tracking and control module) provides the target's angle, distance and image information in real time. The node control unit (damage assessment module) determines whether the target has been damaged based on changes in the target's angle or distance and / or abnormalities in the target's image information. If the target is not damaged, laser damage continues. If the target is determined to be damaged, the damage result is reported to the task coordination and allocation module via the task receiving and implementation module, which then reassigns the target interception task.

[0082] During the continuous damage to the target by the laser system, it is necessary to pay attention to the operating temperature of each air-cooled laser source and the remaining emission time. Based on the remaining emission time and the target threat situation, the attack strategy should be adjusted in a timely manner, such as using a lower emission laser power and close-range laser damage to the target. When the remaining emission time is not enough for one attack, the laser damage attack should be stopped.

[0083] During system operation, the laser control module monitors the power of the energy storage battery modules that supply power to each air-cooled laser source (node ​​control unit). If the power of the energy storage battery module is lower than the threshold (70%), the control power supply module will charge the energy storage battery module.

[0084] In this embodiment, all laser node devices are connected to the integrated control center via communication data transmission modules. For example... Figure 2 As shown, the maximum deployment interval between adjacent laser node devices is L. max The maximum damage range R' of the laser node device (laser destruction unit) against typical UAV targets. max and L max Related. The deployment principle of laser node devices is to ensure full coverage of typical UAV targets in the area; that is, for any typical UAV target in the area, at least one laser node device has an effective damage capability against it. In the extreme case, for a single laser node device, when the maximum altitude of a typical UAV target is H, the maximum horizontal damage distance of the laser node device against the typical UAV target is [missing information]. like Figure 6 As shown, the straight-line distance between two adjacent sets of diagonally deployed laser node devices is 2R″. max ,but (Unit is m), such as Figure 7 As shown. Therefore, it is preferable that each grid area is square, which minimizes the number of laser node devices required. Using a rectangle would result in some waste.

[0085] Assume that M' rows of laser node devices are deployed along the horizontal length (x) of the grid area, and N' columns of laser node devices are deployed along the vertical width (y). For example... Figure 2 As shown, a total of M'×N' laser node devices are deployed in the entire area, requiring M'×N' sets of detection and tracking units, laser destruction units, node control units, and node support units, which can achieve a horizontal length of M'×L. max Vertical width N'×L max The laser system provides laser damage coverage against typical UAV targets below altitude H. The entire laser system requires a dedicated integrated control center.

[0086] The cost of a single laser node device is set as follows:

[0087] C(a,b,c,R max ,R′ max ) = C a (R max )+C b (R′ max )+C c (R max )+D (1)

[0088] R in the formula max To determine the maximum distance at which the detection and tracking unit can detect and track typical UAV targets, R' max C represents the maximum damage range of the laser-based damage unit against typical UAV-type targets. a (R max The relationship between the cost of the detection and tracking unit and the maximum detection and tracking distance is expressed as C, which represents the cost of the detection and tracking unit. a (R max The R value must meet the accuracy requirements of the laser damage unit for the detection and tracking unit. max Furthermore, the detection and tracking unit can detect and track the maximum target velocity V under certain conditions. max It is also determined that the time T from receiving the target instruction from the superior to stabilizing and tracking the target, and meeting the conditions for laser emission, is also determined. max T and V are the initial boundary conditions for designing the detection and tracking unit. max Given a fixed T, the cost of the detection and tracking unit is mainly related to R. max Related; C b (R′ max This relates to the relationship between the cost of a laser destruction unit and its maximum destruction distance, i.e., the cost of the laser destruction unit. According to industry common sense, the cost of a laser is usually measured primarily by its maximum emission power (W). max W max There is a direct correlation between the power output and the maximum damage range. Typically, 10 kW of power can effectively damage a typical UAV target at 1 km, and 20 kW of power can effectively damage a typical UAV target at 2 km. Let W be the power output. max The unit is kW, R' max The unit is km, therefore R′ max =W max / 10; Of course, when typical UAV targets change, the proportionality constant will change. Let P be the proportionality constant, then R′ max =W max / P, therefore, the cost of the laser destruction unit is always related to R' max Related; C c (R max ) to guarantee the unit cost and R maxThe relationship is that of node guarantee unit cost; D is the node control unit cost, which is a fixed value.

[0089] In fact R max With R' max Strict correlation is required; laser destruction only occurs after receiving target indication and achieving stable target tracking. Therefore, R max =R′ max +V max For the detection and tracking unit, V is T. max ·T is a fixed constant, therefore R in equation (1) max You can use R' max Instead, equation (1) can be transformed into:

[0090] C(a,b,c,R′ max ) = C a (R′ max +V max T)+C b (R′ max )+C c (R′ max +V max T)+D (2)

[0091] The cost of the integrated management and control center is set as follows:

[0092] S(n)=S′+n·Q (3)

[0093] Where S′ is the basic cost of the integrated control center, which is a fixed cost; n is the number of laser node devices managed and controlled; and Q is the additional cost of managing a single set of laser node devices, which is a fixed value.

