The AN/PSQ-20 Enhanced Night Vision Goggle (ENVG) is a third-generation passive monocular

night vision device A night-vision device (NVD), also known as a night optical/observation device (NOD) or night-vision goggle (NVG), is an optoelectronic device that allows visualization of images in low levels of light, improving the user's night vision. The ...

developed for the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...

by ITT Exelis. It fuses image-intensifying and thermal-imaging technologies, enabling vision in conditions with very little light. The two methods can be used simultaneously or individually. The ENVG was selected by the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

's Program Executive Office Soldier (PEO Soldier) as a supporting device for the

Future Force Warrior Future Force Warrior was a United States military advanced technology demonstration project that was part of the Future Combat Systems project. The FFW project sought to create a lightweight, fully integrated infantryman combat system. It was on ...

program in 2004, and is intended to replace the older AN/PVS-7 and

AN/PVS-14 The AN/PVS-14 Monocular Night Vision Device (MNVD) is in widespread use by the United States Armed Forces as well as NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovern ...

systems. Although more expensive and heavier than previous models, US Special Forces began using the goggles in 2008 and the US Army's

10th Mountain Division The 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) is a light infantry division (military), division in the United States Army based at Fort Drum, New York. Formerly designated as a mountain warfare unit, the division was the only one of its size in ...

began fielding the AN/PSQ-20 in 2009. Improvements to the goggles have been attempted to make them lighter, as well as enabling the transmission of digital images to and from the battlefield. In accordance with the

Joint Electronics Type Designation System The Joint Electronics Type Designation System (JETDS), which was previously known as the Joint Army-Navy Nomenclature System (AN System. JAN) and the Joint Communications-Electronics Nomenclature System, is a method developed by the U.S. War Depa ...

(JETDS), the "''AN/PSQ-20''" designation represents the 20th design of an Army-Navy electronic device for portable special combination equipment. The JETDS system also now is used to name all

Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...

electronic systems.

Development

In August 2003, PEO Soldier, the acquisition agency of the US Army, started evaluating designs from

ITT Industries ITT Inc., formerly ITT Corporation, is an American worldwide manufacturing company based in Stamford, Connecticut. The company produces specialty components for the aerospace, transportation, energy and industrial markets. ITT's three businesse ...

and

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and Arms industry, defense company. With 97,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $40 billion, it is one of the world's largest Arms industry ...

for an advanced night vision device that could support the planned

program. Of the two competing designs, the ITT design which was developed in association with

Raytheon Raytheon is a business unit of RTX Corporation and is a major U.S. defense contractor and industrial corporation with manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. Founded in 1922, it merged in 2020 with Unite ...

, was chosen for development in July 2004 with an initial order for 75 systems. Development testing of the ENVG with the US Army, designated AN/PSQ-20, began by mid-2006, and was completed in March 2007. Operational testing started in June 2007, with low-rate initial production of the device beginning around the same time. ITT were given a five-year contract in April 2005 with a potential value of

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

560 million, with the view of replacing the existing AN/PVS-7 and

Design and features

The AN/PSQ-20 Enhanced Night Vision Goggle combines

image intensifier An image intensifier or image intensifier tube is a vacuum tube device for increasing the intensity of available light in an optical system to allow use under low-light conditions, such as at night, to facilitate visual imaging of low-light proce ...

(I² or II) and infra-red (IR, also called

thermal imaging Infrared thermography (IRT), thermal video or thermal imaging, is a process where a thermal camera captures and creates an image of an object by using infrared radiation emitted from the object in a process, which are examples of infrared im ...

) technologies, and is the first night vision device to do so. Before this "fusing", these two technologies could only be used separately. The AN/PSQ-20 allows both methods to be used together or individually, and can be helmet-mounted or hand held. It is roughly the same size as the AN/PVS-14 with similar controls, and is powered by four AA type batteries allowing continuous combined use of II and IR for 7.5 hours. The device can be used for a further 7.5 hours in image intensifier mode. Classified as a third-generation passive night vision device, the AN/PSQ-20 can provide vision through thermal imaging even in situations where there isn't enough ambient light for the image intensifiers, thus eliminating the need for infra-red illumination (active night vision). It can also see through battlefield obscurants such as smoke and fog. The combined technologies allow better target identification and recognition, thereby improving the soldier's mobility and situational awareness. The center of gravity of the device is close to the face of the wearer, making the helmet-mounted use more comfortable, as well as increasing stability. Aiming lasers can also be integrated with it. However, at a unit cost of US$18,000 and with a weight of almost , the AN/PSQ-20 is more expensive and heavier than the devices it is intended to replace.

FWS-I combination

In 2019, the Army plans to begin fielding the Family of Weapon Sights-Individual (FWS-I), an optic that can be mounted on various weapons like the

M4 carbine The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed in the United States during the 1980s. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 is extensively used by the US mi ...

, M16A4 rifle,

M249 SAW The M249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon), formally the Light Machine Gun, 5.56 mm, M249, is the United States Armed Forces adaptation of the Belgian FN Minimi, a light machine gun manufactured by FN Herstal (FN). The M249 SAW is manufactured in th ...

