Active seeker head system

A controller configured and operable to operate a detection and tracking system, which is mounted on a movable platform, for detecting and tracking an object;

• the detection and tracking system comprising:
• an illuminator capable of generating an illumination beam for propagation along an output optical path;
• a beam shaper capable of adjusting a field of view (FOV) solid angle of said light beam to form an output light beam with said adjusted FOV propagating along the output optical path;
• a detector for imaging light arriving from a certain FOV about said output optical path, with light spectra in the spectral regime of said light beam;
• and
• a scanner capable of angularly deflecting a direction of said output optical path about a scan axis;
• and
• wherein the controller is configured and operable to:
• carry out a detection stage to detect an object within a field of regard (FOR) with respect to the movable platform, wherein said detection stage comprises:
• (i) operating said beam shaper to adjust said FOV of the output light beam to extent smaller than said FOR;
• (ii) operating said scanner to carry out a scan of the FOR by deflecting the FOV of said illumination beam to cover the FOR, and
• (iii) during said scan, operating said detector for capturing a plurality of images of different sections of said FOR, to thereby obtain FOR frame image data indicative of an image of said FOR;
• and
• (iv) processing said FOR frame image data to identify therein one or more pixels indicative of detection of said object and upon said detection of said object carrying out a tracking stage for tracking said object;
• wherein carrying out said tracking stage comprises sequentially capturing a plurality of FOR frames image data indicative of the FOR, and processing the FOR frame image data to identify the object therein;
• and at least one of the following:
• a. intensity of the returned light being reflected/scattered from the object and captured by said one or more pixels in the at least one image is a function of τ and 1/R, whereby R is a distance between the detector and the object, and τ is exposure times of the at least one image of the plurality of images of different sections of said FOR;
• and wherein said controller is adapted dynamically adjust the exposure times τ during the sequential capturing of the plurality of FOR frames image data according to said intensity to thereby enable to reduce a total time T of said scanning cycle while maintaining a Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) above a predetermined threshold;
• and
• b. intensity of the returned light being reflected/scattered from the object and captured by said one or more pixels is a function of T/(R4*Ω) whereby R is a distance between the detector and the object, Ω is the solid angle of a total field of regard (FOR) covered by the scanning cycle, and T is time duration of the scanning cycle;
• and wherein said controller is adapted to carry out a plurality of scanning cycles for capturing plurality of FOR frames image data, while dynamically adjusting at least one of the time durations T of the scanning cycles and the solid angles Ω of the FOR being scanned in said scanning cycles.