A Detailed Anatomy of Night Vision Technology
Night vision equipment is to use the two conditions of low light and infrared light to convert the invisible light (twilight or infrared light) signal from the target into an electrical signal, then amplify the electrical signal, and convert the electrical signal to the human eye. Visible light signal. This double conversion of light-electricity-light is the common way for all night vision equipment to realize night observation. the
On the battlefields of ancient and modern China and foreign countries, people attach great importance to using the cover of night to win the results that are difficult to obtain during the day. On the Korean battlefield, the U.S. military once sighed that "the sun belongs to us, and the moon belongs to the Chinese". However, looking at the recent local wars, the US military almost all started at night. Just as Major General Grosson, the main commander of the U.S. Air Force in the Gulf War, said: "Never forget that the Gulf War started, fought and won at night." video technology. Night vision technology is an information collection, processing and display technology that uses photoelectric detection and imaging equipment to convert (or enhance) invisible targets into visible images. the
There is a small amount of natural light in the dark environment, such as moonlight, starlight, atmospheric glow, etc., collectively referred to as night sky light. Because they are very faint compared with sunlight, they are also called night lights. The sensitivity of the retina of the human eye is not high, and it cannot be fully "exposed" in low-light conditions. This is a reason why people cannot observe normally in the dark environment at night. In the dark environment at night, in addition to the presence of low light, there is also a lot of infrared light. All objects in the world emit infrared rays outward all the time, so no matter day or night, the space is full of infrared rays. But no matter how strong or weak the infrared rays are, people cannot see them. the
Night vision equipment is to use the two conditions of low light and infrared light to convert the invisible light (twilight or infrared light) signal from the target into an electrical signal, then amplify the electrical signal, and convert the electrical signal to the human eye. Visible light signal. This double conversion of light-electricity-light is the common way for all night vision equipment to realize night observation. the
In 1934, Holst (G·Holst) and others in the Netherlands made the first close-fitting infrared image changer tube, setting up the first milestone for human beings to break through the darkness of the night. With the continuous development of night vision technology, the variety continues to increase. At present, there are mainly:
The active infrared night vision device is relatively mature at present, and the cost is low, and because it carries an infrared light source, it is less affected by the ambient lighting conditions and has a better observation effect. The practical observation distance is generally about 300 meters, and it is mainly used for short-range reconnaissance and search, night aiming of short-range weapons and night driving of various vehicles. The main disadvantage is that it is easy to expose. Because although the infrared beam emitted by the infrared searchlight cannot be detected by the naked eye, it can be detected by the other party's instrument. the
Compared with active infrared night vision devices, low-light night vision devices are small in size and light in weight, and because they work passively, they are safe and reliable to use, and are not easy to be exposed. Its operating distance is related to ambient lighting conditions and weather. Under starlight conditions, people at a distance of 800 meters and vehicles at a distance of 1.5 kilometers can be observed. However, its operating distance and observation effect are greatly affected by the weather, and it cannot work normally in rainy or foggy days. If there is no light at all, it will fail completely.