, M136 AT4, and M141 Bunker Defeat Munition. The FWS-I is designed to work with the ENVG-III by transmitting data from the scope to the goggles, so the soldier can aim the weapon without needing to raise it to their eye. Both systems were brought together under the Rapid Target Acquisition (RTA) capability that combined two separate programs of record with separate devices together to make them interoperable. The goggles are connected through

fiber optic An optical fiber, or optical fibre, is a flexible glass or plastic fiber that can transmit light from one end to the other. Such fibers find wide usage in fiber-optic communications, where they permit transmission over longer distances and at ...

wires to a processor on the back of the helmet that wirelessly communicates with the weapon-mounted FWS-I; because of the systems' short range and low power, jamming the wireless connection is not a concern. Connecting with the ENVG-III also expands the field of vision from a scope's 18-26 degrees to the goggle's 40 degrees. By seeing what the scope sees through the goggles, soldiers during close-quarters combat (CQC) can point their weapons out of

defilade Enfilade and defilade are concepts in military tactics used to describe a military formation's exposure to enemy fire. A formation or position is "in enfilade" if weapon fire can be directed along its longest axis. A unit or position is "in de ...

positions like over walls and around corners and fire accurately without exposing their head or torso to enemy fire. The US Army first experimented with aiming and shooting weapons behind cover during the Land Warrior program, but it relied on connecting wires between the helmet-mounted display and weapon-mounted thermal sight that could get caught, and early sights were too heavy and bulky.

Service and improvements

The AN/PSQ-20 ENVG was first issued to the US Army in April 2008. The

received about 300 units in February 2009, making it the first non-special forces unit to use the device. PM Soldier Sensors and Lasers, which is part of PEO Soldier, has been working on making the AN/PSQ-20 more rugged by using tougher housing material. Efforts have also been made to make the device lighter, as well as to produce and transmit digital images of the view provided. As a result, a prototype named Digital Enhanced Night Vision Goggle or ENVG (D) was provided to the US Army for evaluation in June 2009, which enables digitally fused images to be exported and imported. As of July 2015, the US Army had bought about 9,000 ENVG-I and 16,000 ENVG-II units. Beginning in FY 2017, the ENVG-III is expected to begin fielding, with a total of 41,000 to be produced by

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...

and

DRS Technologies Leonardo DRS, formerly DRS Technologies, Inc., is a US-based defense contractor. Previously traded on the NYSE, the company was purchased by the Italian firm Finmeccanica (now Leonardo) in October 2008. History Diagnostic/Retrieval Systems, Inc ...

. Like previous versions, the ENVG-III allows soldiers to choose between night vision, thermal, hybrid, and a hybrid where thermal images show up with an outline, but extends the thermal capacity out to the entire 40-degree field of view rather than just a circle in the middle, and has a sleeker design for the device and battery pack, improved resolution, is lighter at less than , and is designed to work with the FWS-I. Plans are to equip 24 ENVGs per

platoon A platoon is a Military organization, military unit typically composed of two to four squads, Section (military unit), sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the Military branch, branch, but a platoon can ...

, with each costing an estimated US$10,000, cheaper than previous versions due to competition and improved technology.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{Cite web , title=ENVG (Enhanced Night Vision Goggle) - PM Soldier Sensors and Lasers , url=https://vimeo.com/4532787 , access-date=2020-07-26 , website=US Army

PEO Soldier Program Executive Office Soldier (PEO Soldier) or Team Soldier is a program executive office of the United States Army that is responsible for rapid prototyping, procurement, and fielding of equipment for the soldiers. History On 7 June 2002, ...

