JSS ACADEMY OF

TECHNICAL EDUCATION
TECHNICAL SEMINAR ON
Night Vision technology

PRESENTED BY:
SHASHANK B
(1JS15EC088)
CONTENTS

o OUTLINE
o INTRODUCTION
o INFRARED LIGHT
o BASIC TECHNOLOGIES
o WORKING
o APPLICATIONS
o CONCLUSIONS
o REFERENCE PAPERS
OUTLINE

Night vision is the ability to see in low-light conditions. Whether

by biological or technological means, night vision is made possible by
a combination of two approaches: sufficient spectral range, and
sufficient intensity range. Humans have poor night vision compared to
many animals, in part because the human eye lacks a tapetum
lucidum.
INFRARED LIGHT
INFARED LIGHT CAN BE SPLIT INTO 3 CATEGORIES

 Near Infrared – Closest to visible light ,near IR has wavelengths

that range from 0.7 to 1.3 microns, or 700 billionths to 1,300
billionths of a meter
 Mid Infrared –Mid IR has wavelengths ranging from 1.3 to 3
microns. Both near IR and mid IR are used in variety of
electronic devices
 Thermal Infrared – Occupying the largest part of infrared
spectrum, thermal IR has wavelengths ranging from 3 to 30
microns
The key difference thermal IR and other two is that
thermal IR is omitted by an object instead of reflected off
it.
Infrared Illuminators
Basic Technologies

Night vision technologies can be broadly divided into three main

categories: image intensification, active illumination, and thermal
imaging
 Image intensification- This magnifies the amount of received
photons from various natural sources such as starlight or
moonlight. The image is said to become "intensified" because the
output visible light is brighter than the incoming light
 Thermal vision-Thermal imaging detects the temperature
difference between the background and the foreground objects.
Some organisms are able to sense a crude thermal image by means
of special organs that function as bolometers. This allows
thermal infrared sensing in snakes, which functions by detection of
thermal radiation.
Working of night Vision

Image enhancement technology is what most people think of when you talk
about night vision ,image enhancement systems are normally called night
vision devices(NVDs).NVDs rely on a special tube ,called image intensifier ,to
collect and amplify infrared and visible light
Here's how image enhancement works
1. A conventional lens, called objective lens, captures ambient light and some
near infrared light
2. The gathered light is sent to image intensifier tube. In most NVDs the
image intensifiers tube receives power from two N-Cell or two "AA" batteries.
The tube outputs a high voltage, about 5,000 volts, to the image-tube
components
 3.The image-intensifier tube has a photocathode, which
is used to convert the photons of light energy into
electrons.
4.As the electrons pass through the tube, similar
electrons are released from atoms in the tube,
Cont.d multiplying the original number of electrons by a factor
of thousands through the use of a microchannel
plate (MCP) in the tube. An MCP is a tiny glass disc that
has millions of microscopic holes (microchannels) in it,
made using fiber-optic technology.
Thermal imaging Process
Thermal imaging
Image of a small dog in mid
infrared ('thermal')light
Generations

NVDs have been around for more than 40 years .They are categorized by
generation. Each substantial change in NVD technology establishes a new
generation
Generation 1- First generation viewers are in currently the most popular type of
night vision in world , a 1st generation night vision will amplify the existing
light several thousand times letting you clearly see in dark. These units provide a
bright and sharp image at low cost
Generation 2- These are primarily used by law enforcement or for professional
applications . The main difference between 1st and 2nd generation unit is the
addition of micro channel plate commonly called as MCPs .The MCP work as
electron amplifier and are placed behind the photocathode
Generation 3 –while there are no substantial changes in the underlying technology
from generation 2 ,these NVDs have even better resolution and sensitivity . This is
because photo cathode is made of gallium arsenide, which is very efficient
converting photons to electrons
Additionally ,the MCP is coated with an ion barrier ,which dramatically increases
life of tube

Generation 4 – 4th generation / Gated Filmless technology represents the

biggest technological breakthrough in image intensification of the past 10
years.by removing ion barrier film and "Gating " the system Gen 4 demonstrates
substantial increases in target detection range and resolution, particularly at
Extremely low light levels
Night vision equipment
Cameras- Cameras with night vision technology can send the image to
monitor for display or to a VCR for recording .when night vision capability is
desired in a permanent location ,such as abuilding or as a part of ther
equipment in a helicopter , cameras are used .Many of camcorders have
night vision built right in them
Applications

 Military
 Law enforcement
 Hunting
 Wildlife observation
 Surveillance
 Security
 Navigation
 Hidden object Detection
Conclusion

 Today in 21st century we have come a long way in development of night vision
technology from early 1940s
 Night vision devices are basically designed for utmost defensive purposes but
application within scientific or civilian range is prohibited by law
 In present scenario the application of night vision technology is very essential to
combat terrorism of Pakistan which is a major problem faced by mankind
References
J. Han and B. Bhanu, "Human activity recognition in thermal infrared
imagery," pp. 17-17, Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition-
Workshops, 2005, CVPR Workshops, IEEE Computer Society Conference
on, 2005.
. M. Vollmer, K.P. Mollman , "Infrared Thermal Imaging: Fundamentals
Research and Applications" in , VILEY-VCH Verlag, 2010
 Realization of imaging system of low light level night vision based on
EMCCD, Proceedings of 2013 2nd International Conference on
Measurement, Information and Control,16-18 Aug. 2013,Jie
Lin Mingjing Li ; Da Yu ; Cong Tang
Evaluating thermal and image intensification night vision devices for
the ground environment: human factors and usability
issues, Proceedings of the IEEE 1998 National Aerospace and
Electronics Conference. NAECON 1998. Celebrating 50 Years (Cat.
No.98CH36185),17-17 July 1998,P.S. Best ; D.J. Collins ; D. Piccione ; D.
Ferrett
MCQs

1. Infrared light can be split into ______ categories

A) 2 B) 3
C) 8 D) None of the above

2. Basic technology used in Night vision is

A) Image Enhancement B) Active Illumination

C) Thermal Imaging D) All of the above
3. _________ NVDs are used in law enforcements

A) Generation 1 B) Generation 2
C) Generation 3 D) Generation 4

4. Night Vision is used in

A) Security B) Navigation
C)Law enforcements D) All of the above
Thank You