3kW Laser Small Tracking and Launch System
1Introduction
The 3kW Laser Small Tracking and Launch System (referred to as the ATP System) features two core functions: first, dynamic acquisition, tracking and pointing function. It can realize rough and precise target acquisition and tracking by semi-automatically searching a certain area for targets with a joystick or driving the tracking mount via external guidance (e.g., external radar). Second, laser launch function. In the precise tracking state, the imported laser is stably converged and launched at the target through the tracking mirror and the beam expansion of the primary and secondary mirrors via the ATP optical system. In addition, the system is capable of quick disassembly, transportation and debugging, and can be integrated on vehicles. The physical system is shown in Figure 1.
2System Composition
The composition of the 3kW Intelligent Laser Small Tracking and Launch System is shown in Figure 2. It mainly consists of four parts: image processing, turret control, display and control, and strike system. With photoelectric detection and servo control as the core, the system realizes target acquisition and tracking through the image processing system. Relying on the turret structure and servo drive unit, the turret control system adjusts the turret angle in real time according to the image processing results to align the laser launch optical path with the target. As a human-computer interaction terminal, the display and control system undertakes the functions of parameter setting, status monitoring and operation command issuing, and all control processes are completed on this interface. When the system enters the precise tracking state, the strike system will complete laser emission and strike through a 3kW air-cooled laser, ultimately achieving efficient damage to the target.
2.1Image Processing System
2.1.1High-precision Visible Light Camera：
The high-precision visible light camera is mainly used for target acquisition and tracking in daytime conditions. It has the longest focal length and highest resolution in the system, making it easier to identify and judge typical unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), with a maximum detection range of more than 4km. The camera parameters are as follows:：
1）Aperture: 150mm;
2）Effective pixel number: 1024*1024;
3）Frame rate: 100Hz;
4）Pixel size: 6.5μm×6.5μm;
5）Focal length: 1200mm fixed focus
2.1.2Low-precision Visible Light Camera
The low-precision visible light camera is mainly used for target acquisition and tracking in daytime conditions, with a maximum detection range of about 2km for typical UAVs. The camera parameters are as follows：
1）Aperture: 68mm;
2）Effective pixel number: 1024*1024;
3）Frame rate: 100Hz;
4）Pixel size: 6.5μm×6.5μm;
5）Focal length: 25～500mm continuous zoom
2.2Turret Control System
2.2.1Turret Structure
The tracking and pointing turret adopts an overall structural layout of a two-axis horizontal U-shaped mount, which is characterized by high stability and good expandability. It is mainly composed of a horizontal axis system, a vertical axis system, a base system, a torque motor, a slip ring and other components, and serves as a bearing platform for the low/high-precision visible light cameras and the laser launch optical system.
2.2.2Servo Drive
The servo turret tracking controller receives commands, status and error signals from the upper computer, encoder and other components, and then forms a control voltage to drive the servo turret motor to rotate through comprehensive processing, so as to complete the operation and control of the turret, realize control modes such as follow-up, positioning and tracking, and further achieve precise position pointing to obtain accurate angular information between two parties.
The motor control system adopts a cascade compound control scheme combining the current loop, speed loop and position loop. The control structure principle of the azimuth axis is shown in Figure 3, and the control structure principle of the pitch axis is the same.
2.3Display and Control System
As a human-computer interaction platform, the operator can send commands to the control system through the interface to realize the system's acquisition, tracking and pointing of targets. When the system enters the precise tracking state and the target is stably locked, the operator can enable the laser with one click on the interface to complete laser emission and strike. The display and control interface is shown in Figure 4.
2.4Strike System
2.4.1 3kW Air-cooled Laser
The designed solution is a 3000W air-cooled fiber laser, which can operate in a wide temperature range of -40℃ to +55℃, with a single continuous laser emission time of not less than 60 seconds under typical working conditions. The laser is powered by a rechargeable battery, and the equipped battery can meet the cumulative laser emission time of more than 200 seconds when fully charged. The outer envelope of the laser is 495mm×275mm×160mm. The physical view of the air-cooled laser is shown in Figure 5.
2.4.2 5kWh Power Supply
The 5kWh power supply is a power module specially designed for the 3kW laser. It not only undertakes the responsibility of providing stable electric energy for the laser, but also integrates an intelligent temperature control system, which can automatically adjust the refrigeration power according to the working load of the laser, effectively prevent spectral drift or damage to optical components caused by temperature fluctuations, and significantly improve the operational stability and service life of the laser. The power supply is shown in Figure 6.
3System Characteristics and Advantages
3.1 System Characteristics
1) The main system characteristics include single-vehicle integration, mobile integrated deployment, and efficient and stable laser strike；
2) Single-vehicle integration and mobile integrated deployment: The system features high integration, rapid deployment and flexible movement. A single vehicle can complete target search, tracking and strike tasks, supporting single-point deployment and distributed network deployment, and adapting to air defense combat requirements in multiple scenarios；
3) Efficient and stable laser strike: This achievement is equipped with a high-power laser strike module, which can implement non-contact "hard damage" to key parts of UAVs such as the power system and flight control, with a strike range of ≥1.1 km.
3.2 Core Advantages
1) Single-vehicle integrationMobile integrated deployment endows the system with higher mobility, concealment and deployment flexibility;
2) High efficiencyThe system can be started in 10 seconds with a fast response speed, and can complete autonomous detection, identification, guidance and strike within a few seconds, adapting to high-frequency and multi-target defense tasks;
3) Low strike cost and high cost performanceUsing laser as the strike method, it has low operating cost and small supply demand, suitable for continuous combat in multiple rounds.
3.3 stabilizer function
The attitude stabilization function of ATP refers to enabling the load mounted on the turntable to resist external disturbances (such as carrier motion, wind load, and vibration) in a dynamic environment and accurately maintain or track its preset pointing angle in inertial space through the coordinated servo control of two degrees of freedom: the azimuth axis and the pitch axis. Its core lies in disturbance isolation and precise tracking, serving as a critical technology for photoelectric tracking.
4Main Technical Indicators
The overall index requirements of the system are shown in the following table:
|
Serial No. |
Parameter |
Parameter Value |
Remarks |
| 1. | laser emission power | ≥3kW | Air-cooled laser, equipped with 5V power supply |
| 2. | beam mass M2 | ≤1.3 | |
| 3. | length of laser armored cable | 4m | |
| 4. | launch aperture | 150mm | |
| 5. | effective tracking range | ≥2000m | |
| 6. | effective range of destruction | ≥1100m | |
| 7. | range distance | ≥2000m | |
| 8. | time of injury | 3s~20s | Time from light emission to target impact (affected by target distance and atmospheric conditions) |
| 9. | target recognition | precision ≥97% | |
| 10. | target tracking accuracy | ≤7.5urad (RMS) | |
| 11. | continuous light emission time | ≥200s | |
| 12. | Scope of work (direction) | 360° | |
| 13. | Range of motion (pitch) | -15°～+75° | |
| 14. | maximum tracking angular velocity | 100°/s | |
| 15. | maximum tracking angle acceleration | 50°/s² | |
| 16. | fine tracking angular velocity | ≥20°/s | |
| 17. | fine tracking angular acceleration | 20°/s² | |
| 18. | working temperature | -20℃～+50℃ | Use the cabin for temperature control |
| 19. | storage temperature | -30℃～+60℃ |
