Compact scope optics

Abstract

Some aspects of the technology described herein are directed to a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope. The low-profile imaging system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; and an optical prism having a first and a second angled surface configured in a three-bounce configuration, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis.

Description

COMPACT SCOPE OPTICSCROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. “63 / 599,642”, filed on November 16, 2023, and entitled “COMPACT SCOPE OPTICS” under Attorney Docket No. E0644.70023US00, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.FIELD

[0002] This application relates generally to technologies for recording images and / or video corresponding to a user’s view through an eyepiece, and more specifically to a user’s view through a scope.BACKGROUND

[0003] Scopes are used to provide a magnified view along a line of sight. Accordingly, scopes are frequently attached to a rifle for the purposes of aiming. A user or operator of the scope may receive a magnified view along the line of sight of the scope which they may use for aiming a trajectory of projectiles fired by the rifle.SUMMARY

[0004] Some embodiments provide for a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; and an optical prism configured in a three-bounce configuration, the optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis.

[0005] In some embodiments, the optical prism comprises: the first angled surface configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface; and the second angled surface configured to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis.

[0006] In some embodiments, the second angled surface comprises a reflective coating.

[0007] In some embodiments, the reflective coating is a metallic coating.

[0008] In some embodiments, the first angled surface is angled between 5 and 45 degrees relative to the flat surface.

[0009] In some embodiments, the second angled surface is angled between 5 and 45 degrees relative to the flat surface.

[0010] In some embodiments, the optical prism comprises a trapezoidal prism fused with a triangular prism on the first angled surface of the trapezoidal prism.

[0011] In some embodiments, the trapezoidal prism is glass, and the triangular prism is a polymer material.

[0012] In some embodiments, the viewing optical axis is configured to align with an optical axis of the weapon scope.

[0013] In some embodiments, the output aperture is configured as a monocular view.

[0014] In some embodiments, an imaging array is aligned along the imaging optical axis.

[0015] Some embodiments provide for a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; an optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis; and an imaging array aligned along the imaging optical axis.

[0016] In some embodiments, the field of view on the camera corresponds to the full field of view of the weapon scope.

[0017] In some embodiments, the aperture of the low-profile imaging system is f / 1.2.

[0018] In some embodiments, the resolution of the low-profile imaging system is greater than 1.27 cycles per milliradian.

[0019] In some embodiments, the optical prism is configured in a three-bounce configuration.

[0020] In some embodiments, the optical prism comprises: the first angled surface configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface; and the second angled surface configured to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis.

[0021] Some embodiments provide for a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; and an optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surfacepositioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis.

[0022] In some embodiments, the optical prism is configured in a three-bounce configuration.

[0023] In some embodiments, the optical prism comprises: the first angled surface configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface; and the second angled surface configured to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0024] In the drawings, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in various figures is represented by a like reference character. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in every drawing. The drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, with emphasis instead being placed on illustrating various aspects of the techniques and devices described herein.

[0025] FIG. 1 illustrates a first perspective view of an example of a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein.

[0026] FIG. 2 illustrates a second perspective view of an example of a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein.

[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic of the internal configuration of the low-profile imaging system and the three-bounce configuration, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein.

[0028] FIG. 4 illustrates a ray diagram of an example embodiment of a low-profile imaging system, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein.

[0029] FIG. 5 illustrates a ray diagram of an example embodiment of a low-profile imaging system mounted to a weapon scope, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The inventors have developed techniques to improve the capture of images and / or video corresponding to the view through an eyepiece of a scope. Some aspects of thetechnology described herein provide a low-profile imaging system which may be affixed to a weapon scope such that the imaging system is positioned between the exit aperture of the scope eyepiece and a user’s eye. Accordingly, the low-profile imaging system may capture a portion of the light received through the exit aperture of the scope and direct the captured portion of the light to a sensor for imaging while providing for transmission of another portion of the light to the user’s eye. Accordingly, the captured image reproduces the field of view observed by a user through the scope of the rifle.

