The optical design itself is very often a small portion of the engineering effort on an optical instrument The optical engineer, when he sets about to design an optical system, must concern himself with problems in the fields of structures, associated electronic systems, materials, specifications, and test methods. This paper describes some examples of current activities in each of these fields. In addition, this paper considers the influences on design of temperature and mechanical shape, and presents pertinent examples of solutions to specific problems. Various methods are described for supporting refractive and reflective optical elements, both large and small, and the influence of the need for reduced weight is discussed. Requirements for satellite systems are also considered. Furthermore, the importance of electronic subsystems, as well as their interrelation with optical and structural design, is treated. Several examples of guidance systems are discussed as well as some problems of focusing. Sections are also included on performance specifications and quality control by the use of modulation transfer functions.

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