Optical System Design

The design of imaging optical systems is an engineering discipline, that has been practised and written about for many years. In many ways, optical design is both a science and an art, and for this reason it is an engineering discipline that can cause problems if it is not done properly. Furthermore, most books on the subject tend to be complex and difficult to follow and to understand. This book brings the understanding of the discipline to everyone. "Practical Optical System Design" is based on the firm foundation of the short course by the same title taught by Bob Fischer to hundreds of students for over 15 years. The course has been honed, polished and expanded over the years. It is available on CD ROM and videotape, and finally via this book. The book was written to teach optical design and engineering in a fully un-intimidating way using clear and easy-to-understand graphics and explanations. Readers learn the subject matter with a combination of complete graphics, easy-to-follow explanations and just enough maths to be useful, but not enough to make the book hard to follow or difficult to understand. This book is for everyone from programme managers to seasoned optical designers and engineers, mechanical engineers and electrical engineers.