westernrover
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- May 4, 2018
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The telescope was first used for observing.
Sometime during the 20th century, it became popular as a gun sight for hunting.
Optical sights have become widely adopted by militaries.
Observing is done increasingly through digital imaging sensors. In astronomy they are nearly ubiquitous.
Will imaging sensors catch-on for gun sights?
What I'm imagining is a sensor (digital camera) integrated into an optical sight that doesn't even have an ocular. It would not need to be mounted in a position accessible to the eye so long as it is somehow aligned to the bore. Because a very high resolution sensor can be much smaller than the pupil, it could use relatively tiny lenses (like the size of smartphone lenses). It would be compact in length also because the necessary focal lengths for a small sensor are much shorter.
Traditionally, we needed things like 50mm objectives to provide a large enough "exit pupil" at higher magnifications for the human pupil, and to gather enough light in low light for a bright image. With a 50mm objective, to achieve a modest magnification took a considerable focal length. An imaging sensor could be filled with light from a much smaller objective lens which would consequently require a shorter focal length all for the same magnification of a much larger and longer system designed for the human eye. The sensor's data could be amplified or data gathered over a longer time could be "stacked" with over-exposed areas (blown-out highlights) controlled by an algorithm (similar to HDR) to produce bright images from extremely low light in spite of a tiny objective lens.
I know we already have optics with cameras -- I see the videos people produce from their gun's optics, and today's thermal scopes are essentially tv screens in the ocular. What I'm imagining is that if things continue the way they're going, this might evolve to become the most common way of aiming.
The operator would "aim" through their view on a screen -- their smartphone display, or some kind of VR/AR headset (which have been described as a smartphone strapped to your face). Yes, Microsoft's military Hololens goggles come to mind. Might this appeal to those who don't just want to shoot or hunt, but want to "share" their exploits on social-media? I suppose their view could also be augmented -- with IR, thermal, range, wind, and other data in real time. Would it radically change long-gun and even handgun ergonomics?
Sometime during the 20th century, it became popular as a gun sight for hunting.
Optical sights have become widely adopted by militaries.
Observing is done increasingly through digital imaging sensors. In astronomy they are nearly ubiquitous.
Will imaging sensors catch-on for gun sights?
What I'm imagining is a sensor (digital camera) integrated into an optical sight that doesn't even have an ocular. It would not need to be mounted in a position accessible to the eye so long as it is somehow aligned to the bore. Because a very high resolution sensor can be much smaller than the pupil, it could use relatively tiny lenses (like the size of smartphone lenses). It would be compact in length also because the necessary focal lengths for a small sensor are much shorter.
Traditionally, we needed things like 50mm objectives to provide a large enough "exit pupil" at higher magnifications for the human pupil, and to gather enough light in low light for a bright image. With a 50mm objective, to achieve a modest magnification took a considerable focal length. An imaging sensor could be filled with light from a much smaller objective lens which would consequently require a shorter focal length all for the same magnification of a much larger and longer system designed for the human eye. The sensor's data could be amplified or data gathered over a longer time could be "stacked" with over-exposed areas (blown-out highlights) controlled by an algorithm (similar to HDR) to produce bright images from extremely low light in spite of a tiny objective lens.
I know we already have optics with cameras -- I see the videos people produce from their gun's optics, and today's thermal scopes are essentially tv screens in the ocular. What I'm imagining is that if things continue the way they're going, this might evolve to become the most common way of aiming.
The operator would "aim" through their view on a screen -- their smartphone display, or some kind of VR/AR headset (which have been described as a smartphone strapped to your face). Yes, Microsoft's military Hololens goggles come to mind. Might this appeal to those who don't just want to shoot or hunt, but want to "share" their exploits on social-media? I suppose their view could also be augmented -- with IR, thermal, range, wind, and other data in real time. Would it radically change long-gun and even handgun ergonomics?
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