Infrared Imaging
Sharpens View in Critical Situations
Public Safety
Originating Technology/NASA
Contribution
The Microgravity Combustion Science group at NASA’s Glenn
Research Center studies how fire and combustible liquids
and gasses behave in low-gravity conditions. This group,
currently working as part of the Life Support and Habitation
Branch under the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate,
conducts this research with a careful eye toward fire prevention,
detection, and suppression, in order to establish the highest
possible safety margins for space-bound materials.
Over the years, the group has established that many materials
burn very differently in microgravity than they do on Earth.
For example, attempting to stomp out a flame in microgravity
could possibly accelerate combustion, at least temporarily
(because an airflow is being created that did not exist
before). Other interesting findings indicate that microgravity
fires can spread faster upstream than downstream, opposite
of the behavior of fire spreading on Earth, and that fire
is actually weaker in microgravity. As a matter of fact,
the weakest flames ever generated were done so in space.
During the “Structure of Flame Balls at Low Lewis-number”
(SOFBALL) experimental trials conducted during missions
STS-83 (April 1997), STS-94 (July 1997), and STS-107 (January
2003), flames were generated in space with power as low
as
1 watt—about 50 times weaker than a candle flame.
This is not to say that fire is safer in space, though.
Fire outbreak on a spacecraft is just as dangerous as any
fire situation on Earth, or arguably even more dangerous,
given the inability of astronauts to evacuate. For this
reason, the ability to detect subtle variations in temperature
in a complex and varied thermal background could prove
invaluable in a spacecraft.
Partnership
Innovative Engineering
and Consulting (IEC) Infrared Systems
is a leading developer of thermal imaging systems and night
vision equipment. The Cleveland-based company was founded
in 1999 by two microgravity combustion science researchers
from the National Center for Space Exploration Research,
an academic research organization located onsite at Glenn.
In spinning off their new business venture, the two researchers
utilized the engineering know-how they developed in measuring
high-temperature flames for NASA space flight experiments.
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IEC
Infrared Systems’ Thermal/Visual Imaging Systems
product line features a suite of thermal imaging
devices that are used in a wide range of applications. |
Several years after opening for business, IEC Infrared
Systems received a Glenn Alliance for Technology Exchange
(GATE) award worth $100,000, half of which was in the form
of additional NASA assistance for new product development.
The GATE award was established by Glenn, the Ohio Aerospace
Institute, and the Battelle Memorial Institute to assist
small Ohio-based companies interested in collaborating
with NASA to advance their products and processes.
IEC Infrared Systems used the funds earmarked for NASA
assistance to work with electrical and optical engineers
from Glenn’s Diagnostics and Data Systems Branch on the
development of a commercial infrared imaging system that
could differentiate the intensity of heat sources better
than other commercial systems. Firefighters, for example,
could use the proposed technology to make clearer distinctions
between the intense heat of a fire and the lower-level
thermal signatures of human bodies in fire-based search
and rescue situations where darkness, smoke, or fog can
obscure their vision.
Product Outcome
The firsthand NASA knowledge and the follow-up funding
and technical support from the GATE award were the catalysts
for IEC Infrared Systems to evolve from a start-up venture
to a multimillion dollar business with a staff of more
than 30 scientists, engineers, and technicians spanning
a wide range of engineering fields. Today, the company
offers two major thermal imaging solutions that stem directly
from its vast NASA experience: NightStalkIR and IntrudIR
Alert (“IR” for infrared). These two imaging systems have
found widespread use
in emergency first-responder, facility security, and military
applications.
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Modern
infrared imaging devices allow users to see through
smoke and fog, as well as in total darkness. They
have widespread use in military, facility security,
and emergency first-responder applications. |
With advanced imaging capabilities, proprietary signal
processing and electronics, and a tough, rugged exterior,
NightStalkIR offers optimal daytime/nighttime surveillance
in all weather conditions. Features include a low-light
camera with lens options ranging from 50 to 180 millimeters
(without the “halo” effect commonly seen in some imagers),
full 360-degree rotation with pan and tilt, hand controller
and PC software control, fixed or mobile (vehicle) mounting,
and onscreen positional display of imaging direction and
other tactical data. Optional features include fiber optic
and wireless capabilities,
an image-intensified camera that further enhances nighttime
imaging in the visual spectrum, and Global Positioning
System/compass/laser range systems that provide the precise
location of observed targets for increased tactical awareness.
IntrudIR Alert is an intrusion-detection system designed
to operate with multiple NightStalkIR thermal imagers.
This software-based system allows a single operator to
command and control these imagers over a broad area, for
maximum tactical and situational awareness and early warning
of intrusions. Features include target tracking, based
on either thermal signatures or motion detection (or a
combination of both), continuous automatic tracking of
these targets, and digital capturing of still images or
short video clips, either on command or in response to
alarms. In addition to being compatible with NightStalkIR,
IntrudIR Alert can be integrated into larger security networks.
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| This software-based system
allows a single operator to command and control these
devices over a broad area, for maximum tactical and
situational awareness and early warning of intrusions. |
According to IEC Infrared Systems, NightStalkIR and IntrudIR
Alert are being used in the United States and abroad to
help locate personnel stranded in emergency situations,
defend soldiers on the battlefield abroad, and protect
high-value facilities and operations. The company is also
applying its advanced thermal imaging techniques to medical
and pharmaceutical product development with a Cleveland-based
pharmaceutical company. This cooperative effort was enabled
by a NASA Space Act Agreement, as Glenn continues to encourage
IEC Infrared Systems’ founding partners to explore new
product ideas based on the techniques developed during
their tenure at NASA. For the founders, their work with
NASA and their related commercial endeavors have given
a whole new meaning to “playing with fire.”
NightStalkIR™
and IntrudIR Alert™ are trademarks of Innovative Engineering
and Consulting Infrared Systems.
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