SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing Digital Forum Launches with Over 600 Presentations

BELLINGHAM, Washington, USA — SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, will hold its Defense + Commercial Sensing Digital Forum 2020 during the week of 27 April-1 May. Originally set to run in Anaheim, California, from 26-30 April, the symposium will be held completely online via the new SPIE virtual and interactive format. More than 2,300 participants have already registered for the Digital Forum.

SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing Digital Forum, an online version of SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing 2020, will offer a convenient, high-quality, and timely method for researchers, engineers, and government and industry leaders in the photonics community to share emerging research, new results, and technological advances with their peers. Registration for the Digital Forum is free.

With more than 600 presenters involved, topical areas of research range from materials and optical devices, imaging and analytics, and advanced sensing and imaging to next generation sensor systems and applications. Registering for the event will give participants full access to all of the SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing Digital Forum's pre-recorded presentations and over 450 accepted manuscripts. During the Forum, participants can engage with speakers by watching and listening to presentations at their convenience, posting questions and comments, with the presenters monitoring their discussions frequently throughout the week in order to respond and participate in the conversations.

In addition, the SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing Digital Forum includes a virtual exhibition, allowing participants to connect with nearly 300 exhibitors showcasing products and services that support the optics and photonics community; an engaging industry program; and multiple courses offered.

"SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing is well-recognized for the quality of its technical conferences," said Jenoptik Optical Systems President and Defense + Commercial Sensing Symposium Chair Jay Kumler. "In reviewing the presentations that will be available on the DCS Digital Forum, I am impressed with the resilience of the community and the strong participation within this new format. SPIE has responded quickly to the needs of our community, and I am looking forward to the presentations and enjoying this new ‘frictionless' delivery of cutting-edge sensing technology."

"In some ways, it offers the ultimate in flexibility," noted Georgia Tech Research Institute's Electro-Optical Systems Laboratory Director and Defense + Commercial Sensing Chair John M. Pellegrino. "With presentations available at whatever time is convenient, our community will get a broad view of science, technology, and applications developments from the comfort of home. To facilitate learning and interaction, we can interact virtually with authors and colleagues, posing questions, providing feedback, and noting topics for further attention. Even during these times of uncertainty, it's inspiring that we can find ways to maintain connections and pursue novel learning experiences."

Plenaries include L3Harris' Michael Noble on innovation in the aerospace and defense industry; John Delaney, senior imaging scientist in the scientific research department of the conservation division of the National Gallery of Art, speaking about tri-modal imaging spectroscopy of paintings; Rockley Photonics Vice President of R&D Aaron Zilkie on a multi-micron silicon photonics platform for imaging and sensing; Intel's Jonathan Doylend on silicon photonics for lidar; Los Alamos National Laboratory's G. Andrew "Andy" Erickson's vision of the future of sensing and imaging systems; and Stuart Young, of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, on artificial intelligence for maneuver and mobility (AIMM) essential research project (ERP).

The SPIE digital forum platform was developed in response to the inability to hold in-person conferences due to the global spread of COVID-19. The forums ensure the timely continuation of information exchange and discussion opportunities that the optics and photonics community values and relies on to advance research, product development, and collaborations. In early April, the initial SPIE Photonics Europe Digital Forum generated an enthusiastic response with more than 3,700 registered participants from 107 countries, and over 770 presentations and papers. More than 21,500 participants viewed presentations shared by the community, and more than 16,000 papers were downloaded.

In addition to the Defense + Commercial Sensing Digital Forum, SPIE is also launching the SPIE Smart Structures and Nondestructive Evaluation Digital Forum 2020 this week. This forum showcases more than 200 presentations and over 200 papers and includes keynotes from Cordt Zollfrank of the Technical University of Munich, Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Yoseph Bar-Cohen, Virginia Tech's Pinhas Ben-Tzvi, and Fuh-Gwo Yuan of North Carolina State University. For this free event, please register here.

About SPIE

SPIE is the international society for optics and photonics, an educational not-for-profit organization founded in 1955 to advance light-based science, engineering, and technology. The Society serves more than 255,000 constituents from 183 countries, offering conferences and their published proceedings, continuing education, books, journals, and the SPIE Digital Library. In 2019, SPIE provided more than $5.6 million in community support including scholarships and awards, outreach and advocacy programs, travel grants, public policy, and educational resources. www.spie.org

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