[0094] The deployment principle of the gridded laser system is to define the detection area for low-speed, small targets as having a horizontal length of X km, a vertical width of Y km, and an altitude of H km below the ground, achieving full coverage of low-speed, small targets within this area. The minimum cost required is F. min (X,Y,H), the number of detection and tracking units required in the horizontal length direction is m (natural number), and the number of detection and tracking units required in the vertical width direction is n (natural number).

[0095] Based on the above analysis, R′ max The larger the value of R′, the higher the cost of a single laser node device; however, the fewer laser nodes are needed to cover the same area. Therefore, it is necessary to select the optimal R′ between the performance and cost of the laser node device. max The lowest cost of the gridded laser system is:

[0096] F min (X,Y,H)=m·n·C(a,b,c,R′ max)+S′+m·n·Q (4)

[0097] in, Set C(a,b,c,R′) max Substituting the function into the equation, we can obtain...

[0098] F min (X,Y,H)=mn*(C a (R′ max +V max T)+C b (R′ max )+C c (R′ max +V max T)+D)+S′+mn*Q (5)

[0099] It should be noted that, given certain specifications of laser node equipment, the cost of laser node equipment is directly related to the maximum distance at which it can destroy typical UAV targets. The model for the maximum distance at which laser node equipment can destroy typical UAV targets involves specific limitations in processes, materials, and technologies.

[0100] The present invention has the following advantages:

[0101] (1) The laser node equipment is deployed in a grid-like manner to solve the problem of laser countermeasure against small, slow, and large targets in a large area;

[0102] (2) By using multiple air-cooled laser sources to synthesize the spatial energy of laser beams, the performance requirements of individual laser node devices are not high, the design threshold is low, and the cost is greatly reduced. Based on the principle of optimal economic benefits, a dynamic balance method is proposed between the performance, cost and deployment quantity of individual laser node devices.

[0103] (3) Laser node equipment can be remotely controlled and unattended, with low deployment requirements. It can be flexibly deployed according to terrain characteristics, minimizing the impact of terrain obscuring on countering low, slow and small targets.

[0104] (4) The high-density deployment of laser node equipment and its appropriate elevation can effectively address the impact of the Earth's curvature on countering low, slow, and small targets. The low-cost and high-density deployment method of laser node equipment makes the entire system more survivable. If a single laser node equipment is destroyed, adjacent laser node equipment can take care of the area, ensuring that the overall impact on the system is minimal.

[0105] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention in any way. Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art can make some modifications or alterations to the above-disclosed technical content to create equivalent embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Any simple modifications, equivalent changes, and alterations made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention shall still fall within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A gridded laser system for countering low-speed, small targets, characterized in that, include: A number of grid-deployed laser node devices and a comprehensive control center that communicates with the laser node devices via a communication data transmission module; The laser node device includes a detection and tracking unit, a laser destruction unit, a node control unit, and a node support unit. The detection and tracking unit includes an infrared detection and tracking module, a visible light detection and tracking module, a visible light precision tracking module, and a laser ranging module. The laser destruction unit includes multiple wind-cooled laser sources, a beam spatial energy synthesis module, and a beam positioning module. The laser beams emitted by the multiple wind-cooled laser sources are converged by the beam spatial energy synthesis module. The beam positioning module emits high-energy laser beams from the beam spatial energy synthesis module at the same angle according to the target angle information provided by the detection and tracking unit, and matches the beam focusing distance according to the distance to the target to achieve laser destruction of the target. The integrated control center includes a node device monitoring and management module, a comprehensive situation display module, a node deployment analysis module, a task coordination and allocation module, an external information receiving module, and a power supply module. The node device monitoring and management module is used to remotely monitor the status of the laser node devices. The comprehensive situation display module is used to display coarse external information and the target information and location information tracked by the laser node devices. The node deployment analysis module is used to provide a reference for the task coordination and allocation module's decision-making based on the location information of the laser node devices and the laser damage airspace range of the laser node devices sent by the node device monitoring and management module. The task coordination and allocation module is used to allocate tasks to the laser node devices. The laser node devices are deployed in M' rows along the horizontal length and N' columns along the vertical width of the grid area, achieving a horizontal length of M'×L. max Vertical width N'×L max Laser damage coverage capability for typical UAV targets in areas below altitude H, L max This represents the maximum deployment interval between adjacent laser node devices. R' in the formula max H represents the maximum damage distance of the laser node device to a typical UAV-type target, and H represents the maximum altitude of the typical UAV-type target.

2. The gridded laser system as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The wavelength interval of the air-cooled laser source is not less than 10nm.

