Why small guns have been critical to layered CUAS architectures
Multiple countries have been deploying small arms as the last line of drone defence due to their multiple operational and tactical advantages.
USAF funds SWIR targeting and tracking camera
Princeton Infrared Technologies is able to develop the detector needed for any application. (Image: Princeton Infrared Technologies)
Princeton Infrared Technologies has been awarded a contract from the USAF to develop an SWIR camera.
US Air Force Armament Directorate has awarded Princeton Infrared Technologies a $1 million contract to develop a 640x512 uncooled short-wave infrared (SWIR) camera for low-cost targeting and tracking applications.
The contract has a time span of one year and the final product must be integrated with BAE System’s open seeker architecture for advanced precision targeting.
Princeton Infrared Technologies will modify the camera form factor to fit on a glide munition and will conduct tower and captive carry tests to demonstrate its advanced capabilities.
Martin H. Ettenberg, president of Princeton Infrared Technologies, commented that the SWIR camera will ‘allow targeting of stationary and moving targets in GPS denied areas for various types of munitions’.
The company bring their experience specialising InGaAs imaging technology, SWIR linescan cameras, visible-SWIR science cameras and 1- and 2-D imaging arrays.
The contract was delivered following the Air Force Weapons Pitch Day where over 60 small businesses competed for the one-year contracts.
BAE Systems first developed its open seeker architecture for advanced precision targeting as part of a $13.1 million contract from DARPA in 2018.
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