ASPECTS OF MULTI-PARAMETER RADAR ATR IN COMPLEX ENVIRONMENTS: AN OVERVIEW OF THE WORK OF NATO TASK GROUP SET-163

摘要

1 INTRODUCTION Future military operations of all types are expected to involve more complex environments (e.g. urban areas, harbours, etc.) compared to former operations. There is a requirement to avoid collateral damage and high casualty rates among both combatants and non-combatants as this may complicate or defeat the goal of NATO's involvement and reduce local support. This requires the accurate identification and location of vehicles and personnel that may constitute a threat, preferably from a distance. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and other forms of imaging radar, provide all-weather, high resolution images of large ground areas from stand-off ranges. Furthermore, the fullest characterization of the scene is provided by the use of multi-frequency, multi-polarization, multi-aspect and multi-temporal options. Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) using radar would provide an aid to both the decision maker and the war-fighter against the asymmetric threat, and towards enhanced situational awareness and persistent surveillance. Studies conducted by predecessor Task Groups (SET-113 and SET-111) established various techniques for both ATR and the evaluation of ATR performance. Further work has now been undertaken under SET-163 to investigate the benefits of multi-parameter radar in complex environments.