Pilot Laser Safety Eyewear · 2020. 9. 9. · • Fixed and rotary wing aircraft: temporary and...

Copyright © NoIR 2020 All rights reserved

Laser Safety Eyewear for Law

Enforcement

David W. Bothner, VP Business and Product Development

[email protected]

NoIR Laser, 4975 Technical Drive, Milford, Michigan 48381


Objectives

• Understand the state of the times

• Overview lasers and laser safety

• Illustrate the visual effects and injury risk of laser exposure and illuminations

• Detail NoIR GlareShield solutions

• Considerations

Helicopter under laser illumination/attack


State of the Times

• Hand-held lasers are being used against aircraft (on average over 6,000 reported

incidents per year) and law enforcement (no reporting mechanism).

• Might be intended as a non-violent act, but it is an act of violence.

• Different concerns for each instance:

• Fixed and rotary wing aircraft: temporary and dazzling flash/glare blindness

balanced against the need to view colored displays, and long exposure

distances.

• For ground personnel: temporary and dazzling flash/glare blindness plus real

risk of retinal injury due to short exposure distances.

532nm green laser hitting a face shield visor


State of the Times (additional)

• Fear of injury and being rendered unable to face the threat means the attack is

successful.

• It’s a Federal crime to illuminate aircraft, and in some states a crime to illuminate

police officers.

Helicopter under laser illumination/attack, Hong Kong

protests. Image may be subject to copyright.


LightAmplificationbyStimulatedEmissionofRadiation

• Laser energy is coherent, monochromatic and collimated, posing both skin and

eye hazards with energy delivered over time over area.

• Laser energy poses eye hazard, depending upon wavelength, power and

distance from the laser.

• Nominal Hazard Zone (NHZ): Zone of laser operation in which direct or reflected

laser energy exceeds the Maximum Permissible Exposure (MPE) and requires the

use of protective eyewear.

• Readily available, handheld, battery powered diode lasers are powerful enough

to have NHZs of hundreds of meters.

Electromagnetic spectrum absorbed by the human body


Eye Hazard Regions• For visible lasers between 400-800nm, the eye is 100,000 times more vulnerable to injury

than the skin. Due to the focusing properties of the eye, irradiance in this region of

1mW/cm2 entering the eye irradiates the retina at 100W/cm2. The bio-effect mechanism is

burning of the retina.

• UV (190-400nm) and Mid/Far IR energy 1400-11,000nm) poses a corneal/lens hazard. The

bio-effect mechanism is burning of the cornea.

Images courtesy of LIA

The human eye

Absorption of energy by the eye


Laser ClassificationClass Definition Control Measure

1 Non-hazardous Eyewear not required.

1M

Eye safe visible laser (400-700nm) if

used without magnifying optics.

Eyewear not required unless used with

magnifying optics.

2

Eye safe visible laser (400-700nm) up to

1mW (safe within the blink reflex of

0.25s). Eyewear not required.

2M

Eye safe visible laser (400-700nm) (safe

within the blink reflex of 0.25s) if used

without magnifying optics. Eyewear recommended.

3R

Visible laser with output of 1–5 mW,

Likely unsafe for intrabeam viewing. Eye hazard; eyewear is recommended.

3B

Visible or invisible laser operating

between 5-500mW. Eye hazard for

intrabeam viewing. Eye hazard; eyewear is generally required.

4

Visible or invisible laser operating

above 500mW. Eye and skin hazard for

direct and diffuse exposure. Fire and

burn hazard.

Eye protection and other personal safety

equipment is required.

Presentation type laser pointers are Class 2 (<1mW) or Class 3R (<5 mW).

Handheld lasers are class 3B and operate between >5–<500 mW and Class 4

lasers operate above 500 mW.


NOHDNOHD: Nominal Ocular Hazard Distance is the distance beyond which a specific laser

presents no eye or skin hazard (energy delivered is lower than the MPE - Maximum Permissible

Exposure). The NOHD is the area outside the Nominal Hazard Zone.

Examples of NOHD distances for a 532nm

Green Laser.

• 532nm 10mW: NOHD ... 21.4 m / 70ft

• 532nm 70mW: NOHD ... 58.2 m / 191ft

• 532nm 125mw: NOHD ... 78.2 m / 257ft

• 532nm 500mW: NOHD ... 156.3 m / 513ft

http://www.pangolin.com/faa/laser-aircraft-animation-and-explanation.htm


Laser Pointers vs Handheld Lasers• 5mW “Office laser pointers” are generally eye-safe.

• The risk of injury is very real from readily available, powerful 250mW – 5W handheld lasers.

• There’s no telling which is which when under attacked and being illuminated.

• While a given laser exposure may not cause eye injury/damage, the Visual Interference

Effects of even a 5mW laser pointer at 10s to 100s of meters will impair performance

(distraction, glare, irritation, veiling glare, after image, intimidation and fear).

• In a tense, nighttime environment, all laser attacks and illuminations induce fear of injury

and deliver dazzle and disabling glare because the target’s eyes are low-light adapted

and the visual effect is more pronounced.

Image may be subject to copyright.


Optical DensityProtection Values

• Optical Density (OD) is a measure of the attenuation of energy passing through a filter.

The higher the OD, the higher the attenuation and the greater the protection.

• Select eyewear with ODs that reduce the energy below the MPE.

• Beam spots and laser energy of visible lasers (400-700nm) are still partially visible when

viewed through eyewear with OD 0-3 .

