Abstract
Visidyne, Inc., teaming with Sandia National Laboratories, has developed the preliminary design for an innovative scannerless 3-D laser radar capable of acquiring, tracking, and determining the coordinates of small caliber projectiles in flight with sufficient precision, so their origin can be established by back projecting their tracks to their source. The design takes advantage of the relatively large effective cross-section of a bullet at optical wavelengths. Kay to its implementation is the use of efficient, high- power laser diode arrays for illuminators and an imaging laser receiver using a unique CCD imager design, that acquires the information to establish x, y (angle-angle) and range coordinates for each bullet at very high frame rates. The detection process achieves a high degree of discrimination by using the optical signature of the bullet, solar background mitigation, and track detection. Field measurements and computer simulations have been used to provide the basis for a preliminary design of a robust bullet tracker, the Counter Sniper 3-D Laser Radar. Experimental data showing 3-D test imagery acquired by a lidar with architecture similar to that of the proposed Counter Sniper 3-D Lidar are presented. A proposed Phase II development would yield an innovative, compact, and highly efficient bullet-tracking laser radar. Such a device would meet the needs of not only the military, but also federal, state, and local law enforcement organizations.
