Surveillance

Magnetic Tracking Array

Magnetic Array Abstract

Suman Ganguly, Andrew Brown, Aleksandar Jovancevic
Center for Remote Sensing, Inc.
Fairfax, VA 22030

Magnetic and low frequency electromagnetic sensors provide opportunities and challenges for detection, tracking, and classification of various non-cooperative targets. An array of sensors configured in a suitable network provides several advantages. A multiplicity of sensors allow improved signal processing and noise cancellation, resulting in improved range of detection. A networked architecture also allows detection, localization, tracking, and classification.

Practical use of such a system will require optimization in terms of relevant parameters such as, specific applications, type of sensors, sensitivity, power, cost, deployment, networking, signal processing, computational load, telemetry, node and cluster formation, etc. Such optimization will require thorough experiments under field conditions.

We have developed a networked magnetic array based system for field test and field demonstration. The system provides real-time acquisition and analysis of the signals from an array of magnetic sensors. The targets are detected, tracks established, pertinent features of the targets are classified, and displayed in real-time. We describe the system and the issues associated with such a system as well as possible improvements to the system.

Presented at Military Magnetic and Electric Field Sensors Workshop,
APL, MD, 2000