Development of a miniature, hyperspectral imaging digital camera Navy SBIR FY2005.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2005.1 Topic No.: N05-071 Topic Title: Development of a miniature, hyperspectral imaging digital camera Proposal No.: N051-071-0252 Firm: Surface Optics Corporation 11555 Rancho Bernardo Road San Diego, California 92127 Contact: Michael Beecroft Phone: (858) 675-7404 Web Site: www.surfaceoptics.com Abstract: A program to develop a highly integrated, cost effective hyperspectral digital snapshot camera is proposed. This camera will be able to collect 3-D hyperspectral image cubes in the visible to near IR bands (VNIR) with only the aid of a laptop computer. Communication from the computer to the camera will be through a High-Speed USB 2.0 link. The entire system will be able to operate on either AC power or batteries making it completely mobile. Minimization of the packaging is obtained by having a fully integrated subsystem instead of a collage of individual components. Expensive third party components will not be used and instead, these key components will be developed/manufactured in-house to reduce cost. The application software will be easy to use with a very rich assortment of capabilities. The software will be modeled after popular off-the-shelf image processing software so that new users will have some familiarity with the software interface from the very beginning. The proposed effort represents an extension of Surface Optics' many years of experience in hyperspectral imaging design. Surface Optics' unsurpassed capability (and commitment) in engineering, algorithm development, and manufacturing will guarantee a quality product. Benefits: A very large benefit for having a low-cost, quality hyperspectral camera is that it would have the potential of wide spread deployment. Currently, only the most elite development centers can afford hyperspectral imagers. An affordable system will allow much greater number of both military and commercial facilities to own a hyperspectral imager. In fact, affordability coupled with ease of use will allow the deployment of this instrument into applications such as computer display metrology (which benefits R&D, incoming inspection, and QA), target detection and tracking development, cosmetics, and many other applications. The portability of the system, due to its high degree of integration, will allow this instrument to be used when field testing must be done in a remote area. Return