Amber (Raytheon Group) Radiance 1 cooled thermal camera

[Fraser]

Hi All,

I have just become the owner of a very nice cooled thermal camera. It is an AMBER Radiance 1 cooled InSb camera that produces very low noise and high quality images with its 256 x 256 pixel staring array sensor.

Has anyone come across this camera before or have any information on it please ? I have done the usual Google searches etc but there is very little to be found. So far, no manual or serial command set can be found. I will write to Raytheon (who bought AMBER) but I do not expect them to be able to help.

The AMBER Radiance 1 was designed for military and high end scientific deployments. It found its way into Military Recon and Drone aircraft thanks to its high imaging performance.

It is good to have added such a camera to my collection but I somehow doubt it will be operational when it arrives. The Stirling Cooler has likely lost its Helium Charge pressure over the years. I may have to revisit my learning to re-gas these Stirling Coolers with UHP Helium at 200psi    My lathe will produce the required coupling adapters to connect to the cooler fill port, but the UHP Helium is a PITA to get in the UK at reasonable cost. BOC seemed disinterested in helping last time i contacted them.

Fraser

[Fraser]

Some trivia connected with this camera......


AMBER Engineering Inc was founded in 1983 by a group that included Dr William Parrish.
AMBER was sold to Santa Barbara Research Centre in 1992

Dr William Parrish then founded Indigo Systems in the late 1990's
Indigo Systems was sold to FLIR in 2004. Dr Parrish remained with the company.

Dr William Parrish left FLIR in 2006 to found Tyrian Systems
Tyrian Systems is now better known as SEEK Thermal

So the Founder of some of the best value and performance cooled thermal cameras used in Military applications was also a joint founder of SEEK Thermal 

Fraser

[MadTux]

You might just be fine using normal balloon grade helium for the Stirling cryocooler. From what I have learned, it all comes from the same source, but sometimes the ballon stuff gets oxygen added, so that the kids breathing it won't pass out. But that should be easy to check. Apart from that, if the cryocooler stays above oxygen boiling temperature, a little oxygen in the system probably won't be that much of a problem.

[T3sl4co1l]

Can't beg/borrow/steal a lab bottle?

Also, surely "UHP" is 2000 PSI (or more), not 200?  200 is nearly within the reach of an ordinary household compressor.

Also, surely you meant ~1.3MPa, or 13 bar?

Tim

[Fraser]

T3sl4co1l,

Nope, I did mean 200psi as that is what the spec says they need for their Helium Fill. The Helium is "Ultra High Purity" (UHP) because too much "Air" or other contamination gases can cause issues with the cooler. The cold finger is running at 77K (-196C)  Cryo temperature so any water content will freeze and lock the piston.
From what I have read, these micro Stirling Coolers operate with extremely tight tolerance pistons and anything but UHP and dry Helium has the potential to prevent the cooler working correctly.

200psi is not that difficult to work with but the fill port on a Stirling cryo cooler appears to be just a threaded hole with a sealing washer and threaded plug to seal it when filled. The fill nozzle would need to have a threaded exterior section, gas seal shoulder and a integrated axial tool to unscrew and screw the sealing plug. That axial tool would also have to be suitably sealed for 200psi and retained in place so that it does not become a 200psi propelled projectile when the gas is injected ! All of this is within my skill set but it is not a trivial exercise. I already have the correct twin regulators and gauges for pumpimg down and gas pressure regulations. etc. I also have the correct hoses for the task. I just need the fill port adapter and a suitable source of UHP Helium.

Note, regarding Balloon Helium..... such is pretty much an unknown gas mix when bought from most suppliers. It can be bought in cylinders that are already pressurised to over 200psi. Sadly I have been advised that such balloon gas often contains a atmospheric air mix, including oxygen, Nitrogen and other pollutants that will adversely effect the cryo cooler operation. It is also not in any way 'dried' so can contain water vapour ! There are better Helium gas types that are high purity but not UHP. They may do the job as they are supplied with a known mix specification so you know what you are getting.

