Lock-in imaging system for detecting disturbances in fluid

A lock-in imaging method of detecting disturbances in fluids including air, the method comprising:

• producing an interference fringe pattern at a junction point in front of a flight path with an interferometer located on an aircraft by splitting a beam of coherent light into two coherent beams along two paths and recombining the two coherent beams at the junction point in front of a flight path using a plurality of mirrors, at least one of which is disposed on a tip of a wing, from a pair of wings of the aircraft;
• capturing an image of the interference pattern of the two coherent beams at the junction point in front of a flight path with a telescopic imaging camera located on the aircraft;
• and
• detecting the disturbance of the fluid in an optical path of the two coherent beams based on an index of refraction of the image captured by the telescopic imaging camera at the junction point in front of the flight path, and wherein the telescopic imaging camera is configured for detecting the disturbance of the fluid along the optical path of the two coherent beams based on a pressure dependent change of the index of refraction of the air.

A system configured for detecting a disturbance in air, the system comprising:

• an airplane having a fuselage and a pair of wings, wherein the airplane is configured for flight in air;
• an interferometer operatively disposed on the airplane and configured for producing an interference pattern by splitting a coherent beam of light into two coherent beams along two paths and recombining the two coherent beams at a junction point in front of a flight path of the airplane during flight;
• a plurality of mirrors configured for directing the two coherent beams towards one another at the junction point;
• and
• a telescopic imaging camera located on the airplane configured for capturing an image of the interference pattern of the two coherent beams at the junction point in front of the flight path;
• wherein at least one of the plurality of mirrors is disposed on a tip of each of the wings,
• wherein the telescopic imaging camera is configured for detecting the disturbance in air along an optical path of the two coherent beams based on an index of refraction of the image detected at the junction point in front of the flight path, and wherein the telescopic imaging camera is configured for detecting the disturbance of the fluid along the optical path of the two coherent beams based on a pressure dependent change of the index of refraction of the air.

A system configured for detecting a disturbance in air, the system comprising:

• an airplane having a fuselage and a pair of wings, wherein the airplane is configured for flight in air;
• an interferometer operatively disposed on the airplane and configured for producing an interference pattern by splitting a coherent beam of light into two coherent beams along two paths and recombining the two coherent beams at a junction point in front of a flight path of the airplane during flight;
• and
• a telescopic imaging camera located on the airplane configured for capturing an image of the interference pattern of the two coherent beams at the junction point in front of the flight path;
• wherein the telescopic imaging camera is configured for detecting the disturbance in air along an optical path of the two coherent beams based on an index of refraction of the image detected at the junction point in front of the flight path,
• wherein the interferometer includes:
• a coherent light source operatively disposed on the fuselage of the airplane and configured for emitting the coherent beam of light;
• a beam splitter operatively disposed on the fuselage of the airplane and configured for splitting the coherent beam of light into the two coherent beams;
• and
• a plurality of mirrors configured for directing the two coherent beams of light toward one another at the junction point;
• wherein at least one of the plurality of mirrors are disposed on a tip of each of the wings.