Abstract
Passive Millimeter Wave (PMMW) imaging technology offers significant safety benefits to world aviation. Made possible by recent technological breakthroughs, PMMW imaging sensors provide visual-like images of objects under low visibility conditions (e.g., fog, clouds, snow, sandstorms, and smoke) which blind visual and infrared sensors. TRW has developed an advanced, demonstrator version of a PMMW imaging camera that, when front-mounted on an aircraft, gives images of the forward scene at a rate and quality sufficient to enhance aircrew vision and situational awareness under low visibility conditions. Potential aviation uses for a PMMW camera are numerous and include: (1) Enhanced vision for autonomous take- off, landing, and surface operations in Category III weather on Category I and non-precision runways; (2) Enhanced situational awareness during initial and final approach, including Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) mitigation; (3) Ground traffic control in low visibility; (4) Enhanced airport security. TRW leads a consortium which began flight tests with the demonstration PMMW camera in September 1997. Flight testing will continue in 1998. We discuss the characteristics of PMMW images, the current state of the technology, the integration of the camera with other flight avionics to form an enhanced vision system, and other aviation applications.
Published Version
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