Method and system for controlling pulse width in a night vision system power system
View Patent ↗A night vision system comprising a power system having a low voltage unit coupled to a high voltage unit; the low voltage unit including a low voltage controller generating a pulse width code; the high voltage unit including an opto-isolator for receiving the pulse width code from the low voltage controller, a high voltage controller operative in response to the pulse width code to generate an output pulse, a pulse shaping module receiving the output pulse and generating a control pulse; and power electronics operative in response to the control pulse.
1. A night vision system comprising:
a power system having a low voltage unit coupled to a high voltage unit;
the low voltage unit including a low voltage controller generating a pulse width code;
the high voltage unit receiving the pulse width code from the low voltage controller, the high voltage unit including a high voltage controller operative in response to the pulse width code to generate an output pulse, a pulse shaping module receiving the output pulse and generating a control pulse, the pulse shaping module includes a pulse shaping network receiving the output pulse and generating a shaped pulse; and
power electronics operative in response to the control pulse.
2. The night vision system of claim 1 wherein:
the pulse shaping module includes a comparator for comparing the shaped pulse to a threshold.
3. The night vision system of claim 2 wherein:
the threshold is generated by the high power controller in response to the pulse width code.
4. The night vision system of claim 3 wherein:
the pulse shaping module includes a digital-to-analog converter for converting the threshold prior to comparison at the comparator.
5. The night vision system of claim 1 wherein:
the pulse shaping network is an RC network.
6. The night vision system of claim 1 wherein:
the control pulse has a resolution of about 1 ns.
7. A method for controlling pulse width in a night vision system having a low power unit and a high power unit, the method comprising:
generating a pulse width code in the low power unit;
transmitting the pulse width code to the high power unit;
generating an output pulse in response to the pulse width code;
generating a control pulse in response to the pulse width code, generating the control pulse includes shaping the output pulse to define a shaped pulse; and
providing the control pulse to high power electronics.
8. The method claim 7 wherein:
generating the control pulse includes comparing the shaped pulse to a threshold.
9. The method of claim 7 wherein:
shaping the output pulse is performed by an RC network.
10. The method of claim 7 wherein:
the control pulse has a resolution of about 1 ns.