SEEKER HEAD PARTICULARLY FOR AUTOMATIC TARGET TRACKING

Assignee

Filed

Sep 25, 1979

Granted

Dec 30, 1997

Location

UBERLINGEN-NUSS DE

Abstract

In a seeker head a field of view is scanned cyclically for providing picture informations referenced to a seeker-fixed coordinate system. The seeker carries a gyro assembly, which provides attitude variation signals as a function of attitude variations of the seeker relative to inertial space. The attitude variation signals are applied to a coordinate transformer which transforms all picture informations with their addresses into an inertial coordinate system which coincided with the seeker-fixed coordinate system after the completion of the preceding scan. Thereby during each scan all picture informations are transformed into one single inertial coordinate system. After the completion of the scan, the picture informations are again transformed into an inertial coordinate system, which coincided with the seeker-fixed coordinate system at the end of said scan, and are stored in a memory. This is the same coordinate system into which the picture informations will be transformed during the next-following scan. Thus at the end of this next-following scan the picture informations from two consecutive scans are available, which are referenced to one single, common coordinate system and are therefore comparable in spite of attitude variations of the seeker. These picture informations are applied to signal processing means, such as a target selection logic.

Source: Google Patents