L-3 introduces small infrared camera introduced

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NEW YORK, April 30 (UPI) -- A new infrared camera about the size of a baseball has been developed by a U.S. company for use on drones, sniper rifles and ground vehicles.

The NightWarrior 640 is a product of L-3 Cincinnati Electronics, part of L-3 Communications. It is a high-resolution, mid-wave infrared cooled camera that weighs less than a pound.

L-3 said the device succeeds the NightConqueror 640, leveraging new materials in focal plane array technology. The materials, it said, don't need to be cooled as much to deliver high-quality images.

Images can be captured from distances of 2.2-9.3 miles with the camera depending on type of lens fitted.

"The product, which sells for slightly more than $20,000, is designed for a range of weapons with sensitive size, weight and power requirements, including unmanned systems such as the Aerosonde and ScanEagle, sniper rifles, binoculars, even combat vehicles such as blast-resistant trucks and the Bradley Fighting Vehicle," said Don Gill, L-3's director of business development.