Holographic weapons sight as a crew optical alignment sight

Nujoud Merancy; Brian Dehmlow; Jack P. Brazzel

doi:10.1117/12.883900

23 May 2011 Holographic weapons sight as a crew optical alignment sight

Nujoud Merancy, Brian Dehmlow, Jack P. Brazzel

Proceedings Volume 8044, Sensors and Systems for Space Applications IV; 80440R (2011) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.883900
Event: SPIE Defense, Security, and Sensing, 2011, Orlando, Florida, United States

Abstract

Crew Optical Alignment Sights (COAS) are used by spacecraft pilots to provide a visual reference to a target spacecraft for lateral relative position during rendezvous and docking operations. NASA's Orion vehicle, which is currently under development, has not included a COAS in favor of automated sensors, but the crew office has requested such a device be added for situational awareness and contingency support. The current Space Shuttle COAS was adopted from Apollo heritage, weighs several pounds, and is no longer available for procurement which would make re-use difficult. In response, a study was conducted to examine the possibility of converting a commercially available weapons sight to a COAS for the Orion spacecraft. The device used in this study was the XPS series Holographic Weapon Sight (HWS) procured from L-3 EOTech. This device was selected because the targeting reticule can subtend several degrees, and display a graphic pattern tailored to rendezvous and docking operations. Evaluations of the COAS were performed in both the Orion low-fidelity mockup and rendezvous simulations in the Reconfigurable Operational Cockpit (ROC) by crewmembers, rendezvous engineering experts, and flight controllers at Johnson Space Center. These evaluations determined that this unit's size and mounting options can support proper operation and that the reticule visual qualities are as good as or better than the current Space Shuttle COAS. The results positively indicate that the device could be used as a functional COAS and supports a low-cost technology conversion solution.

Citation Download Citation

Nujoud Merancy, Brian Dehmlow, and Jack P. Brazzel "Holographic weapons sight as a crew optical alignment sight", Proc. SPIE 8044, Sensors and Systems for Space Applications IV, 80440R (23 May 2011); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.883900

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available

Members: $17.00

Non-members: $21.00 ADD TO CART

PROCEEDINGS
12 PAGES

DOWNLOAD PAPER SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

GET CITATION

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Get copyright permission Get copyright permission on Copyright Marketplace

KEYWORDS

Photomasks

Holography

Space operations

Weapons

Stars

Visualization

Optical alignment

Show All Keywords

Keywords/Phrases

Search In:

Publication Years