'Owning the night' means fusing sensors: night-vision goggles designed for next-generation information-centric force.

• Author: Erwin, Sandra I.

The U.S. Army is testing a new generation of night-vision goggles that would let soldiers see through smoke and dust, in complete darkness. The technology required for these goggles already is available, but both Army officials and manufacturers are not sure how long it will take to produce "combat-proof" devices, or whether the service will be able to afford them.

At least two programs are under way today to develop next-generation night-vision goggles.

One of them aims to combine traditional night-vision technology, called image intensification, with thermal sensors. Image intensification amplifies non-visible particles of light to a level of brightness that the human eye can detect. A thermal, or infrared, imager senses the temperature differences and warmer items appear brighter on a display.

The fusion of both technologies would result in night-vision goggles that merge the strengths of image intensification--a clear, sharp green-tinted picture--with the advantages of infrared--the ability to see practically under any environmental condition. Green is the color that the human eye sees most easily.

Secondly, another night-vision goggle program--spearheaded by the U.S. Air Force--would provide military aviators with panoramic, wide-view goggles. Unlike conventional devices that restrict the pilot's side-view to a 40-degree angle, the panoramic goggles come with a 100-degree field of view. The Air Force plans to start buying these goggles next year, but their price tag makes it unlikely that they will be available in large quantities in the foreseeable future.

The Army is considering buying the panoramic goggles, but it has made no financial commitment yet.

A higher priority for the service today is to develop the "sensor-fusion" goggles, said Lt. Col. Cindy Bedell, the Army's product manager for soldier sensors. The combined image-intensification and infrared goggle is known as ENVG (enhanced night-vision goggle).

The Army wants to be able to field these as soon as possible, she told National Defense, because they potentially could translate into a huge battlefield advantage for U.S. soldiers. With current goggles, "you can't see in over-cast starlight [conditions] and down," she said. At lower light levels, "the range and quality are degraded."

The ENVG, if developed successfully, would be fielded to infantry troops, military police, traffic controllers, surveillance units and any force likely to engage in urban combat, Bedell said. The infrared sensor is needed to see through the glare of city lights. Under such conditions, the image-intensification tubes get overloaded, creating a "halo" effect that makes it difficult to see.

The Army is evaluating three ENVG prototypes, each...