[0031] The inventors have recognized and appreciated that existing technologies for monitoring the field of view of a scope struggle to provide compact systems that can be used without inhibiting the users grip, head position, or view through the scope. For example, if a camera is placed at the output port of the scope, then the user does not receive a view directly from the scope. A display may be configured based on the view received by the camera. However, the resulting image may suffer from delays relative to a direct view. Additionally, the positioning of the screen may not be compatible with the user’s grip and operation of the weapon. Furthermore, the illumination from a screen may provide a hazardous condition for the user of the device as the use of illuminating components may reveal the position of the user. As another example, rather than providing the complete view to a camera, a beam splitter may be positioned between the output of a scope and a user’s eye to split the view from the scope between a camera and the user’s eye. While this technique may provide for a user to directly receive the view through the scope, it may be too large such that it interferes with the user’s head position or grip. The size of the beam splitter is constrained by the beam size exiting the scope. If the beam size exceeds the size of the beam splitter, then the view provided by the beam splitter will be clipped to a reduced portion of the full view.

[0032] The inventors have recognized and appreciated an additional problem in capturing the view through a scope. In particular, light that is captured and provided to a camera is not available to be provided to a user. Accordingly, as light is captured to be provided to the camera, the intensity of light provided to the user is decreased. Therefore, the more light directed towards the camera, the less is received by the user. As such, the user may have a harder time viewing targets through the scope, which would interfere with the use of the scope itself. However, the alternative of providing relatively no light to the camera can also limit the ability of the camera to resolve the field of view and or impact the responsiveness of the camera (e.g., through the exposure time).

[0033] The inventors have developed a low-profile imaging system that provides a view of the output of the scope to the user while capturing an image corresponding to the field ofview. The imaging system reflects a portion of the light received from the scope to an image sensor, thereby decreasing an intensity of the light transmitted through the device to the user. In some embodiments, the field of view provided to the camera may have the same extent as the field of view provided to the user. The low-profile imaging system captures a portion of the light received from the scope so as to not interfere with a user’ s ability to see the full field of view of the scope while providing sufficient light to the user, such that they may observe detail through the scope.

[0034] Accordingly, some embodiments provide for a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system including: (A) a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis (e.g., the viewing optical axis being configured to align with an optical axis of the weapon scope when the low-profile imaging system is mounted to the rifle or weapon scope); (B) an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; and (C) an optical prism configured in a three-bounce configuration, the optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis (e.g., the first angled surface being configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface) and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis (e.g., the axis along which an imaging array is aligned to receive light from the optical prism) is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis (e.g., the second angled surface being configured to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis).

[0035] In some embodiments, the second angled surface includes a reflective coating. The reflective coating may be a metallic coating. For example, the reflective coating may be silver, gold, aluminum, or another reflective metal. The reflective coating may be a dielectric coating. For example, a dielectric mirror formed of alternating layers of non-metallic materials such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, aluminum oxide, titanium oxide, and other semiconducting and / or insulating layers may be used. In other embodiments, other reflective coatings or combinations of reflective coatings may be used, as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0036] In some embodiments, the first angled surface is angled between 5 and 45 degrees relative to the flat surface. For example, the first angled surface may be angled approximately 30 degrees relative to the flat surface.

[0037] In some embodiments, the second angled surface is angled between 5 and 45 degrees relative to the flat surface. For example, the second angled surface may be angled approximately 30 degrees relative to the flat surface.

[0038] In some embodiments, the optical prism is a trapezoidal prism fused with a triangular prism on the first angled surface of the trapezoidal prism. In some embodiments, the optical prism may be considered a compound prism having two optical elements. The compound prism may be a rectangular prism with separate optical elements which are fused together along an angled face of the optical prism. A trapezoidal prism may be a rectangular prism with cuts along two of the comers such that the prism has two sets of parallel sides and one set of non-parallel sides. A triangular optical element may be fused to the trapezoidal prism to facilitate reflections at the angled surface.

[0039] In some embodiments, the trapezoidal prism and the triangular prism are made from different materials. For example, the trapezoidal prism may be glass, and the triangular prism may be a polymer material. As another example, the trapezoidal prism may be a polymer material, and the triangular prism may be glass. As yet another example, the trapezoidal prism may be a polymer material, and the triangular prism may be a second polymer material having a different refractive index than the first polymer material. In some embodiments, the trapezoidal prism and the triangular prism may be made from the same material. For example, an anisotropic material having a fast axis and a slow axis where the trapezoidal prism may have a fast axis oriented along a different direction than the fast axis of the triangular prism. In yet other embodiments, other prism materials may be used, as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0040] In some embodiments, the output aperture is configured as a monocular view.

