NVIS Lighting Color Mixing Without Optical Filters
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional NVIS-compatible lighting systems for aircraft require expensive optical filters that increase manufacturing time and cause light loss, while also being unable to configure a single lighting unit into both NVIS compatible and non-restricted visible modes.
Innovation Solution
A lighting system that uses a single light source or a cluster of light sources to produce NVIS-compatible lighting without optical filters, achieving the required NVIS radiance and color through controlled Melanopic-Photopic (M/P) ratios and color mixing of NVIS Green A and NVIS white lights.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional NVIS-compatible lighting systems use optical filters to achieve NVIS compatibility, then NVIS radiance requirements are met, but manufacturing cost increases and light loss occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the optical filter component from the lighting system entirely. Instead of using filters to block unwanted wavelengths, the system uses selectively engineered LEDs that emit only the desired NVIS-compatible wavelengths (500-560nm green spectrum) without producing infrared or other blocked wavelengths in the first place, thereby eliminating light loss through filtration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/optical filtering system with an electrical/optical emission control system. By controlling the electrical excitation of LED materials (quantum wells, quantum dots, or phosphors), the system achieves wavelength-selective emission without physical filters, substituting a control-based approach for a passive filtering approach.
2Reliability
If conventional NVIS-compatible lighting systems use optical filters, then NVIS compatibility is achieved, but manufacturing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the optical filter assembly and its associated installation steps from the manufacturing process. The lighting module is simplified to contain only the LED array and necessary electrical components, reducing assembly complexity and manufacturing time while maintaining NVIS compatibility through the LED wavelength selection.
3Reliability
If conventional NVIS-compatible lighting systems use optical filters, then NVIS compatibility is achieved, but system cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive optical filters with relatively inexpensive LED components. The LEDs (whether based on quantum wells, quantum dots, or phosphor materials) are cost-effective light sources that provide the required spectral characteristics without the high cost of precision optical filtering components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent removes the expensive optical filter subsystem, including the filter materials, mounting structures, and alignment mechanisms. This extraction of the filter component significantly reduces bill of materials cost and assembly cost while the LED-based solution provides equivalent or superior performance.
4Reliability
If a single lighting unit is configured for NVIS compatibility with optical filters, then NVIS mode is achieved, but the unit cannot operate in unrestricted visible modes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic lighting system where the controller can selectively activate different LED subsets or adjust current parameters to produce different spectral outputs. The system can dynamically switch between NVIS-compatible mode (500-560nm dominant) and full-spectrum visible mode by changing which LEDs are active or how they are driven, providing operational flexibility without physical reconfiguration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent designs a single lighting module that performs multiple functions: it can operate in NVIS-compatible mode for night vision operations, in full-visible mode for normal lighting, and potentially in intermediate modes. This multi-functionality is achieved through the versatile LED array that can be electrically controlled to produce different spectral distributions, eliminating the need for separate lighting systems for different modes.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables cost-effective, efficient, and flexible lighting configurations that meet NVIS compatibility requirements without the need for optical filters, allowing for both NVIS compatible and visible modes with reduced weight and light loss.
Implementation Method 1
The lighting system includes a plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs)
Implementation Method 2
determine a color mixing for producing NVIS Green A light and NVIS white light
Data Source
AI summary
A lighting system and assembly comprising a controller in operable communication with a light unit. The controller is configured to apply a lighting condition using the light unit for a target light color below an upper level of NVIS radiance while controlling a Melanopic-Photopic (M/P) ratio associated with the target light color, and also determine a color mixing for producing NVIS Green A light and NVIS white light for a plurality of levels of NVIS radiance which are less than a maximum NVIS radiance level for a set of M/P ratio values at an upper allowable limit and a set of M/P ratio values at a lower limit.