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How ITT's Development of the Pinnacle® Thin-Filmed Image Intensifier Tube Redefined the U.S. Military's "View" of Night Vision Technology
ITT Night Vision Division's (ITT) recent award for the lion's share of the U.S. Army's Omnibus (Omni) VI procurement for Generation 3 night vision (image intensification) devices reaffirms the manufacturer's technology and market share leadership position, primarily due to ITT's development of the new Pinnacle® thin-filmed image intensifier tube.
Omni VI, the largest U.S. Army contract ever awarded for Gen 3 equipment, consisted of two separate contracts: one for aviator night vision goggles (NVG) to be awarded to one manufacturer; the other for ground forces' NVGs to be split 60%-40%. ITT was awarded 100% of the aviation contract and 60% of the ground contract. Deliveries will commence in late 2002 and include: the AN/AVS-6(V)3 and AN/PVS-7D NVGs; AN/PVS-14 monocular night vision devices (MNVD), as well as the Pinnacle image intensifier tubes for these systems.
Perhaps more important than the details of this latest contract is how ITT created and sold the Pinnacle to its principal customer in today's environment of military budget cuts and reductions in force.
THE CHALLENGE:
To Advance Technology While Maintaining Reliability
The story of the Pinnacle began in 1997 when the Army Night Vision Program office awarded two cost-share contracts to ITT and to Litton Electro-Optical Systems, now part of Northrop Grumman, to develop the next generation of image intensification devices, Gen 4 in military parlance.
Specifically, the Army wanted a Gen 4 tube that had no ion barrier, or protective coating, on the micro-channel plate (MCP), a thin glass wafer similar to a fiber-optic faceplate. The MCP is one of the major components of any image intensifier tube that includes the photocathode, a phosphor screen and an integrated power supply. The 18-mm tube, the main technology on which the night vision goggles (NVGs) are based, allows the user to see clearly at night without an active light source.
How does the Pinnacle or any image intensifier tube work? Visible and non-visible visible light from the stars or moon enters the photocathode. That light energy (photons) is converted initially into electrical energy - electrons. The electrons travel from the cathode to the MCP, a wafer with over ten million holes, where they are multiplied hundreds of times. The electrons then travel to the phosphor screen where, with the help of an internal power source, they are converted back into a visible light image.
Years earlier, the addition of a film coating over the input side of the MCP had elevated tube technology to Gen 3 from Gen 2 and increased tube reliability five fold. Attempts to develop filmless Gen 3 tubes had been underway for over a decade and none had achieved the desired reliability standard. Nevertheless, the military and some in the scientific community believed that going filmless was the next logical progression in night vision technology.
Tests revealed that a filmless tube would increase performance of NVGs by 20%, thereby giving U.S. forces a further edge over adversaries. That was the good news. Unfortunately, those same tests revealed immediate degradation of the new tube because there was no film to protect the photocathode from the harmful ions generated during normal tube operation.
ITT engineers doubted whether a Gen 4 tube could even meet the 10,000 hours of active life, standard for Gen 3 devices, like the "Ultra" tube. The "Ultra" tube was unveiled in November 1995 and prompted ITT's receipt of 100% of the Army's 1996 Omni IV contract.
Nevertheless, ITT and Litton began their separate research on the filmless Gen 4 device. ITT's concerns were allayed by the belief that a Gen 4 tube would be phased into production gradually. But that assumption would change dramatically in February 1998 when the Army announced the Omni V procurement competition for image intensifier devices. As part of its bid, Litton surprised everyone by proposing the development and delivery of a Gen 4 filmless tube.
The bold ploy worked. In June 1998 - "Black June," as some ITT employees referred to Omni V -- the Army awarded 60% of the contract for next generation night vision devices to Litton, 40% to ITT. Litton's commitment to bring a filmless tube to the market prompted the Army also to request Gen 4 deliveries from ITT.
The announcement immediately had a negative impact on ITT. For the first time since the inception of the Omnibus multiyear procurements in 1985, the Roanoke, VA, based manufacturer had not secured the major share of a night vision contract. Litton's promise to deliver next-generation tube technology immediately reduced ITT's market share and damaged its reputation as a leader in night vision technology. ITT was forced to play catch-up, which was an unfamiliar role for a company that had received more contracts from the U.S. military for Gen 3 night vision equipment than any other manufacturer.
ITT's first order of business was to accelerate the development of a Gen 4 filmless tube and to let the market know that it planned to compete vigorously. In May 1999, ITT announced plans to offer both filmless and filmed tubes for aviators and ground forces as part of the Omni V contract. Approximately 50 percent of the aviator NVGs and 15% of the devices for ground forces would be filmless.