[0041] In some embodiments, the field of view on the camera corresponds to the full field of view of the weapon scope. In some embodiments, the field of view on the camera may correspond to a partial view of the field of view of the weapon scope. For example, the field of view on the camera may be between 60% and 100% of the field of view of the weapon scope. As another example, the field of view on the camera may be between 70% and 100% of the field of view of the weapon scope. As yet another example the field of view on the camera may be between 80% and 95% of the field of view of the weapon scope.

[0042] In some embodiments, the aperture of the low-profile imaging system is between f / 0.9 and f / 32. For example, the aperture of the low-profile imaging system may be f / 1.2, f / 1.8, f / 2.8, f / 4, f / 5.6, f / 8, f / 11, f / 16, f / 22, or f / 32. In some embodiments, other aperture sizesincluding fractional aperture sizes may be used, as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0043] In some embodiments, the resolution of the low-profile imaging system is greater than 1.27 cycles per milliradians.

[0044] FIG. 1 illustrates a first perspective view of an example of a low-profile imaging system 100 for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. Low-profile imaging system 100 includes prism housing 102 and camera housing 104. The prism housing 102 includes input aperture 106 and output aperture 108. The camera housing 104 includes user interface buttons 110a and 110b. The low-profile imaging system 100 includes mount 112 for securing low- profile imaging system 100 to a weapon scope.

[0045] Prism housing 102 is configured to receive light from the eyepiece of an optical scope through input aperture 106. The prism housing is optically connected to the camera housing 104 such that a portion of the light received from the weapon scope through the input aperture is directed to the camera housing 104 through the prism housing 102.

[0046] The input aperture and the output aperture are aligned with a viewing optical axis, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. The viewing optical axis is the axis along which a user may position their eye to observe the view produced by the weapon scope. The viewing optical axis extends from the back eyepiece of the optical scope and has an associated working distance and field of view which depend upon the specific optical scope used.

[0047] An optical prism is mounted within the housing, between the input aperture 106 and the output aperture 108. The optical prism is configured such that a portion of the light received through the input aperture 106 is directed to an imaging axis. The imaging axis is the axis along which an imaging array receives light. In some embodiments, the optical prism is configured such that the imaging axis is substantially parallel (e.g., with less than a 10- degree variation from parallel) to the viewing optical axis. For example, the imaging axis may be parallel with the viewing optical axis. As another example, the imaging axis may be within 5 degrees of parallel with the viewing optical axis. In some embodiments, the deviation from parallel between the viewing optical axis and the imaging optical axis may depend on the configuration of the mount between the low-profile imaging system 100 and the weapon scope. For example, the low-profile imaging system 100 may be mounted such that the imaging optical axis and the viewing optical axis are not parallel with each other. Accordingly, there may be a range of angles between the imaging optical axis and theviewing optical axis at which the low-profile imaging system may be mounted without clipping the view of the scope on the imaging array. For example, the mounting may provide for 3 degree variation (e.g., ± 3 degrees from parallel) without clipping of the view from the optical scope on the imaging array. The low-profile imaging system may support mounting such that the angles between the imaging optical axis and the viewing optical axis are larger than 3 degrees such that a portion of the view of the optical scope is clipped but the remaining portion of the view is captured.

[0048] FIG. 2 illustrates a second perspective view of an example of a low-profile imaging system 200 for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. While FIG. 1 illustrates a first embodiment of a low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope mounted such that the camera housing is on the right side of the scope, FIG. 2 illustrates a second embodiment mounted such that the camera housing is on the left side of the scope. The second embodiment has the same configuration as the first embodiment, with regard to the prism housing 102, including the input aperture 106 and output aperture 108, camera housing 104, and mount 112. Unlike in the first embodiment, where the user interface 110a and 110b are located on an upward facing side of the camera housing, user interface 210a and 210b of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 are located on an outwardly facing side of the camera housing.

[0049] In some embodiments, the low-profile imaging system may be configured for mounting in other configurations than those shown in FIGs. 1 and 2, as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0050] In some embodiments, a dial 214 may be included on the housing which may allow for the user to adjust the focus of the imaging components. The position of an image plane behind the scope will depend on the working distance of the scope. Accordingly, to provide the user a mechanism to adjust the focus of the low-profile imaging system, dial 214 may change the position of one or more internal lenses to change the position of a focal plane relative to an imaging array of the system.

