Mutual-aided target tracking and identification
Chun Yang, Erik Blasch · Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE · 2003
Mutual-aided target tracking and target identification schemes are described by exploiting the couplings between the target tracking and target identification systems, which are typically implemented in a separate manner. A hybrid state space approach is formulated to deal with continuous-valued kinematics, discrete-valued target type, and discrete-valued target pose (inherently continuous but quantized). We identify and analyze ten possible mutual aiding mechanisms with different complexity in different levels. The coupled tracker design is illustrated within the context of JointSTARS using GMTI and HRRR measurements as well as digital terrain and elevation data (DTED) and road map among others. The resulting coupled tracking and identification system is expected to outperform the separately designed systems particularly during target maneuvers, for recovering from temporary data dropout, and in a dense target environment.