The American Authority in Professional Grade Night Vision.
How Night Vision Works - General Description
Imagine standing outside in total darkness and watching animals in thier natural habitat without any human intrusion. Wildlife viewing, surveillance, and hunting are now 24 hour sports. How is this done? Night Vision Buyers Guides and Product Reviews are useful in helping the buyer pick the night vision device that best suits thier application. Read on to learn more how night vision is possible. Night Vision devices are given thier designation due to the presence of an image intensifier tube.
Image intensification.
Night vision is made possible by using an image intensification tube to amplify very small quantities of light. Image intensification is also known as gain multiplication.
Night vision devices have various image magnifications. The distance at which a human-sized figure can be clearly recognized under normal conditions (moon and starlight) depends on both the magnifying power of the objective lens and the strength of the image intensifier. There are distance limitations in observing objects in darkness through a night vision device. Most Generation 1 devices are able to provide the user with up to 350 yards of viewing capability, while Generation 2 and Generation 3 devices, while far more expensive, can provide the user with up to 500 yards of viewing distance.
Users can improve the performance of thier night vision devices in low light or pitch black conditions through the use of a High Power Infrared Illuminator, which brightens the image, and can extend viewing range.
Night vision camera movies and pictures can also be made with the help of a simple night vision camera adapter.
A Night Vision phosphor screen is purposefully colored green because the human eye can differentiate more shades of green than other phosphor colors.
Nearly all Generation 1 night vision devices use image tubes produces by the publicly traded company “JSC Ekran” of Novosibirsk Russia.
Most Generation 2 and Generation 3 night vision devices made by Litton and ITT are produced in the United States.
Generations Of Night Vision Products
Grades, or quality levels of night vision devices are normally categorized by “Generations”. Each Generation night vision device uses a different grade image intensifier tube and more sophisticated engineering technology
Generation 0. The first night vision devices produced during World War II were categorized as Generation 0 due to their use of active infrared. In active infrared night vision devices, IR illuminators emit a beam (akin to a flashlight) of infrared light which bounced back to the night vision device to create illuminated images. One major drawback of active infrared night vision devices used during the middle of the 20th century was the ability for hostile forces to see the bright red images being emitted from the devices.
Generation 1. Generation 1 night vision, which is widely used by end users and professionals, use passive infrared technology. Generation 1 night vision image tubes gather available ambient light (from stars, moon, streetlights) and amplify them as described above. Generation 1 night vision devices must use infrared illuminators if no ambient light is present. Rigel Optics Night Vision recommends high end Generation 1 night vision devices due to their best overall value, as determined by their premium performance and affordability .
Major suppliers of High-End Generation 1 night vision devices include Rigel Optics and Night Owl Optics. These suppliers are known for thier very light-weight night vision devices, and bright green images.
Major suppliers of mid-range Generation 1 night vision devices include Newcon Optik, and Yukon .
Low end night vision devices, which consumers should exercise caution with when buying include manufacturers such as Baigish, ROMZ, and Lytkarino, all based in Russia.
Generation 2. Generation 2 night vision is often referred to as military grade or mil-spec night vision. While substantially more expensive than Generation 1, Generation 2 provides the user with better image resolution, and brighter green images through the phosphor screen.
Due to the presence of a high-performance micro channel plate (MCP), it is possible to view objects in very low light conditions, without the aid of an infrared illuminator. In addition to accelerating electronics, the micro channel plate increases the total number of electronics in the vacuum tube. Major suppliers of Generation 2 night vision include ATN, US Night Vision, and Night Optics USA.
Generation 3. Generation 3 night vision are an extension of the technology used in Generation 2 night vision (MCP), but provide the user with the highest possible image resolution and brightness. Generation 3 night vision devices use gallium arsenide, which has a very high saturated electronic velocity, which is extremely efficient at converting photons to electrons. Major suppliers of Generation 3 night vision include ITT and Litton.
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Night Vision Goggles, Night Vision Binoculars,
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Read about night vision in the media and night vision product reviews
Rigel Optics Night Vision
Other night vision links
Wikipedia's article on night vision
Howstuffworks.com article on night vision