[0051] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic of the internal configuration of the low-profile imaging system and the three-bounce configuration, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. As shown in FIG. 3, low-profile imaging system 300 includes trapezoidal prism 302 which is fused to a triangular prism 310 along the first angled surface 312. The trapezoidal prism 302 and triangular prism 310 are enclosed in housing 311 which includes input aperture 304 through which light is received. The input light received throughaperture 304 is indicated by dashed lines 301a and 301b and is received through the flat surface 308 of the trapezoidal prism 302. A portion of the input light is transmitted through the first angled surface 312 while a portion of the input light is reflected at the first angled surface 312 such that the reflected light is incident on the flat surface 308. The light reflected from the first angled surface 312, which is incident on the flat surface 308, is reflected at the flat surface 308 such that it is incident on the second angled surface 314. The light incident on the second angled surface 314 is reflected back towards the flat surface 308 such that the light is transmitted through the flat surface and imaged onto an imaging array. The low- profile imaging system is configured to capture a portion of the light received through the input aperture such that the view through the scope may be observed by a user through the output aperture while also being imaged by an imaging array.

[0052] In some embodiments, the optical prism is configured in a triple-bounce configuration (e.g., a three-reflection configuration). For example, the flat surface 308 may transmit light received through the input aperture 304 and reflect light which is directed back towards flat surface 308 by the first angled surface 312. Light reflected from the first angled surface 312 (e.g., the first bounce) reflects off flat surface 308 at points 303a and 303b (e.g., the second bounce) towards the second angled surface 314. At the second angled surface 314, the light reflected from points 303a and 303b is reflected by the second angled surface (e.g., the third bounce) towards imaging array 322.

[0053] In some embodiments, the light reflected from the first angled surface 312 is incident on the flat surface 308 such that the light is totally internally reflected. In some embodiments, the light reflected from the first angled surface 312 may not be totally internally reflected. Rather, the light may be partially reflected by the flat surface towards the second angled surface. In some embodiments, a coating or additional layer may be included on the flat surface to facilitate reflection, as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0054] In some embodiments, the second angled surface 314 is configured with a reflective layer to facilitate the reflection of light. For example, the reflective layer may be a metallic layer. The reflective surface may be any reflective surface.

[0055] The light received through the input aperture 304 may be received from a scope to which the low-profile imaging system is mounted. Therefore, the light received through the input aperture may be converging towards a pupil, in accordance with the working distance of the scope. Based on the working distance, a pupil is formed behind the output aperture 306 (e.g., at the user’s eye when they look through the output aperture 306). In someembodiments, the pathlength of the light captured by the prism is such that the pupil of the optical scope is formed between the third bounce and the imaging array.

[0056] Additional optical components may be included in the low-profile imaging system to facilitate imaging of the light captured by the prism. In some embodiments, an aperture 318 is included between the second angled surface 314 and the imaging array 322. In some embodiments, an imaging lens 320 is included to image the light captured by the prism onto the imaging array 322.

[0057] In some embodiments, an imaging array 322 (e.g., a CCD or CMOS image sensor) is positioned at an image plane of the imaging lens 320. The imaging array may have a resolution comparable with the human eye or a different resolution. In some embodiments, the resolution of the imaging array may be greater than 60% of the resolution of the human eye. In some embodiments, the resolution of the imaging array may be greater than 70% the resolution of the human eye. In some embodiments, the resolution of the image captured by the imaging array may be between 1 and 2 cycles per milliradian. In some embodiments, the resolution of the image captured by the imaging array may be between 1.2 and 1.8 cycles per milliradian. For example, the resolution of the image captured by the imaging array may be 1.27 cycles per milliradian. As another example, the resolution of the image captured by the imaging array may be 1.72 cycles per milliradian.

[0058] FIG. 4 illustrates a ray diagram of an example embodiment of a low-profile imaging system 400, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. The low-profile imaging system includes input aperture 404 for receiving light from a weapon scope. The input aperture 404 is aligned with the output aperture 406 such that the light which is not captured by the prism for imaging is transmitted through the output aperture for a user to view. The light captured by the prism 402 is directed toward the imaging elements through the three-bounce configuration of optical prism elements 402 and 410 described above in connection with FIG. 3.