Refilling a Stirling Cooler is a specialist task that was normally carried out by companies with the right equipment, full manufacturers specs, UHP Helium and LN2 cryo gas driers.

Fraser

[noidea]

200psi is not that difficult to work with but the fill port on a Stirling cryo cooler appears to be just a threaded hole with a sealing washer and threaded plug to seal it when filled. The fill nozzle would need to have a threaded exterior section, gas seal shoulder and a integrated axial tool to unscrew and screw the sealing plug. That axial tool would also have to be suitably sealed for 200psi and retained in place so that it does not become a 200psi propelled projectile when the gas is injected ! All of this is within my skill set but it is not a trivial exercise. I already have the correct twin regulators and gauges for pumpimg down and gas pressure regulations. etc. I also have the correct hoses for the task. I just need the fill port adapter and a suitable source of UHP Helium.

Hi Fraser

I'm a HVAC tech in the real world and as far as working with refrigerants go 200 psi is not that high, there are tools around that can do that sort of job which may be adaptable to your need. Do you mind sharing a few pics of the charging access port on the Stirling cooler?

[Fraser]

Hi noidea,

I would value your input on this challenge.

I am currently away from home but will dismantle one of my cooled cameras and provide detail of the fill port.

I had originally hoped to find a sealed cap that, once removed, revealed a simple spring loaded valve similar to that found on car air conditioning pipes. Sadly from what I can discover, this is not the case.

I will add some pictures as soon as I can.

Fraser

[Fraser]

I did a teardown of an Inframetrics PM280 camera during which I photographed its Stirling Cooler fill port.

I attach the pictures of the Stirling Cooler. These little beasts are precision engineered and the design is space rated. The units installed in the Hubble telescope are of the same design. Tiny but very effective for cooling small thermal masses to very low temperatures, some as low as 10K.

Fraser

[Fraser]

Close up images, including the fill port orifice.

Fraser

[T3sl4co1l]

T3sl4co1l,

Nope, I did mean 200psi as that is what the spec says they need for their Helium Fill. The Helium is "Ultra High Purity" (UHP) because too much "Air" or other contamination gases can cause issues with the cooler.

Oh, I was thinking "ultra high pressure", nevermind

Tim

[Fraser]

The AMBER Radiance 1 has arrived

I managed to determine the power supply connections and fired her up. I was rewarded by the distinctive, and familiar rattle of the Stirling Cryo-cooler. That sound only means the cooler is running however, not that it is cooling the 'cold finger'  after just a few minutes I heard the cooler motor reduce speed..... a good sign as it is nearing operating temperature of -196C. Soon after the motor dropped to its very quiet idle speed and the Temperature indicator went to so.id on. This meant the cooler was at -196C and stable This cooler is a good-un Total cooling time from ambient to -196C was only 5 minutes. That is a VERY healthy cool down time. if it had taken 15 minutes, it would have indicated that the cooler had lost some of its Helium charge over the years. This one is behaving like new still.

There are some minor issues to be sorted, like the somewhat flakey Panasonic EVF and some dead pixels that are not being eliminated by the  calibration routines. Without the user manual I am working in the dark with this cameras. I now know that it has 4 temperature ranges and that each range may be user calibrated using the built in Black bod cool and hot sources. All very nice I must say. Image quality from the 256 x 256 pixel Cooled array is simply superb. Image Noise ? What noise

I am very pleased with this purchase. She is not the most compact or portable of cameras but she oozes quality in every aspect of her design and build. Even the bayonet lens mount cover is turned from billet Aluminium stock !

More on this camera when I get a chance to play with it some more

Fraser

[sam1275]

Hi Fraser.
Glad to hear it works. Would you like to share some photos from it?

[Fraser]

Will do. I will have to frame grab from the composite video output.

Fraser