26-Mar-2013 Source: Curtiss-Wright Controls
Curtiss-Wright Controls Defense Solutions (CWCDS), a business group of Curtiss-Wright Controls, has introduced the newest member of its Skyquest™ family of rugged mission displays for airborne platforms. The new feature rich 21.5” Skyquest™ AVDU5500 is the company’s largest high definition (HD) display to date. This next generation video display with touchscreen is designed for the most demanding helicopter and fixed wing applications. Featuring a wide array of digital and analog inputs, the AVDU5500 easily connects to the market’s leading electro-optical turrets, either directly or via any of Curtiss-Wright’s sophisticated Skyquest™ VMS video distribution units. The AVDU5500 delivers full HD 1080p resolution and provides market leading features and performance designed specifically for the demands of defense and law enforcement surveillance, search and rescue applications and the extended environmental characteristics demanded by airborne platforms.
“Our Skyquest family of rugged HD video displays for airborne platforms continues to lead the market with the highest quality imagery, brightness, visibility and advanced features available,” said Lynn Bamford, senior vice president and general manager of Curtiss-Wright Controls Defense Solutions. “Our military and law enforcement customers are looking for large, high resolution, rugged video displays that deliver optimal use and survivability for their demanding airborne missions. The new 21.5” AVDU5500 joins our recently introduced 17” Skyquest AVDU4300 in bringing to the market widescreen HD 1080p resolution with the ease of use, high quality viewing and rugged packaging customers demand.”
Seeing is Believing
The AVDU5500 combines the industry’s best array of video viewing options and visibility features. For example, the popular in-built “quad screen” option enables operators to view up to four (4) independent live video images simultaneously from any of the multiple video sources sent to the display. The AVDU5500 uses advanced optical bonding techniques to ensure maximum visibility in bright sunshine conditions and improved ruggedness.
As standard, the AVDU5500 utilizes a dual LED backlight for Night Vision Goggle (NVG) filtering purposes. When required, the display can be switched into NVG mode which switches off the standard white backlight and turns on the NVG filtered backlighting, conforming to MIL-STD-3009 NVIS B. This gives the user full color, high brightness imagery usable with direct sunlight during daylight operations, as well as perfectly filtered imagery for NVG operations at night. All other display bezel lighting is also NVG filtered as standard.
Customers can upgrade and update configuration data in their display by connecting to a standard computer, eliminating the need for shipment to the factory and reducing down time.
Flexibility is Key
The AVDU5500 is designed to provide airborne operators with the greatest amount of flexibility and control. The display’s 5-wire resistive touchscreen can be customized to operate with any of today’s leading digital moving maps. A wide array of I/O options, including USB, Ethernet and RS422/232, enable the AVDU5500 to interface with peripheral equipment. Its eight (8) “hard” bezel keys, located at the bottom of the display, control core display functions such as power on/off, brightness and channel selection. With a single keystroke, user-definable, touchscreen-operated “soft” keys can be displayed around the perimeter of the display overlaid on the video. The functions controlled by these soft keys can be defined at the factory, and include a range of standard options including Skyquest video recorder control, Picture-in-Picture selection and Quad View.
Ideal for Airborne Video Management
The Skyquest AVDU5500 is the latest member of Curtiss-Wright’s family of next generation widescreen, high-resolution rugged mission displays. The control and multiple-video capabilities of this display are apparent when it is used standalone but another level of capability is reached when it is integrated with a video distribution unit as a part of a Skyquest Video Management System (VMS): the VMS has a field-proven track record of increasing mission effectiveness by providing an easy-to-use means to connect together multiple video sources and displays, downlinks and recorders.
The AVDU5500 display is easily integrated into a Skyquest VMS in which its touchscreen-operated soft keys allow operators to control video routing and the operation of other Skyquest units (such as the VRDV-5004 HD video recorder).
Skyquest AVDU5500 Performance Features:
The AVDU5500 complements Curtiss-Wright’s broad range of rugged video displays and video management system products including our VDSU-1420 HD distribution unit, VRDV-5004 HD video recorder, AVDU4300 17″ display and VRD1.
About Curtiss-Wright Controls Defense Solutions
Curtiss-Wright Controls Defense Solutions (CWCDS) is a long established technology leader in the development of rugged electronic modules and systems for defense applications. CWCDS serves as a technology and integration partner to its customers, providing a full range of advanced, highly engineered solutions from modular open systems approaches to fully custom optimized solutions. Our unmatched capabilities and product breadth span from industry standard based COTS modules to complete electronic subsystems. The company’s modules and systems are currently deployed in a wide range of demanding defense & aerospace applications including C4ISR systems, unmanned subsystems, mission computing, fire control, turret stabilization, and recording & storage solutions. Additionally, the company’s broad engineering capabilities combine systems, software, electrical, and mechanical design expertise with comprehensive program management and a broad range of life-cycle support services.
About Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc.
Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Curtiss-Wright Controls is the Motion Control segment of Curtiss-Wright Corporation. With manufacturing facilities around the world, Curtiss-Wright Controls is a leading technology-based organization providing niche motion control products, subsystems and services internationally for the aerospace and defense markets.