The development of a better, longer-lasting filmless tube proved to be a daunting challenge for ITT engineers. Removing the film forced engineers to find ways to reduce the number of damaging ions being generated during tube operations, and to develop a photocathode that was resistant to ion damage.
The addition to a gated power supply - a requirement for Omni V filmless tubes - was dependent largely on the efforts of long-time supplier K &M Electronics. K & M Electronics was a manufacturer of high-voltage, miniaturized power supplies, and was acquired as an ITT Night Vision subsidiary in 1999.
THE SOLUTION:
Improve What was Already Proven
During development of Gen 4 technology, ITT made a startling discovery. Many of the same component modifications and process changes being implemented for Gen 4 could apply to existing Gen 3 tubes.
Moreover, ITT found that by significantly thinning, rather than removing the protective film, it could achieved the Army-mandated Gen 4 performance and end-of-life reliability requirements. Maintaining the film also would protect the all important gallium arsenide photocathode structure. How thin could the film become? The thin film in ITT's new tube is roughly 10,000 times thinner than a human hair.
The enhanced Gen 3 tube was dubbed appropriately the "Pinnacle" because it represented the apex in technological achievement. ITT engineers had produced a robust device that exceeded the same reliability standards for gain and signal-to-noise ratio as the field-proven Gen 3 tube. Reducing the halo effect, another requirement for Omni V, was accomplished by reducing the spacing between the cathode and MCP.
Across the board, the Pinnacle tube performed better than existing Gen 3 tubes. The photoresponse was 22% higher. The signal-to-noise ratio improved nearly 24%, and the halo diameter was reduced from 1.25 mm to .90 mm, according to ITT. More importantly, the Pinnacle provided a 20% greater range of vision at night.
As a result of these technological advances, ITT convinced the Army to swap the still unproven Gen 4 filmless tubes for the Pinnacle as part of Omni V, provided the manufacturer guaranteed the Pinnacle's enhanced performance and sustainability. In making its case, ITT pointed out that the life cycle cost of the Gen 4 filmless tube was seven times higher than that of the Pinnacle. But by opting for the Pinnacle over the filmless tube, the Army would save $29 million and $21 million in operation and sustainment costs for aviator and ground forces goggles, respectively. The Pinnacle, it seemed, was a better deal.
As for Litton, which championed filmless technology, the company only delivered 50 goggles with filmless tubes to the Army.
The Army was convinced of the Pinnacle's potential. However, in April 2000, the Navy announced a need for a sizable number of AN/AVS-9 (F4949) aviator goggles, specifying filmless tubes. Four months later, the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) awarded ITT a $40 million contract to produce nearly 7,000 filmless NVGs. Although first to qualify the Gen 4 devices for use, ITT voiced its reservations to the Navy about the staying power of the Gen 4 technology. Nevertheless, deliveries began, but were halted because the Navy urgently needed the equipment, and the unproven filmless devices could not be produced quickly enough to meet accelerated Navy requirements. The Navy then opted for AN/AVS-9s containing the highly reliable Omni IV Ultra tubes, the "bread and butter" of ITT's product line.
Later, in February 2001, the first set of Pinnacle-equipped systems were delivered to the Army, which proclaimed the technology to be the "highest performance goggle entering our inventory." Those initial deliveries were earmarked for the Army's Interim Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) being formed at Ft. Lewis in Washington State. The IBCT was seen as the prototype combat unit in the Army's long-term plan to transform itself into a smaller, more mobile force.
Validation of the Pinnacle tube and its manufacturer occurred May 8, 2002, when the Omni VI contract for night vision devices was awarded. ITT's majority portion of the contract, including options, was valued at around nearly $450 million.
THE RESULTS:
Technology Leadership and Customer Satisfaction
Adding the Pinnacle to its the product offering helped vault ITT back to the top and preserve jobs at the Roanoke facility. Equally important was the military's acceptance of the thin-filmed Pinnacle over the filmless tube. In October 2001, Dr. John Pollard, chief scientist for the Army's Night Vision & Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD), announced that the term "Gen 4" was being removed as an identifier of filmless tube technology. The move, in effect, tabled indefinitely any plan to procure a filmless tube. The Army now officially uses the term "thin film" - rather than ITT's Pinnacle moniker - to identify this technology advancement.
The Pinnacle won for ITT the major share of the Omni VI procurement because it offered higher performance, longer reliability, and cost savings and because of ITT's proven track record for technology advancements and customer responsiveness. Overall, The Pinnacle combines leading-edge technology and proven reliability to create the "best value" for the military.
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