3. The gridded laser system as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The node control unit includes an equipment monitoring module, a detection and tracking control module, a laser control module, a damage assessment module, an external information receiving module, and a situation display module. The equipment monitoring module monitors the working status of each unit. The detection and tracking control module controls the operation of each module of the detection and tracking unit. The laser control module controls the laser damage unit to accurately damage the target. The damage assessment module determines whether the target has been damaged. The external information receiving module receives rough external information about the target from the external network and converts it into information such as the angle, distance, speed, and type of the laser anti-radio system deployment location.

4. The gridded laser system as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The node support unit includes an energy storage battery module, which provides instantaneous high-power DC power to the air-cooled laser source. Each air-cooled laser source is configured with one energy storage battery module.

5. The gridded laser system as described in claim 4, characterized in that: The node support unit also includes a power supply module, a positioning and orientation module, and a high-precision turntable. The power supply module supplies power to the energy storage battery module, the positioning and orientation module provides timing and positioning for the laser anti-radio system, and the tracking and detection unit and the laser damage unit are mounted on the high-precision turntable.

6. The gridded laser system as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The lowest cost F of a gridded laser system min (X,Y,H) is: F min (X,Y,H)=m·n·C(a,b,c,R′ max )+S′+m·n·Q; In the formula, m is the number of detection and tracking units required in the horizontal length direction, n is the number of detection and tracking units required in the vertical width direction, Q is the additional cost of managing a single set of laser node equipment, S' is the basic cost of the integrated control center, and C(a,b,c,R') max ) represents the cost of a single set of the laser node equipment.

7. The method of operating the gridded laser system as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, This includes the control process of the integrated control center over each of the laser node devices and the control process of the laser node devices after receiving a task; The control process of the integrated management and control center over each laser node device includes the following steps: S1. The system is powered on, and the integrated control center communicates with the laser node device through the communication data transmission module; S2. The node device monitoring and management module monitors the status of each laser node device; S3. The laser node devices report their respective location information to the node device monitoring and management module, and the node device monitoring and management module sends the location information of the laser node devices to the node deployment analysis module. S4. The external information receiving module receives the target's external coarse information and converts it into a recognizable data format before sending it to the task coordination and allocation module. S5. The task coordination and allocation module assigns the task of intercepting different low, slow and small targets to the laser node device; S6. The laser node device performs target search and tracking according to the assigned task, and determines whether it has the ability to damage the target. Then, it feeds back the tracking status and whether it has the ability to damage the target to the task coordination and allocation module, which decides whether the task needs to be reassigned. S7. The node device monitoring and management module controls the shutdown of all modules of each laser node device except for the power supply module, communication data transmission module and device monitoring module; after the task coordination and allocation module allocates tasks to the laser node device, the node device monitoring and management module controls the startup of all modules of the laser node device except for the power supply module, communication data transmission module and device monitoring module. After receiving the assigned task, the laser node device operates as follows: S101. After powering on and completing timing and positioning, the node control unit receives rough external information about the target from the external network and converts it into angle, distance, speed, and type information of the laser system deployment location. S102. For a target to be destroyed, the detection and tracking unit sends the target's rough external information to the infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module. The infrared detection and tracking module and the visible light detection and tracking module search for and track the target. When either the infrared detection and tracking module or the visible light detection and tracking module searches for and tracks the target, the other module simultaneously searches for and tracks the target to confirm its location, and outputs the target's angle information based on the target's center point position, which is then sent to the node control unit. S103. The node control unit determines whether it has the capability to kill the target based on the target type. If it does, it guides the visible light precision tracking module to search and track the area near the angle information output in step S102. When the visible light precision tracking module tracks the target, it outputs the high-precision angle information of the target and sends it to the node control unit. If it is determined that the laser anti-nuclear system does not have the capability to kill the target, it sends the information to the task coordination and allocation module to determine whether the task needs to be reassigned. S104. After receiving the high-precision angle information sent by the visible light precision tracking module, the node control unit controls the laser ranging module to measure the target distance and superimposes the high-precision angle information to form the target's high-precision azimuth, elevation, and distance information. S105. The node control unit receives the high-precision azimuth, elevation, and distance information of the target, and selects an appropriate wind-cooled laser source to emit laser beam power according to the distance to the target and the target type. Multiple wind-cooled laser sources emit beams to the beam spatial energy combining module, and the beam spatial energy combining module combines multiple laser beams into a high-energy laser beam. S106. The node control unit controls the beam orientation module to match the beam spot focusing distance according to the target distance information, and to emit the high-energy laser beam sent by the beam spatial energy synthesis module at the same angle to damage the target according to the high-precision target angle information provided by the visible light tracking module. S107. The node control unit observes the damage effect on the target. If the damage effect of the laser on the target is not obvious, it controls the beam orientation module to deflect the beam so that the high-energy laser beam damages different positions of the target. S108. The node control unit determines whether the target is damaged. If the target is not damaged, laser damage continues. If the target is damaged, the damage result is reported to the task coordination and allocation module via the task receiving and implementation module, and the task coordination and allocation module reassigns the target interception task.

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