Wing-Mounted Optical Seeker for Precision Guided Munitions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mounting seeker optics and optical detectors on the wing or canard of a moving platform, such as a rocket, is challenging due to high temperature variations and the loss of signal strength through fiber optic bundles, which impede the mechanical deployment of wings and reduce guidance performance.
Innovation Solution
An optical seeker assembly with increased pixel density is implemented, where the optical detector is moved onto the wing and signals are transmitted via a low-bandwidth link, eliminating the need for fiber optic bundles and allowing for higher pixel density without interfering with mechanical deployment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If fiber optic bundles are used to transmit signals from wing-mounted optics to the detector, then signal transmission is achieved, but the fiber bundles impede mechanical deployment of the wings and cause signal loss
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the fiber optic bundle from the system by moving the optical detector directly onto the wing, co-locating it with the optics. This removes the intermediary transmission medium that was causing mechanical interference during wing deployment while maintaining signal transmission through direct optical coupling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the optical detector with the wing structure, positioning it in direct proximity to the optics on the wing. This integration eliminates the need for separate signal transmission pathways (fiber bundles) and allows the detector to move with the wing during deployment without mechanical interference.
2Reliability
If fiber optic bundles are used for signal transmission, then optical signals can be transmitted from wing-mounted optics, but signal strength is lost due to transmission losses and interface losses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the fiber optic transmission medium that causes optical transmission losses and interface losses. By placing the detector directly on the wing in close proximity to the optics, the system eliminates the intermediary transmission path and its associated energy losses.
3Device complexity
If the optical detector is located in the main body of the missile, then signal processing is centralized, but the fiber optic bundle interferes with wing deployment mechanics
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of locating the detector in the main body and using fiber bundles to transmit signals from the wing, the patent inverts the arrangement by placing the detector directly on the wing with the optics. This reverses the signal transmission direction and eliminates the mechanical interference caused by fiber bundles during wing deployment.
4Measurement precision
If pixel density is increased to improve guidance precision, then measurement precision improves, but the size and weight of the fiber optic bundle increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the fiber optic bundle entirely by co-locating the detector with the optics on the wing. This removal allows for increased pixel density and improved measurement precision without the corresponding increase in bundle size and weight that would be required to transmit the higher volume of data from additional pixels.
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
This solution enhances signal sensitivity and reduces noise, improving the acquisition range and guidance performance by eliminating signal loss and mechanical interference, while maintaining a compact and lightweight design.
Implementation Method 1
an optical waveguide configured to transmit an optical signal therethrough
Implementation Method 2
an optical detector connected directly to the optical waveguide to detect the optical signal transmitted through the optical waveguide
Data Source
AI summary
An optical seeker assembly having an optical detector located within the wing or canards of a precision guided munition. The optical seeker provides on-wing processing that generates low bandwidth detection data that can be easily transferred to a primary CPU located within the main body or fuselage of the precision guided munition. The on-wing processing reduces or eliminates the need for optical fibers extending between an optical wedge and an optical detector to reduce the likelihood of optical fibers from impeding in the mechanical deployment of the wing and reduces losses. The reduction or elimination of optical fibers between the optical wedge and the optical detector further enables the optical detection assembly to have a higher pixel ratio or transmitting raw data between the wedge and the detector by sending sampled detection data across a low bandwidth link to a CPU in the main body.