Advanced Defense Systems Group

Solutions for our Defense Partners

In 2007, LPI started its Advanced Defense Systems Group. The ADGS group has recently been spun-out as a separate corporation to better address the needs of DOD, DOE, NASA, and other agencies in the design and manufacture of state-of-the-art opto-mechanical and advanced integrated systems. The Group has experience in a diverse set of fields including: imaging (diffractive and geometrical optics), nonimaging optics, sensor technology, communication systems, electronics, computer control and simulations, large scale software development, custom opto-mechanical systems, advanced structural and thermal modeling and design.

The product actively in development is the Munitions Detection and Tracking System (MDTS).  MDTS will track a bullet and provide pinpoint 3D information for the location of the shooter, in real time, even when the shooter is not visible and part of the trajectory is obstructed. MDTS is very compact and will continuously track multiple munitions. ADSG is also in early stage development for a ballistic missile defense version of MDTS, and other related products.

ADSG CEO, Will Shatford, has multi-discipline expertise in software, hardware and electronic design and engineering, and a 25-year product portfolio with solutions for business, industry, and consumer. He is an innovative and entrepreneurial strategist, developer, and team leader.

Dr. Ilya Agurok, CTO, and inventor of MDTS, has more than 25 years experience in optical systems design and is a recognized expert in optical systems, theoretical and practical optics designs, testing, wavefront control, and interferometry.  Among his many successful projects at LPI was the NASA “Hyperspectral Imager Tracker (HIT)”. Dr. Agurok received his PhD in Optical Engineering in 1987 from the St. Petersburg Institute of Fine Mechanics and Optics. He worked 14 years for LOMO and 4 years for ITMO, and 12 years as a principal scientist at Physical Optics Corp. before joining LPI.

Bob Calaway, CMO, has over 30 years of experience in government and industrial technology programs. He has guided successful business development initiatives for large, small, and start-up technology firms.  Bob served as Deputy Defense Advisor for research and engineering in the U.S. Mission to NATO. As the senior European representative of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, he was responsible for promoting U.S. goals for NATO-wide defense and technology cooperation. Bob held a policy-level position of Assistant to the Undersecretary of Defense for research and engineering. Bob is a graduate of the California Institute of Technology.