A nonlinear IMM algorithm for maneuvering target tracking

In target tracking, the measurement noise is usually assumed to be Gaussian. However, the Gaussian modeling of the noise may not be true. Noise can be non-Gaussian. The non-Gaussian noise arising in a radar system is known as glint noise. The distribution of glint noise is long tailed and will seriously affect the tracking performance. We develop a new algorithm that can effectively track a maneuvering target in the glint environment The algorithm incorporates the nonlinear Masreliez filter into the interactive multiple model (IMM) method. Simulations demonstrate the superiority of the new algorithm     

Target racking with glint noise

In tracking targets, there can be an uncertainty associated with the measurements in addition to their inaccuracy, which is usually modeled by aDditive Gaussian noise. However, the Gaussian modeling of the noise may not be true. Noise can be non-Gaussian. The non-Gaussian noise arising in a radar system is known as glint noise. The distribution of glint noise is long tailed and will seriously affect the tracking performance. An algorithm is developed which can significantly improve the tracking performance when glint noise is present     

Radar Target Pointing Error Reduction Using Extended Kalman Filtering

A new method of reducing target glint errors in radar systems is presented. The target is modeled as n reflectors whose magnitudes and phases are known. The reflector positions are described by a dynamical model driven by white Gaussian noise. The resulting vibrations of the target reflectors produce glintlike pointing errors in the radar system. An extended Kalman filter is developed to estimate the positions of the target reflectors; this information is used to substantially reduce the pointing error due to glint. Data illustrating this glint reduction is given. The model is extended by the inclusion of clutter effects modeled in the same fashion as the glint phenomenon. The results presented indicate the limits of usefulness of this technique as a function of both receiver noise and relative clutter amplitude.     

GMM-based target classification for ground surveillance Doppler radar

An automatic target recognition (ATR) algorithm, based on greedy learning of Gaussian mixture model (GMM) is developed. The GMMs were obtained for a wide range of ground surveillance radar targets such as walking person(s), tracked or wheeled vehicles, animals, and clutter. Maximum-likelihood (ML) and majority-voting decision schemes were applied to these models for target classification. The corresponding classifiers were trained and tested using distinct databases of target echoes, recorded by ground surveillance radar. ML and majority-voting classifiers obtained classification rates of 88% and 96%, correspondingly. Both classifiers outperform trained human operators.     

A Real-Time Statistical Radar Target Model

Radar glint arises from the spatial phase perturbations of the radar signal echoed from a complex target. The glint phenomenon is closely related to the target radar cross section (RCS). This relationship plays a significant part in modern missile seeker signal processing. We present a statistical glint/RCS target model for realtime simulation of target signatures. Particular emphasis is placed upon the modeling and simulation of the appropriate glint/RCS statistical dependency. The fundamental approximation of locating uniformly distributed scatterers around the instantaneous radar centroid employed in the Delano-Gubonin [1, 2, 3] model is removed. A key result which follows from this representation is that the mean glint estimator is unbiased. This enables the estimation of model parameters from the first-order glint and RCS statistics which can easily be computed from measured data. A method of estimating model parameters is presented, and the results are applied to data from a typical combat aircraft target. It is shown that the Delano-Gubonin results are a special case of the results presented here. The 14.6 percent probability of glint falling beyond the target extent as derived by Delano [1] is not true in general. It is further shown that glint and RCS are uncorrelated but are statistically dependent. A Monte-Carlo simulation is performed to verify the assumptions made and to demonstrate the feasibility of the working models.     

A Statistical Glint/Radar Cross Section Target Model

We review the details of the glint (angular scintillation) problem in electromagnetic scattering. These results are employed to develop a statistical glint and radar cross section (RCS) target model featuring the correct glint probability density function, the correct time correlations of RCS and glint, and the correct cross correlation between RCS and glint. This model is suitable for simulation applications, and an implementation scheme for a glint/RCS signal generator is included.     

