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Abstract

A camera system in which microwave radiation from objects in a field-of-view is collected by an antenna having a beam direction which is a function of the beam frequency. The collected radiation is analyzed to produce an image of the objects in the field-of-view. In a simple embodiment of the invention a one dimensional image is produced. This one dimensional image can be converted to a two dimensional image by rotating the camera system or mounting the camera on a moving platform. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the microwave radiation collected by the antenna is converted into electronic acoustic signals which sets up a diffraction pattern in a Bragg cell to diffract a laser beam which is focused on a television camera to produce one dimensional image of the field-of-view. The antenna can be scanned to produce a two dimensional image. In another preferred embodiment an array of antennas and a multi-channel Bragg cell is used to produce a two dimensional real time image. The camera is capable of imaging objects through media such as wooden walls which are transparent to microwaves but are opaque to visible light.

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First Claim