OD (Optical Density) Transmission in % Attenuation Factor

0 100% 1

1 10% 10

2 1% 100

3 0.1% 1,000

4 0.01% 10,000

5 0.001% 100,000

6 0.0001% 1,000,000

7 0.00001% 10,000,000

Example of the reduction of visible beam


Flight Deck Test Illuminations

Images from LAPD Air Support Division flight deck tests: 11 August 2011

Laser: 70mW 532nm green laser at 152m / 500ft

Glareshield™ filter PBG 445nm OD 1.5+ / 532nm OD2.5+

Direct hit, no filter Direct hit, filter deployed


Flight Deck Test Illuminations

Images from LAPD Air Support Division flight deck tests: 11 August 2011

Laser: 70mW 445nm blue laser at 152m / 500ft

Glareshield™ filter PBG 445nm OD 1.5+ / 532nm OD2.5+

Direct hit, no filter Direct hit, filter deployed


Riot and Crowd Control Filter ARG

ARG - Orange

• 99.99999% Blue Beam

reduction (OD 7+)

• 99.99999% Green Beam

reduction (OD 7+)

• 49% Photopic (daylight)

Transmittance

• 9% Scotopic (nighttime)

Transmittance

ARG - Orange

• Full protection against

Blue/Green lasers to 5 Watts

or more

• Wearer will not see the

beam or experience any

disabling glare or flash

blindness

• ANSI Z87 impact and Z136 +

CE laser standards

https://noirlaser.com/arg.html

https://noirlaser.com/arg.html


Riot and Crowd Control Filter CC1

CC1

• 99.9% Blue Beam reduction

(OD3+)

• 99.9% Green Beam

reduction (OD 3+)


Transmittance


Transmittance

CC1

• Protection against ~5W Blue

and Green lasers.

• Wearer will see some beam

energy for point source

location, without significant


blindness.

• ANSI Z81 Impact + Z136 and

CE laser standards


Riot and Crowd Control Filter CC2

CC2

• Protection against ~5W Blue

and Green lasers and ~50mW

Red lasers.





blindness.

• ANSI Z87.1 Impact + Z136 and

CE laser standards

CC2

• 99.9% Blue Beam reduction

(OD 3+)

• 99.9% Green Beam reduction

(OD 3+)

• 90% Red Beam reduction

(OD1+)


Transmittance


Transmittance


Pilot Filter PBG

PBG

• Protection against Blue and

lasers up to approx. 100mW

and Green lasers to approx.

1W at close proximity (much

higher at aircraft distance)





blindness

• ANSI Z87.1 Impact + Z136 and

CE laser standards

PBG

• 97% Blue Beam reduction (OD

1.5+)

• 99.5% Green Beam reduction

(OD 2.5+)


Transmittance


Transmittance

• Good instrument panel

visibility


Frame Options

• Universal Fit-over frames fit well for those who do and those who do not wear prescription

glasses.

• Wrap-around frames fit closer to the face for those not wearing Rx glasses.

• Most NoIR frames fit under helmets and face shields/visors.

• Laser protection is not available as a visor or a film to be applied to a visor.

• All filters are available in all NoIR frames.

Images of NoIR frames

ARG in #35 Adjustable Wraparound

CC2 #53 Universal Fitover

CC1 #52 Wraparound


Laser Safety for Avon Respirators

• NoIR GlareShield Laser Protection is available for Avon Protection Respirator 50 Series Masks.

• By utilizing the Vision Correction Assembly, NoIR puts laser safety inside the mask so users can safely breath and see.

• Mask compatibility:• C50 PC50

• FM50 HM50

• FM53 FM54

CC1_Avon


Considerations• Short distance, close-proximity laser attacks present possible eye-injury risk and certain disabling

visual effects, along with fear and intimidation.

• Not being able to determine the threat, it’s critical to prepare for the worst, most likely scenario.

Based on collected data from 2019 on aircraft illuminations, 87.2% involved green lasers, 8.2%

were blue and 1.2% were red (the rest were undetermined).

• SOPs for use should be well defined prior to deploying the eyewear.

• Are the glasses to be worn full-time or to be deployed at the time of illumination or during a

response to a laser incident?

• Will all ground personnel require the eyewear?

• Is a lower OD protection value useful to identify and apprehend the perpetrator?

• Or is high OD, full protection (to the point of not even recognizing there’s a laser attack) the

better choice?

Helicopter under laser illumination/attack,

Hong Kong protests.


Considerations(additional)

• Selecting the right filter involves a risk assessment that balances selecting the highest percentage

Visible Light Transmittance possible with affording enough beam protection against the assumed

laser threat.

• NEVER view a laser illumination with binoculars, even when wearing eye protection. Binoculars

magnify/focus the beam, thereby increasing the energy hitting the back of the eye. Serious eye

injury may result from viewing laser illuminations with binoculars or other magnifying optics.

Ground personnel under laser illumination/attack, Hong Kong protests. Image may be subject to copyright.


Contact Information

Additional information is available at

https://noirlaser.com/laser-pointer-hazard

Contact:

David W. Bothner, VP Business and Product Development

[email protected]

1.800.521.9746 - 248.387.4148

https://noirlaser.com/laser-pointer-hazard

mailto:[email protected]

Date post:	25-Sep-2020
Category:	Documents
Upload:	others
View:	0 times
Download:	0 times

Pilot Laser Safety Eyewear · 2020. 9. 9. · • Fixed and rotary wing aircraft: temporary and...

Documents