A Multi-Spectral Sensor for Missile Threat Warning

Solid State Scientific Corporation proposes to design and model a unique spectral imaging sensor that will be capable of simultaneously imaging four color bands at rates up to 200 Hz. The approach will use existing technology to improve multi-spectralimaging capabilities for missile threat warning by utilizing recent developments in micro-optics to create a four-channel spectral imager based on a single focal plane array. The resulting spectral imager will operate the short wave infrared (SWIR) and/ormedium wave infrared (MWIR) bands, incorporate a 2'2 micro-lens array, and use a 512'512 staring imager to capture four 256'256 spectral images during each integration time. The new sensor will have no moving parts and a small physical form factor. Thedesign and development of this sensor represents a unique opportunity in multi-spectral sensing and imaging.This effort will benefit the development of algorithms for exploiting time-evolving spectral signatures, including those used for missile threat warning. The sensor can be configured so that the spectral resolution varies independently of the sampling,allowing the sensitivity of the sensor to be optimized around phenomenologically important spectral regions. The proposed sensor combines staring imaging technology with recent developments in micro-lens technology from telecommunications to advance the state of the art in multi-spectral imaging. The ability of the new sensor concept to rapidly acquiremulti-spectral data should provide an unprecedented opportunity to investigate algorithms for dynamic event classification based on spectral temporal signatures, countering CC&D, and evaluating surfaces. In addition, the small physical size of the sensorwill demonstrate the possibility of portable multi-spectral imaging.Potential applications for defense purposes include missile threat warning, real-time bomb damage assessment, target tracking, and buried mine detection. In addition, we anticipate possible applications in medical diagnostics and medical imaging.