基于MCIS技术的相位差变化率单站无源定位

针对最大似然估计（ML）方法求解测相位差变化率单站无源定位问题计算量大、定位慢的问题,本文提出一种利用蒙特卡洛重要性抽样技术（MCIS）高精度、低复杂度的估计方法。根据Pincus定理推导出ML问题的近似全局解,利用重要性抽样（IS）技术构建符合高斯分布概率密度（PDF）的重要性函数,作为样本选取的依据,通过逆变换采样获得样本集,统计样本均值直接得到辐射源位置估计结果。MCIS方法简单易实现且运算量低,能够克服传统ML估计多维网格搜索耗时较长的缺陷,而且对目标位置初始估计误差有较低的敏感性。实验结果表明,MCIS算法在相同测量噪声水平下,定位精度优于EKF、NLS算法,有效减小了初始化估计误差对算法定位精度的影响,也进一步讨论分析了算法参数和不同观测条件对定位性能的影响。     

Diversity methods in phase monopulse tracking-a new approach

A novel approach relating target glint (difference between the phase-front gradient of the scattered field and the true target direction vector) to the analytic properties of the overall field is used to suggest a method by which the error in conventional (single frequency) phase monopulse trackers can be reduced. The approximate relationship between glint and amplitude is briefly developed, and an improved glint reduction scheme appropriate for single frequency data is described. The effectiveness in reducing direction angle error is demonstrated with simulated data. It is shown how techniques devised for multiple frequency data sets can be applied to multiple aspect data sets.<>     

An improved multiple model GM-PHD filter for maneuvering target tracking

In this paper, an improved implementation of multiple model Gaussian mixture probability hypothesis density (MM-GM-PHD) filter is proposed. For maneuvering target tracking, based on joint distribution, the existing MM-GM-PHD filter is relatively complex. To simplify the filter, model conditioned distribution and model probability are used in the improved MM-GM-PHD filter. In the algorithm, every Gaussian components describing existing, birth and spawned targets are estimated by multiple model method. The final results of the Gaussian components are the fusion of multiple model estimations. The algorithm does not need to compute the joint PHD distribution and has a simpler computation procedure. Compared with single model GM-PHD, the algorithm gives more accurate estimation on the number and state of the targets. Compared with the existing MM-GM-PHD algorithm, it saves computation time by more than 30%. Moreover, it also outperforms the interacting multiple model joint probabilistic data association (IMMJPDA) filter in a relatively dense clutter environment.     

An interacting multiple model approach for target tracking withglint noise

The application of the interacting multiple model (IMM) estimation approach to the problem of target tracking when the measurements are perturbed by glint noise is considered. The IMM is a very effective approach when the system has discrete uncertainties in the dynamic or measurement model as well as continuous uncertainties. It is shown that this method performs better than the “score function” method. It is also shown that the IMM method performs robustly when the exact prior information of the glint noise is not available     

Feedback median filter for robust preprocessing of glint noise

Glint noise may arise in a target tracking system. The non-Gaussian behavior of glint noise can severely degrade the tracking performance. Measurement preprocessing at the front-end of the tracker is an effective method to reduce glint noise. The preprocessor proposed by Hewer, Martin, and Zeh (1987), which used the computationally intensive M-estimator, may not be suitable for practical implementation. An alternative method employing the median filter is studied here. The median filter is well known for its simplicity and robustness. However, the efficiency of the median filter can be seriously degraded if input samples are not identically distributed. This is what we may encounter in the tracking problem. A feedback median filter is then proposed to overcome this impediment without substantially increasing complexity. Simulations show that the new preprocessor can greatly improve tracking performance in the glint noise environment.     

基于位置信息的高分辨雷达角闪烁抑制方法

角闪烁误差是导引头寻的制导的主要误差来源,基于高分辨力雷达的单脉冲测角算法可有效改善角闪烁现象。现有的研究大多基于幅度加权的思想,利用距离单元的幅度信息进行加权平滑处理。本文在现有高分辨测角算法的基础上,结合高分辨一维距离像的位置信息,提出了一种新的角度信息处理方法。该算法充分利用了距离像有效单元的目标信息,提高了角度测量精度。仿真实验表明该算法对角闪烁有较好的抑制作用。     

Multipath mitigation method based on Gaussian mixture model in RF relative measurement

Radio Frequency (RF) technology represents a high-precision relative navigation solution that has significant potential for application to earth-orbiting satellites. In precision applications, multipath errors dominate the total error because observables, which are used to estimate carrier-phase integer ambiguity, are not always subject to a Gaussian distribution when dual-frequency ambiguity estimation methods are used in the presence of multipath. As it has been shown that ranging observables obey a Gaussian mixture distribution, this study proposes improvements to the accuracy of estimation based on multipath mitigation founded on the Gaussian mixture model. To this end, such a model is created for integer ambiguity resolution in the presence of multipath, using which the theoretical error in dual-frequency ambiguity estimation is derived. Expectation Maximization (EM), which aids dual-frequency ambiguity estimation, is subsequently proposed to reduce the effect of multipath errors. Finally, two experimental scenarios are implemented to test the performance of the proposed method. The results show that EM-aided dual-frequency ambiguity estimation reduces the range error to approximately 20% in comparison with simple dual-frequency ambiguity estimation. Therefore the proposed technique is effective for multipath mitigation in RF relative measurement.     

