Patent ID: 7569824

Claim:
A directional countermeasures system, comprising: a missile warning subsystem operable to capture images within a wide field of view and to identify a threat within the wide field of view from the captured images; a system controller coupled to the missile warning subsystem and operable to generate position control signals responsive to the identified threat from the missile warning subsystem; and a fine tracking subsystem coupled to the system controller and operable to capture images within a narrow field of view and to track and perform countermeasures on a threat identified in the captured narrow field of view images, and the fine tracking subsystem operable to position a laser jamming component responsive to the position control signals, the laser jamming component including a laser beam steering module that includes, an optics assembly adapted to receive position control signals and being operable to direct a first portion of a laser beam through an output aperture and a second portion of the laser beam through a sensing path, the optics assembly operable to adjust a position of the laser beam through the output aperture and the sensing path responsive to the position control signals; a sensor array positioned in the sensing path to receive the second portion of the laser beam and operable responsive to the received portion of the laser beam to generate electrical beam position signals indicating a position of laser beam through the output aperture, the electrical beam position signals having values that are a function of a temperature of the sensor array and being adapted to be used in generating the position control signals to adjust the position of the laser beam as a function of the values of the electrical beam position signals; and a thermal stabilization circuit coupled to the sensor array and adapted to receive thermal control signals, the thermal stabilization circuit operable responsive to the thermal control signals to stabilize the temperature of the sensor array.