, language=en {{cite web, url=http://www.janes.com/articles/Janes-Electro-Optic-Systems/ITT-Night-Vision-AN-PSQ-20-Enhanced-Night-Vision-Goggle-ENVG-United-States.html, title=ITT Night Vision AN/PSQ-20 Enhanced Night-Vision Goggle (ENVG) (United States), Land systems - Observation and surveillance - Image intensifier goggles (NVGs), date=19 October 2009, publisher=Jane's Information Group, accessdate=16 March 2010 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713085128/http://articles.janes.com/articles/Janes-Electro-Optic-Systems/ITT-Night-Vision-AN-PSQ-20-Enhanced-Night-Vision-Goggle-ENVG-United-States.html , archive-date=13 July 2011 {{cite web, url=http://www.asianmilitaryreview.com/upload/200802281037261.pdf , title=More day, less night: Night vision systems , last=Kemp , first=Ian , date=February 2008 , publisher=Asian Military Review , accessdate=16 March 2010 , url-status=dead , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707174255/http://www.asianmilitaryreview.com/upload/200802281037261.pdf , archivedate=7 July 2011 {{cite web, url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/PEO+soldier.-a0218027728, title=PEO soldier, date=1 January 2010, work=Soldiers Magazine, publisher=TheFreeLibrary.com, accessdate=16 March 2010 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810163837/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/PEO+soldier.-a0218027728 , archive-date=10 August 2016 {{cite web, url=http://www.nightvision.com/products/military/product_pages/documents/ENVG.pdf, title=Enhanced Night Vision Goggle (ENVG), AN/PSQ-20, F6023, publisher=ITT Industries, accessdate=16 March 2010, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714182303/http://www.nightvision.com/products/military/product_pages/documents/ENVG.pdf, archive-date=14 July 2011, url-status=dead, df=dmy-all {{cite web , url=http://www.nvisionoptics.com/files/docs/articles/nightvisionsoldier.pdf , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723153200/http://www.nvisionoptics.com/files/docs/articles/nightvisionsoldier.pdf , url-status=dead , archive-date=23 July 2008 , title=Night vision for the night soldier , last=Maxwell , first=David , publisher=N-Vision Optics , accessdate=16 March 2010 {{cite web, url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+vision+thing,+on+the+helmet-a0178620539, title=The vision thing, on the helmet, date=1 April 2008, work=Aramda International, publisher=TheFreeBase.com, accessdate=16 March 2010 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303215340/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+vision+thing,+on+the+helmet-a0178620539 , archive-date=3 March 2016 {{cite web, url=https://www.army.mil/-news/2009/03/30/18980-army-fielding-enhanced-night-vision-goggles/, title=Army fielding Enhanced Night Vision Goggles, date=30 March 2009, publisher=United States Army, work=Program Executive Office Soldier, access-date=16 March 2010, url-status=live, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110211192419/http://www.army.mil/-news/2009/03/30/18980-army-fielding-enhanced-night-vision-goggles/ , archive-date=11 February 2011 {{cite web, url=http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htecm/articles/20090409.aspx?comments=Y, title=The Heat Of The Night, date=9 April 2009, publisher=Strategy Page, accessdate=16 March 2010, archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100207044554/http://strategypage.com/htmw/htecm/articles/20090409.aspx?comments=Y, archive-date= 7 February 2010 , url-status= live {{cite web , last=Jahner , first=Kyle , url=https://www.c4isrnet.com/news/your-army/2015/07/23/new-technology-will-link-night-vision-and-rifle-scope/ , title= New technology will link night vision and rifle scope , date=23 July 2015 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705192105/https://www.c4isrnet.com/news/your-army/2015/07/23/new-technology-will-link-night-vision-and-rifle-scope/ , archive-date=5 July 2022 {{cite web, last=Cox , first=Matthew , url=http://kitup.military.com/2015/07/army-links-thermal-scope-envg.html , title=Army Links New Thermal Scope and ENVG with Wireless Connection , website=Kitup.Military.com , date=23 July 2015 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502231310/https://www.military.com/kitup/2015/07/army-links-thermal-scope-envg.html , archive-date=2 May 2021 {{cite web , url=http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/blog/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=1905 , title=New Technologies to Improve Soldiers’ Detection and Targeting Capabilities , website=National Defense Magazine , date=23 July 2015{{Dead link, date=May 2019 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes {{cite web , last=Vergun , first=David , url=https://www.army.mil/article/152691/New_night_vision_gear_allows_Soldiers_to_accurately_shoot_from_hip/ , title=New night vision gear allows Soldiers to accurately shoot from hip , website=Army.mil , date=22 July 2015 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220614020032/https://www.army.mil/article/152691/New_night_vision_gear_allows_Soldiers_to_accurately_shoot_from_hip , archive-date=14 June 2022 {{cite web , last=Cox , first=Matthew , url=http://www.military.com/daily-news/2015/07/23/army-new-wireless-sight-offers-leap-ahead-for-night-marksmanshi.html?comp=1198882887570&rank=1 , title=Army: New Wireless Sight Offers Leap-Ahead for Night Marksmanship , website=Military.com , date=23 July 2015 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210803202322/https://www.military.com/daily-news/2015/07/23/army-new-wireless-sight-offers-leap-ahead-for-night-marksmanshi.html?comp=1198882887570&rank=1 , archive-date=3 August 2021 {{cite news, url=http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/43M-to-ITT-for-US-Army-Enhanced-Night-Vision-Goggles-05698/, title=$43M to ITT for US Army Enhanced Night Vision Goggles, date=12 August 2009, work=Defense Industry Daily, accessdate=16 March 2010 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220619150454/https://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/43M-to-ITT-for-US-Army-Enhanced-Night-Vision-Goggles-05698/ , archive-date=19 June 2022 {{cite web, url=http://www.nightvision.com/press/documents/ENVGD.html, title=ITT successfully tests Digital Enhanced Night Vision Goggle, last=Brecken, first=Steve, date=15 June 2009, publisher=ITT Industries, accessdate=16 March 2010, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714182331/http://www.nightvision.com/press/documents/ENVGD.html, archive-date=14 July 2011, url-status=dead, df=dmy-all Military electronics of the United States Night vision devices

Development

Design and features

FWS-I combination

Service and improvements

See also

References