Image-based ATR utilizing adaptive clutter filter detection, LLRT classification, and Volterra fusion with application to side-looking sonar

摘要

An improved automatic target recognition (ATR) processing string has been developed. The overall processing string consists of pre-processing, subimage adaptive clutter filtering, detection, feature extraction, optimal subset feature selection, feature orthogonalization and classification processing blocks. The objects that are classified by three distinct ATR strings are fused using the classification confidence values and their expansions as features, and using "summing" or log-likelihood-ratio-test (LLRT) based fusion rules. These three ATR processing strings were individually developed and tuned by researchers from different companies. The utility of the overall processing strings and their fusion was demonstrated with an extensive side-looking sonar dataset. In this paper we describe a new processing improvement: six additional classification features are extracted, using primarily target shadow information and a feature extraction window whose length is now made variable as a function of range. This new ATR processing improvement resulted in a 3:1 reduction in false alarms. Two advanced fusion algorithms are subsequently applied: First, a nonlinear Volterra expansion (2nd order) feature-LLRT fusion algorithm is employed. Second, a repeated application of a subset Volterra feature selection / feature orthogonalization / LLRT fusion block is utilized. It is shown that cascaded Volterra feature-LLRT fusion of the ATR processing strings outperforms baseline "summing" and single-stage Volterra feature-LLRT fusion algorithms, yielding significant improvements over the best single ATR processing string results, and providing the capability to correctly call the majority of targets while maintaining a very low false alarm rate.