Project Background
Traditional dual-tube binocular night vision devices have a field of view (FOV) of only 40 °, which is too small and slow to gather information. This is akin to seeing the world through two pipes, whereas the human eye has a horizontal FOV of 188 ° and a vertical FOV of 120 ° . In high-stress combat environments, the scanning mode can be disrupted. Continuous scanning not only increases soldiers' fatigue and stress but also slows down reaction times, making it easier to expose oneself as a target and putting the operation at a disadvantage. To address the issue of reduced peripheral information and decreased situational awareness caused by field-of-view obstruction, research has been conducted on developing large-field-of-view helmet-mounted night vision devices.
The project aims to develop a night vision device that allows for observation of a wide field of view without the need to turn the head. This night vision device is a low- power, miniaturized, ultra-wide-field-of-view, low-light night vision system that uses a Gen3 low-light mage Intensifier Tube as its core component. It operates effectively in low-light conditions without moonlight or starlight and has good detection and camouflage recognition capabilities. It is suitable for naval amphibious assault operations at night, urban street fighting, target search, and observation.
Function And Use
The four-eye panoramic helmet night vision system is a large-field-of-view night image enhancement system moun- ted on helmets. It uses the faint visible light and near- infrared light at night to produce images that can be seen directly, aiding in various night missions. Its main features include four independent image enhancers and four indep- endent lenses arranged in a panoramic direction. The two central lenses are horizontally aligned forward, similar to traditional binocular night vision goggles, providing soldiers with a greater sense of depth.The perception function is provided by the central tube, while the other two tubes are slightly positioned outward from the center, connecting with the central tubes at the eyepiece to expand the peripheral field of view. Soldiers can see the wide-field night vision image formed by the overlapping of the two central tubes and the two outer tubes. The four tubes are installed in the scope body and suspended on the night vision scope's bracket, allowing soldiers to adjust their eye position and interpupillary distance. It can also be removed as a handheld night vision device.
The horizontal field of view of the large-field-of-view night vision scope is more than doubled. Using this scope, soldiers can reduce the need for extensive head movements to scan, preventing the exposure of targets and enabling real-time target acquisition. This enhances situational awar- eness and improves night vision and night combat capabilit- ies, greatly aiding in night assault special operations. When conducting night missions, it is crucial to observe as much as possible, as the more information that can be gathered and processed, the better. Providing more night vision informat- ion enables soldiers to quickly navigate the OODA cycle (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act).