Robust Preprocessing for Kalman Filtering of Glint Noise

The non-Gaussian character of glint noise is demonstrated by exploratory data analysis. This non-Gaussian behavior is characterized by outliers in the form of glint spikes. Since glint noise is processed by an angle-tracking Kalman filter, and since the latter is quite nonrobust, strategies are proposed to minimize the effect of these glint spikes. One of the strategies, which involves robust preprocessing of the data, is pursued in detail. Finally, some results of a planar missile simulation are presented that clearly demonstrate the merits of the robust preprocessing strategy.     

基于自适应混合高斯模型的运动目标检测

随着智能视频监控应用领域的不断拓展,为了在各种复杂场景下都能快速稳定地检测出运动目标,众多研究者提出了很多解决方法。鉴于背景减除法自身在算法理论的复杂度小,且对不同场景适应性强的优点,成为运动目标检测研究领域的基础方法。而在背景减除法的各种背景建模方法中,混合高斯模型方法以其适应性强、灵活高效的优点成为该领域的经典方法。详细介绍了背景更新机制中常用的混合高斯模型,并据此研究了基于自适应更新率的高斯背景建模方法,经过对比试验,论证了改进方法在建模速度上的大幅度提升。     

Frequency-Agility Processing to Reduce Radar Glint Pointing Error

A technique to reduce radar pointing errors due to glint using frequency agility and amplitude weighting is presented. The reduction in rms tracking error is developed into an equation dependent upon the original glint tracking error, ?g, and the number of returns weighted, N. The rms tracking error is thereby reduced approximately by a factor of N. Finally, the equation formulated allows one to evaluate the reduction in glint error versus the number of frequencies chosen for frequency agility.     

Angular Glint and the Moving, Rotating, Complex Radar Target

Angular glint produces errors in radar-indicated target direction and in the Doppler frequency. Glint arises from phase perturbations of the radar signal echoed from a complex target, as compared to those from a point target. The phase gradient V? represents these glint effects very well. The direction of this vector is that of radar angle sensing. The Doppler shift is obtined from the dot product of the gradient and the target velocity. A procedure that isolates and measures glint phase variations alone, for the inaccessible target, is described.     

Monopulse tracking of Rayleigh targets: a simple approach

A simple derivation of the probability distribution of the monopulse ratio is presented. The derivation is based upon a conditional distribution and considers both Rayleigh targets and simple non-Rayleigh cases. The mean is obtained almost without calculation. The variance expression is given completely general noise and glint interpretation. Analytical expressions for angle error mean and spread, including noise, target width, and unresolved targets, are presented as functions of antenna position, in simple and comprehensive diagrams     

Some Aspects of Swerling Models for Fluctuating Radar Cross Section

The structure of Swerling's 1957 model for fluctuating radar cross section and signal amplitude is examined prinwrily in terms of mixture representations. The authors also show the relationship of Nakagami's m distrubution to Swerling's amplitude distribution, and Nakagami's q distribution (Hoyt vector density) is reduced to the Swerling distribution. Nonuniform phase distributions associated with Swerling's functions are also derived. Results are given when Swerling's amplitude density is used as a prior distribution with Bennett's (Rice's) distribution for the amplitude of a sine wave plus narrowband Gaussian noise.     

DOA estimation by exploiting the amplitude modulation induced by antenna scanning

We propose a beamsplitting-like approach to estimate the directions of arrival (DOA) of multiple radar targets present in the mainlobe of a rotating antenna. The proposed method is based on the maximum likelihood (ML) technique and it avoids the need for a difference channel by exploiting knowledge of the antenna main beam pattern. Two scenarios are considered: multiple targets with unknown deterministic complex amplitudes and multiple targets with Gaussian distributed random complex amplitudes. The performance of the proposed estimator is investigated through Monte Carlo simulation and it is compared with the Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB).