AN ADVANCED VIDEO SYSTEM FOR BEHIND-PANEL FRAGMENTATION STUDIES

A NOVEL OPTICAL DIAGNOSTIC APPARATUS FOR BEHIND-PANEL FRAGMENTATION STUDIES IS PROPOSED. THE GOAL OF THE WORK WILL BE TO DEMONSTRATE THAT MEASUREMENTS OF THE FRAGMENT MASS, VELOCITY, TRAJECTORY CAN BE MADE WITH A SYSTEM WHICH REQUIRES AN ABSOLUTE MINIMUM OF OPERATOR INTERVENTION. THE INITIAL DATA-GATHERING WILL UTILIZE THE CAPABILITIES OF AN ORTHOGONAL, BACK-LIT, MULTI-FRAME RECORDING CAMERA. HIGH POWER, NARROW LINEWIDTH LASER ILLUMINATORS WILL BE EMPLOYED TO DISCRIMINATE AGAINST IMPACT FLASH. VIDEO CAMERAS WILL PRODUCE DATA IN A FORM WHICH IS AMENABLE TO COMPUTER-ASSISTED ANALYSIS IN A NEARLY COMPLETELY AUTOMATIC MODE. NEAR INFRARED IMAGING SYSTEMS WILL PROVIDE MUCH HIGHER SENSITIVITY TO SMALL PARTICLES THAN CAN X-RAY SYSTEMS.