[0059] The ray diagram illustrates light rays received through aperture 404 which are captured and imaged on imaging array 430, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. Rays received through aperture 404 may be directed to imaging array 430 using a three -bounce system and an imaging lens to form an image on the imaging array. In the example of FIG. 4, the three-bounce design includes a first bounce where rays received through the input aperture are partially reflected by a first angled surface 412. The portion of light, which is not reflected by the first angled surface 412, transmits through the surface and exits the low-profile imaging system 400 through output aperture 406. Thesecond bounce, following the reflection from the first angled surface 412, reflects rays off flat surface 408. The third bounce, following the reflection from flat surface 412, reflects rays off a second angled surface 414.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 4, the imaging lens may be a series of lenses configured to form an objective such as objective 420. Objective 420 includes multiple lens elements 422, 424, 426, and 428 configured to produce an image plane at imaging array 430. In some embodiments, the lens elements may include spherical and / or aspherical lens surfaces. In some embodiments, the lens elements may include concave surfaces, convex surfaces, piano surfaces, or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, other types of lens elements may be used as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0061] In some embodiments, the spacing between one or more lens elements may be adjusted to change the position of an image plane created by objective 420. The position of the image plane depends in part on the diopter setting of the optical scope. Accordingly, to change the position of the image plane on of the objective lens, the spacing between lens elements may be adjusted, changing the position of the image plane relative to the imaging array 430. In some embodiments, a dial may be included on the housing of the low-profile imaging system that the user may turn to adjust the spacing between the one or more lens elements. For example, dial 214 described above in connection with FIG. 2.

[0062] An aperture 418 may be included between the prism 402 and the objective 420. The aperture 418 may be configured as any aperture. In some embodiments, the aperture 418 is configured to support an f-number of 2. The aperture 418 receives rays after the third bounce of the three-bounce system. Rays passing through aperture 418 are received by objective 420 for imaging.

[0063] An integrated circuit board 432 (e.g., computer processor and computer processor board) may be included to facilitate operation of and communication with the imaging array 430. The integrated circuit board may be configured to execute instructions when the instructions are stored in a manner accessible to a processor of the integrated circuit board, such as in a data store (e.g., an on-chip cache or instruction register, a computer-readable storage medium accessible via a bus, a computer-readable storage medium accessible via one or more networks and accessible by the device / processor, etc.). The integrated circuit board may include Wifi and / or Bluetooth components for wireless communication with wireless networks. In some embodiments, the integrated circuit board may include hardware for communicating with a mobile device network such as a 4G or 5G network, or another network described under the 3GPP protocols.

[0064] In some embodiments, the low-profile imaging system may include a button 434 on the exterior of the housing to provide a user with an interface for interacting with the low- profile imaging system. For example, using two buttons and key bindings, the user can turn the camera on / off, turn wireless connectivity on / off, start a paring mode for pairing the system with a wireless network or device, and / or cycle between various operations. In some embodiments, additional buttons may be included with the low-profile imaging system for providing a user interface, as aspects of the technology described herein are not limited in this respect.

[0065] A mounting bracket 438 is coupled to the housing of the low-profile imaging system. The mounting bracket 438 is configured to mount the low-profile imaging system to a weapon. For example, mounting bracket 438 may mount the low-profile imaging system to the barrel of a rifle scope that is coupled to a rifle.

[0066] FIG. 5 illustrates a ray diagram of an example embodiment of a low-profile imaging system mounted to a weapon scope, in accordance with some embodiments of the technology described herein. As shown in FIG. 5, an imaging plane is formed behind the output aperture by light that is transmitted through the prism (e.g., the portion of light not directed to the imaging array). Additionally, the captured light is shown being imaged onto the imaging array, as described above in FIG. 4. The position of the imaging planes will depend in part on the scope to which the low-profile imaging system is mounted. For example, different scopes may have different working distances. Accordingly, the distance behind the eyepiece of the optical scope at which a user may observe the view through the scope may be different for different scopes. Accordingly, the forming of the image on the imaging array may also vary for different weapon scopes.

[0067] In some embodiments, the width 504 of the prism housing is between 1 and 1.5 inches. For example, the width 504 of the prism housing may be 1.18 inches. In some embodiments, the length 502 of the camera housing is between 3.5 and 4.5 inches. For example, the length 502 of the camera housing may be 3.9 inches.

[0068] In some embodiments, the imaging array may be a square array of pixels having a resolution of 1080 by 1080. In some embodiments, the imaging array may have a different aspect ratio (e.g., a rectangular array of pixels). In some embodiments, the imaging array may have a higher resolution. In some embodiments, the imaging array may have a lower resolution.

[0069] In some embodiments, the low-profile imaging system may be configured to capture light such that the image captured by the imaging array corresponds to an angular field ofview between 18 and 30 degrees. In some embodiments, the image captured by the imaging array corresponds to an angular field of view between 20 and 26 degrees. For example, the angular field of view may be 24 degrees.

