Foveated 3-D Imaging Rangefinder for Object Tracking, Phase I

Laser rangefinders have numerous NASA and non-NASA applications, including navigation, landing hazard avoidance, automated rendezvous and docking, air and missile defense, infantry and artillery target designating, tank and infantry fighting vehicle fire controlling, surveillance through foliage, cloud-height measurement, and production monitoring in industries as well as commercial and law enforcement, etc. Existing laser rangefinders cannot meet some of the advanced performance requirements including wide field of view (FOV) for situation awareness, high angular resolution for detailed target shape discrimination, and fast response for transit event or moving objects tracking, as well as low weight, volume and power requirements, etc. For NASA's lunar exploration missions, lunar roving vehicle with features of automated path planning, automated driving, and obstacle avoidance are of interest for making planetary surface missions more reliable, safer, and affordable. New Span Opto-Technology Inc. proposes herein a novel laser rangefinder architecture with non-mechanical scanning foveal aperture providing wide FOV 3-D scene profile for situation awareness and high resolution 3-D profile of region of interest for object tracking. System packaging is rugged, compact and light-weight. Phase I research will establish the model, demonstrate the feasibility, and recognize challenging issues of the proposed concept through model analysis and bench top experiments.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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