Editing L3Harris

{{Notice|For information about products by '''Harris''', go to the page [[Elbit Systems Of America]]. See the [[#History|History]] section for details.}}

[[File:L3Harris Technologies Logo.svg|alt=L3Harris Technologies Logo|thumb|Logo]]

L3Harris is an American company producing various military equipment, including [[Image Intensifier|image intensifier tubes]], night vision devices and more.

== Reputation ==

L3Harris has a high reputation of revolutionizing military technology and capabilities. They have massive productions of radios, radar equipment and night vision. The company mainly focuses on delivering to the [[United States of America|U.S.]] armed forces, where they have many contracts. The company does also sell to the civilian market, however it is very limited, and the company focuses most on the contracts given by the government, which often results in long waiting times for nightvision.

== History ==

* In 2001, [[Litton Industries|Litton Industries Inc.]] (including their night vision division) is acquired by Northrop Grumman Corporation, becoming Northrop Grumman Electro-Optical Systems (NGEOS).<ref>https://news.northropgrumman.com/news/releases/northrop-grumman-announces-completion-of-merger-with-litton-industries-inc</ref>
* In 2008, Northrop Grumman sells NGEOS to L3 Communications.<ref>https://www.laserfocusworld.com/test-measurement/research/article/16563247/northrop-grumman-sells-its-electrooptical-systems-business-to-l3</ref>
* In 2019, L3 and Harris merged to L3Harris.<ref>https://elbitsystems.com/pr-new/elbit-systems-u-s-subsidiary-completes-the-acquisition-of-harris-night-vision-business/</ref> Harris was forced to sell their night vision arm to [[Elbit Systems Of America|Elbit]] in an attempt to avoid monopolization.

== Technology ==

=== Image Intensifiers ===

==== Unfilmed ====
[[File:L3 Unfilmed vs Photonis 4G.jpg|alt=L3 Unfilmed vs. Photonis 4G|thumb|A comparison between an L3 Unfilmed and a Photonis 4G image intensifier.]]

Around the year 2000 L3 released the first [[Image Intensifier#Filmless|filmless]] tubes, originally called ''Infinity''. Over the years, continual improvements to the technology were made, extending reliability and increasing performance, while producing at an ever increasing consistency.

L3 Unfilmed image intensifiers, as of today, outperform all other tubes by a considerable margin, with exceptional performance even in very low ambient light conditions, often reaching an [[Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR)|SNR]] of 35 and above, and a [[Figure of Merit (FOM)|FOM]] of up to 4000.

Due to patents L3 is currently the only western company producing filmless image intensifier tubes. <ref>https://gloomgroup.com/blogs/night-vision-info/night-vision-filmed-vs-unfilmed-tubes</ref>

==== SuperGain ====
In 2022, the American night vision retailer TNVC launched a new offer of night vision devices featuring L3Harris Unfilmed image intensifiers labelled ''SuperGain''<ref group="Note">SuperGain is most likely a term coined by TNVC and not an official label used by L3Harris.</ref><ref>https://tnvc.com/supergain/</ref>''.'' In contrast to standard Unfilmed image intensifiers, these feature a drastically increased [[gain]] of 100,000-120,000 fL/fc instead of the usual 40,000-80,000 fL/fc, with no decrease in lifespan.

The theory is that these image intensifiers come from the production line aimed at fulfilling new procurement contracts in the [[Omnibus|Omni]] 9 category for the U.S. military.

These high gain tubes have been used in some L3 night vision goggles before they became commercially available. Currently, the commercial ''SuperGain'' tubes are capped at 2999 FOM, with the rest going to the military.

== Products ==

=== Devices ===

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[[Manufacturer::L3Harris]]
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=== Image Intensifiers ===
L3Harris uses a relatively simple naming scheme for their image intensifier models outlined in N-EOPPS-1580.<ref>https://www.ar15.com/forums/armory/L3-tube-rating-system-16um-18um-20um/18-482217/&page=1&anc=bottom#i4853271</ref>

==== Standard Product ====
Example: <code>11769UW-EA-C001-20UM</code>.

The first three dash-separated parts refer to the mechanical configuration. The first part, specifically, refers to the image intensifier format, in this case [[MX-11769]].

The fourth and last part is the ''Smart Number'' model code, which can be used to determine quality and performance.

===== Smart Number =====
Example: <code>18UM</code>

A smart number consists of two digits and two letters.

The two digits refer to the performance level.

The first letter is the restriction indicator. U stands for ''unlimited'', L stands for ''limited'' (to meet export requirements). Only for ''L'' tubes, one can obtain the maximum FOM by multiplying the number (e.g. 18) by 100 (e.g. 1800). ''U'' tubes do not have a maximum FOM.

The last letter indicates the image quality.

==== Large Customized Contracts ====
Example: <code>11769UW-EA-C001-1234</code>

Large customized contracts follow the same naming convention as the standard product, with the only exception being the last four digits. In this case, they refer to a contract or N-EOPPS number, in which the specifications are defined.

===== 1701 =====
Example: <code>11769UW-EA-C001-1701</code>

Image intensifiers ending with <code>-1701</code> are known to be "fallout" filmless (and possibly also filmed) image intensifiers. These can reach very high performance levels with a SNR of up to 40, while failing to meet some other requirement of the standard product categories.

==== Small Customized Contracts ====
Example: <code>11769UW-EA-C001-20UM/1234</code>

Small customized contracts simply append an ''Order Identification Number'' (OID) to the ''Smart Number'' model code. The referenced order then defines the requested deviations from the standard specifications.

== Notes ==
<references group="Note" />

== Further Reading ==

{{FurtherReading|Description=Official statement of L3Harris on lifetime of their Unfilmed image intensifiers|Title=Facts about L3Harris unfilmed straight from the horse's mouth!|Link=https://www.nite-walker.com/amp/facts-about-l3-filmless-straight-from-the-horse-s-mouth}}

== References ==
<references />


[[Category:Image Intensifier Manufacturers]]
[[Category:Manufacturers]]
[[Category:Device Manufacturer]]
[[Category:Housing Manufacturer]]
[[Category:Optics Manufacturer]]
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