Circle Optics Awarded $1.75M To Revolutionize Situational Awareness Through Enhanced Imaging

Circle Optics, innovators with patented technology enabling real-time, high-resolution multi-camera systems that provide panoramic video without the distortion and errors inherent in other systems, has been awarded a $1,000,000 (USD) National Science Foundation (NSF) Phase II award for “Fast Panoramic Image Capture for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.” The award comes as a follow on to a NSF Phase I award of $256,000 (USD) to develop an MVP system for VR, which was supported during Circle Optics’ participation in Upstate New York accelerators Luminate NY and GENIUS NY. During Phase II, Circle Optics will further develop its novel camera systems to bring emerging imaging capabilities to UAVs and drones. These optimized camera systems will enhance the situational awareness of aircraft for improved navigation and collision avoidance.

“Circle Optics, with the synergistic support of this NSF Phase II award and the GENIUS NY program, will enable imaging from drones to be an immersive experience, to see the environment from new vantage points and in new way,” said Andy Kurtz, Circle Optics, Principal Investigator.
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Circle Optics also was awarded an AFWERX grant of $750,000 (USD). The grant is to develop preliminary opto-mechanical designs and a multi-telescopic camera channel breadboard to demonstrate the potential for high-resolution, panoramic, swath-scan imaging of the Earth. This capability will increase both speed and accuracy of simultaneous capture of
adjacent areas.

"We live in an ever-changing world. Technologies need to evolve to keep up with these changes. Circle Optics is working to develop the next generation of technology to enable more persistent imaging to identify and respond to situations on the ground as they unfold,” said Zakariya Niazi, Circle Optics CEO.