Liquid crystal light valve goggles for eye protection
AssigneeHughes Aircraft Company
InventorsUzi Efron, Shin-Tson Wu, Tsung-Yuan Hsu, Wayne Schoenmakers
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An eye protection device 10 comprising a liquid crystal light valve 20 for providing an image of a scene. The light valve images the field of view under observation in a spectral range which matches the human eye. It will automatically reject a laser threat by simply absorbing the energy therefrom in the photoconductive layer thereof. Thus, the invention 10 provides a broad spectrum, zero response time, angle and polarization independent, sensitive eye protection device having a fast recovery time, high extinction coefficient and a high damage threshold. Hence, the invention is expected to be of significant utility to personnel operating in hostile environments.
Claims29
An eye protection device comprising:
- a liquid crystal light valve for providing an image of a scene in a spectral range suitable for human viewing and for preventing harmful radiation from being transmitted for viewing, wherein said liquid crystal light valve includes a photoconductive layer, and
- means for supporting the light valve to facilitate the viewing thereof.
An eye protection device comprising:
- a liquid crystal light valve for providing an image of a scene;
- means for supporting the light valve to facilitate the viewing thereof;
- reflector means for reflecting said image to the eye of a viewer;
- and
- means for moving said reflecting means from a first position to a second position.
An eye protection device comprising:
- a liquid crystal light valve for providing an image of a scene;
- means for supporting the light valve to facilitate the viewing thereof;
- reflector means for reflecting said image to the eye of a viewer;
- and
- folding mirror means for folding the optical train of said device.
An eye protection device comprising:
- a liquid crystal light valve for providing an image of a scene;
- means for supporting the light valve to facilitate the viewing thereof, and
- means for inverting the image provided by said light valve.
An eye protection device comprising:
- a liquid crystal light valve for providing an image of a scene;
- and
- means for supporting the light valve to facilitate the viewing thereof, wherein said means for supporting the light valve includes counter weights mounted on a helmet on which said device is installed.
Eye protection goggles comprising:
- two reflective liquid crystal light valves for providing an image of a scene;
- an objective lens for, one for each light valve, mounted along the optical train thereof;
- an eyepiece lens, one for each light valve, mounted along the optical axis thereof;
- and
- means for supporting the light valves to facilitate the viewing thereof.
A target locator system comprising:
- liquid crystal light valve goggles for imaging a scene in a spectral range suitable for human viewing, wherein said liquid crystal light valve includes a photoconductive layer, and
- a head-up display.
An eye protection device comprising:
- at least one liquid crystal light valve goggle for imaging a scene;
- and
- a helmet to which said at least one liquid crystal light valve goggle is pivotally attached,
- said liquid crystal light valve goggle including:
- a photoconductive layer for receiving input images;
- means on said photoconductive layer for blocking threat radiation, and
- a layer comprising liquid crystal for modulating a readout light and replicating the input images for viewing in response to the input images received by said photoconductive layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.