Patent ID: 7106435

Claim:
A hyperspectral scene generator comprising: a broadband optical energy source for linearly radiating energy having wavelengths within a predetermined bandwidth; an energy dispersion device for dispersing the radiated energy into predetermined spectral bands having respective predetermined positions across a spatial axis and for directing the spatially positioned spectral bands; a controllable deformable mirror array including a plurality of mirror locations, wherein each of the mirror locations is positioned for receiving at least one of the directed spectral bands and the mirror locations in a same column of the array are for receiving the same directed spectral band, wherein each of the mirror locations includes a mirror selectively movable to a first position and a second position, wherein when a mirror is in the first position substantially all of a directed spectral band received at the mirror location containing the mirror is reflected and wherein when a mirror is in the second position substantially none of a directed spectral band received at the mirror location containing the mirror is reflected; and a controller for controllably moving each of the mirrors of the array for selectively reflecting the spectral band directed to the corresponding mirror location, wherein the controller receives scene data representative of a simulated scene having a plurality of scene locations and wherein each of the scene locations includes at least one spectral band at a predetermined power level, wherein the controller generates, based on the scene data, control signals for selectively moving the mirrors of the array such that the mirrors located in a same row of the array selectively reflect the directed spectral bands corresponding to the spectral bands associated with a scene location of the simulated scene.