[0070] Having thus described several aspects of at least one embodiment, it is to be appreciated that various alterations, modifications, and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be part of this disclosure and are intended to be within the spirit and scope of the principles described herein. Accordingly, the foregoing description and drawings are by way of example only.

[0071] The phrase “and / or,” as used herein in the specification and in the claims, should be understood to mean “either or both,” of the elements so conjoined, i.e., elements that are conjunctively present in some cases and disjunctively present in other cases. Multiple elements listed with “and / or” should be construed in the same fashion, i.e., “one or more” of the elements so conjoined. Other elements may optionally be present other than the elements specifically identified by the “and / or” clause, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and / or B,” when used in conjunction with open-ended language such as “comprising” can refer, in one embodiment, to A only (optionally including elements other than B); in another embodiment, to B only (optionally including elements other than A); in yet another embodiment, to both A and B (optionally including other elements); etc.

[0072] The indefinite articles “a” and “an,” as used herein in the specification and in the claims, unless clearly indicated to the contrary, should be understood to mean “at least one.”

[0073] As used herein in the specification and in the claims, the phrase, “at least one,” in reference to a list of one or more elements, should be understood to mean at least one element selected from any one or more of the elements in the list of elements, but not necessarily including at least one of each and every element specifically listed within the list of elements and not excluding any combinations of elements in the list of elements. This definition also allows that elements may optionally be present other than the elements specifically identified within the list of elements to which the phrase “at least one” refers, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as a non-limiting example, “at least one of A and B” (or, equivalently, “at least one of A or B,” or, equivalently, “at least one of A and / or B”) can refer, in one embodiment, to at least one, optionally including more than one, A, with no B present (and optionally including elements other than B); in another embodiment, to at least one, optionally including more than one, B, with no A present (andoptionally including elements other than A); in yet another embodiment, to at least one, optionally including more than one, A, and at least one, optionally including more than one, B (and optionally including other elements); etc.

[0074] Use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.

[0075] The terms “substantially,” “approximately,” and “about” may be used to mean within ±20% of a target value in some embodiments, within ±10% of a target value in some embodiments, within ±5% of a target value in some embodiments, and yet within ±2% of a target value in some embodiments. The terms “approximately” and “about” may include the target value.

[0076] Also, the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” “having,” “containing,” “involving,” and variations thereof herein, is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items.

[0077] All definitions, as defined and used herein, should be understood to control over dictionary definitions, definitions in documents incorporated by reference, and / or ordinary meanings of the defined terms.

Claims

What is claimed is:CLAIMS1. A low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; and an optical prism configured in a three-bounce configuration, the optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein: the first angled surface is configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface; and the second angled surface is configured to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the second angled surface comprises a reflective coating.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the reflective coating is a metallic coating.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the first angled surface is angled between 5 and 45 degrees relative to the flat surface.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the second angled surface is angled between 5 and 45 degrees relative to the flat surface.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the optical prism comprises a trapezoidal prism fused with a triangular prism on the first angled surface of the trapezoidal prism.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the viewing optical axis is configured to align with an optical axis of the weapon scope.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the output aperture is configured as a monocular view.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising an imaging array aligned along the imaging optical axis.

11. A low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; an optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis; and an imaging array aligned along the imaging optical axis.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein a field of view on the imaging array corresponds to a full field of view of the weapon scope.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein an aperture of the low-profile imaging system is between f / 0.9and f / 8.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein a resolution of the low-profile imaging system is greater than 1.27 cycles per milliradian.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the optical prism is configured in a three-bounce configuration.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein:the first angled surface is configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light is undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface; and the second angled surface is configured to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis.

17. A low-profile imaging system for capturing a portion of light from a view of a weapon scope, the system comprising: a receiving aperture being aligned with a viewing optical axis; an output aperture being aligned with the viewing optical axis; and an optical prism having a first and a second angled surface, the first angled surface positioned along the viewing optical axis and the second angled surface positioned along an imaging optical axis, wherein the imaging optical axis is substantially parallel to the viewing optical axis.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the optical prism is configured in a three-bounce configuration.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein: the first angled surface is configured to reflect a portion of the light received along the viewing optical axis towards a flat surface of the optical prism such that the reflected portion of light is undergoes internal reflection at the flat surface; and the second angled surface is to reflect the light received from the internal reflection at the flat surface to propagate along the imaging optical axis.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the second angled surface comprises a reflective coating.

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