OPTIX

OPTIX was founded in 1998 as a private company and quickly established a justified reputation for designing, manufacturing and testing quality optical components and systems, encompassing the capabilities required to undertake opto-mechanical and opto-electronic assemblies and devices meeting the needs of the medicine, military and commercial markets. The success with customers from the Europiean Community and USA markets has resulted in 90% of the production being exported. Due to its modern design technologies and its updated optical and mechanical production processes, OPTIX is able to complete the production cycle in-house (from the design and the prototype manufacturing to serial production of parts, assemblies and devices). Based on the core capability in optical design and manufacture OPTIX has successfully developed a wide range of product such as: - Night vision goggles and binoculars - Night and day sights for small arms - TV systems for day/night surveillance - Laser range finding systems - In and outside security and alert systems of strategic sites' approaches;systems for perimeter and outside perimeter guarding and beforehand warning of the approaches to objects for strategic purposes - Lenses for LCD projection systems - Ophthalmologic equipment - Special measurement and test equipment OPTIX is certified according to ISO 9001-2000 and presently undertaking procedure certification pursuant to the AQAP 2110 NATO standard. Manufacturing of optical elements and systems comply with all requirements of the European and world DIN, MIL, ISO and BS standards. Optics The spherical optics department is specialized in the production of micro and conventional spherical optics. The quantities may vary from pilot lots to serial production of high quality optical pieces of various applications. The Micro-optics workshop manufactures complete spherical optical elements with diameters from 0.5 to 10 mm. The high-precision lenses, achromatic glasses and triplets are widely used in the medical and technical endoscopes, micro-lenses for microscopes, television and CCD TV cameras. The Conventional optics workshop manufactures completely finished spherical optical elements with diameter from 10 to 200-250 mm used in the field of ophthalmology, photography, the manufacturing of multimedia projectors and various surveillance equipments (night and day). OPTIX possesses the required technical equipment to lay on deep-vacuum optical coatings for the various spectrum ranges though electronic ray and thermal evaporation of materials. The following types of coatings are under production: - Antireflective optical coatings for the ultraviolet, the visible and the infrared spectrum range - Mirror coatings - Special light protection coatings - Metal coatings OPTIX manufactures prisms, flat-parallel lamellae, windows, wedges, optical scales, filters and mirrors of various dimensions and configurations. The precision of surface manufacturing and control ranges is from lambda/4 to lambda/10, and that of the angles is up to 3-4 seconds. By the implementation of the double-side grinding and polishing machines and the LAPP-MASTER machines the time for the technological processing has substantially gone down. With view of expanding the technological possibilities the experts have designed and completed machines for grinding and polishing of cylinders and cylindrical surfaces. OPTIX has at its disposal hi-tech equipment for manufacturing of blanks of various types and dimensions. OPTIX manufactures precise radial standards - "Test plates" pursuant to DIN, providing for the control of the surfaces during the manufacturing of the optical elements. OPTIX manufactures special purpose tools and equipment for the production and control of optical elements and assemblies. The company employs precise software for fast calculation and design of such tools. Mechanics OPTIX employs high-tech CNC equipment for the production of body elements of complex configuration and high precision, used in contemporary optical and mechanic units, products and systems. For the manufacturing of the these elements, the latest version of four-axis "MAZAK" processing center is used as well as the five-axis "MC 032" and various cutter machines. The measurement and control of the produced mechanics is performed by high precision measurement devices and gauges. The flexibility of these machines allows the production of large series of elements as well as single prototypes and pilot sample batches. OPTIX manufactures rotational mechanical elements required to assemble opto-mechanical units as per customer's request and for its own R&D activity. The company employs universal and CNC laths: CT 161, CT 205, FL 300, "Leinen". The guarantee for the high quality of the manufactured complex thin-walled configurations is provided not only by the use of hi-tech equipments, but also by the wide experience of the experts and the continuous improvement of their qualification. The manufactured rotational elements are assembled in various types of: - lenses - eye-lenses - condensers - target systems - medical devices - measuring devices Assembly Pursuant to the technical documentation of the clients OPTIX manufactures and tests various types of