Vehicle Sighting Device Compact Optical Transport
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sighting devices for land vehicles, particularly in the military context, face challenges with compactness and stability, as they often require bulky structures and large openings for direct optical viewing, and the mass of stabilization components disrupts inertia, leading to instability.
Innovation Solution
A sighting device with a rotating support and optronic head, featuring a direct optical path and optical transport system that includes a collecting optical unit and optical components both inside and outside the vehicle, allowing for direct observation with improved compactness and stability, where the optical transport system maintains image orientation and stability through a self-inertial collecting optical unit and parallel optical beam configuration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a through viewfinder system is used for direct optical viewing, then direct vision of the environment is achieved, but the device becomes bulky and requires large openings in the vehicle wall
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements nesting by placing the collecting optical unit inside the interior volume of the support structure. The optical transport system components are arranged concentrically, with some components in the interior space and others in the support's interior volume, creating a compact nested configuration that reduces overall device volume while maintaining direct viewing capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the third dimension by routing the optical path through the support structure's interior volume. The optical transport system transports the image through a three-dimensional path from the collecting optical unit, through components in both the interior space and support volume, to the final display location, enabling compact integration without compromising optical performance
2Stability of the object's composition
If a mirror is added for inertial stabilization, then the optronic head stability is improved, but the device mass increases and stability is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the stabilization function from the traditional heavy mirror-based inertial system and implements it through the self-inertial properties of the collecting optical unit itself. The collecting optical unit is designed to be self-inertial with respect to stabilization around the second axis, eliminating the need for additional stabilization mirrors and their associated counterweights
Solution Approach 2:
The collecting optical unit serves dual functions: it collects light for direct viewing and simultaneously provides inertial stabilization through its own self-inertial design. This self-service approach allows the same component to perform both optical collection and stabilization without requiring separate heavy stabilization mechanisms
3Volume of moving object
If the collecting optical unit is made self-inertial for stabilization, then device compactness is improved, but the rotation synchronization precision must be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback control through the drive means that receives commands to rotate both the optronic head and collecting optical unit around the second axis. The system monitors and controls the rotation angles to maintain the 1:1 synchronization ratio, ensuring that when the optronic head rotates by a given angle, the collecting optical unit rotates by an equal angle, maintaining precise alignment despite the compact self-inertial design
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 direct optical viewing with enhanced compactness and stability, allowing for efficient observation and reduced vehicle opening size, maintaining image orientation and stability during vehicle movements, and supports various sighting functions without compromising vehicle integrity.
Implementation Method 1
a direct optical path for observation of a second part of the environment of the space outside the vehicle, the optical path comprising a collecting optical unit adapted to collect part of the environment of the space outside the vehicle
Implementation Method 2
The sighting device including a drive means driving the optronic head and the collecting optical unit so that, when the optronic head performs a rotation by a first given angle around the second axis, the collecting optical unit performs a rotation by a second given angle around the second axis
Data Source
AI summary
The vehicle delimits an interior space from an exterior space.The sighting device includes:a support defining an interior volume,an optronic head adapted to rotate about an axis,an optical path comprising:a collecting optical unit for collecting a portion of the surroundings of exterior space, adapted to rotate about the axis; andan optical transport system including a plurality of optical components, portion of the components being, in the interior space and the other portion being in the interior volume;a drive means driving the optronic head and the collecting optical unit so that the ratio between the angle of rotation of the head and the angle of rotation of the collecting optical unit is substantially equal to 1.