Sigma Space Corp has recently developed a revolutionary multi-beam photon counting lidar capable of recording 2.2 megapixels per second, with a spatial resolution of 15 cm, and vertical resolution of 3 cm. from 1000 m altitudes.
Developed for UAV aircraft under a USAF Phase II SBIR, the systems uses a Nd:Yag microchip laser producing few microjoule sub-nanosecond pulses at fire rates of up to 22 KHz. The beam is broken into 100 beamlets that are scanned over the scene, and the returns imaged onto a high efficiency multi-stop capable detector. The detected photon pulses are timed and stored using a company proprietary 100 channel parallel timing unit with 100 picosec resolution.
The pattern and frequency of a dual wedge scanner, synchronized to the laser fire rate, are tailored to provide contiguous coverage of a ground scene in a single overflight. The Sigma systems operates 20 times faster that any commercial system available to date, with the added benefit of multistop capability, which assures multilevel determination for canopies, penetration of fog and dust clouds, and underwater imaging. With a volume of two cubic feet and 25 Kg mass the system lends itself to very compact deployment platforms. Various scientific and defense applications are being investigated.
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