opto-mechanical units: - lenses - binoculars - condenser systems - lenses for scanning systems - CCD TV-cameras - microscopes - LCD projection systems OPTIX implements new methods of adjustment, control and testing of the opto-mechanical systems designed by the company experts by abiding customer's requirements as to the quality and reliability of the products. In 2004 the company put into operation a new assembly workshop complying with all requirements for production of hi-tech products. OPTIX works out the design, assembly and adjustment of the opto-electronic units and products, as well as takes care of their repair. OPTIX is the only company in Bulgaria that implements the whole process from the design stage to the serial production of the hi-tech production in the field of the night vision. Based on this trend of development, completed by new projects in the field of the medical and civil production in cooperation with leading EU companies, OPTIX drafts long-term plans for the implementation of present and future projects. Special production Night visions devices The analysis of the regional conflicts at the end of the XX century and the fight against terrorism during the last several years has come to indicate, that military action gradually becomes a matter of technology. The tasks of the armies and the specialized military units have undergone dramatic change and we can now feel the necessity of the formation of small, highly mobile groups of soldiers, who must be able to operate at any time and under any climatic conditions and on any terrains. Understanding the importance and the need of such high-tech systems, OPTIX has embarked on the development of a wide range of night vision observation devices, which are fully competitive to the best and most well known brands. OPTIX products comply with all the requirements of this type of military equipment. They have been constructed in conformity with the MIL standards and the demands of the Ministry of defense of the Republic of Bulgaria for reliability and functionality. The night vision binoculars "Diana 3X" and "Diana 6X", have been developed on the basis of the single tube night vision goggles "Diana". The Diana 3X binoculars has a lens (light refractor) with a 3-times magnification while Diana 6X has a cata-dioptric lens with a 6X magnification. Both the goggles and the monocular for night visions can be mounted to various other gears and used "hands free". The interface mechanism allows the stable, easy and fast fixing to any uniform mask or helmet of the Kevlar type. Sights OPTIX has constructed and produces a range of optical sights for military firearms: - Wide range collimator sight with a 1x magnification type "red dot" - "WRCS-29" - Optical day sight with 4x and 6x magnification and a prism reverse system type - "ODS" - Optical day sight with 4x and 6x magnification and a prism reverse system - "ODS-M" - Optical night sight with 4x magnification and a cata-dioptric lens - "ONS-4" The simultaneous mounting of the collimator sight WRCS-29 and the monocular Diana M-50 makes the sight usable throughout the night as well. The above-quoted sights may be mounted on NATO military weapon systems (MIL-STD-1913) and the "Kalashnikov" system. This mounting permits the adjustment of the sight in relation to the weapon's stock, thus compensating for difference in the body heights of the shooters. Mobile observation systems The synchronization and control over the actions of military groups, commissioned for different functions, is of decisive importance in the realization of all nighttime operations. To achieve this efficiently, stationary posts for nighttime observation must be set up and their task must be to cover the largest possible surrounding area, where the operation is to be held. Complex security systems OPTIX has developed and currently produces various technical means for the security guarding of sites of all-national importance. They are a complicated set of day and night observation devices, cameras, signalization units and information registry structures. All these systems ensure a round-the-clock observation process and the fastest possible discovery, localization and identification of external objects or accidents. A project of this type was developed and realized by OPTIX for the needs of the Permanent Radioactive Waste Material Depot of the Bulgarian Academy of Science. The systems work in a passive (stand-by) mode and upon activation of the in-built laser source they can be used in conditions of pitch-dark environment. The above-described complex systems integrate the following subsystems: system for perimeter safe-guarding; system for external (out of the perimeter) safe-guarding and a system for safe-guarding and early warning when the observed objects come closer to the guarded site - main and secondary roads (tracks, accessible locations and others, leading to the site). The building of a system for perimeter safe-guarding includes the building of adequate defences (stopping fences and walls, locations for the movement of the guards, including vehicles, etc.) and alarm systems - ultraviolet and micro-wave barriers and round-the-clock TV observation systems, combined with audio and visual signalization.