DRDC's approach to IR scene generation for IRCM simulation

Abstract

An object oriented simulation framework, called KARMA, was developed over the last decade at Defence Research and Development Canada -Valcartier (DRDC Valcartier) to study infrared countermeasures (IRCM) methods and tactics. It provides a range of infrared (IR) guided weapon engagement services from constructive to HWIL simulations. To support the increasing level of detail of its seeker models, DRDC Valcartier recently developed an IR scene generation (IRSG) capacity for the KARMA framework. The approach relies on Open-Source based rendering of scenes composed of 3D models, using commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) graphics processing units (GPU) of standard PCs. The objective is to produce a high frame rate and medium fidelity representation of the IR scene, allowing to properly reproduce the spectral, spatial, and temporal characteristics of the aircraft's and flare's signature. In particular, the OpenSceneGraph library is used to manage the 3D models, and to send high-level rendering commands. The atmospheric module allows for accurate, run-time computation of the radiative components using a spectrally correlated wide-band mode. Advanced effects, such as surface reflections and zoom anti-aliasing, are computed by the GPU through the use of shaders. Also, in addition to the IR scene generation module, a signature modeling and analysis tool (SMAT) was developed to assist the modeler in building and validating signature models that are independent of a particular sensor type. Details of the IR scene generation module and the associated modeling tool will be presented.

Anti-Interference Aircraft-Tracking Method in Infrared Imagery

“…Further experiments were conducted on simulated infrared imagery with extensive use of infrared decoys. The simulated environment was developed based on OpenGL and the OpenSceneGraph (OSG) toolkit, which are widely used in the visual-simulation, space, scientific, and virtual-reality industries [67,68,69]. The different parts of the aircraft’s geometric model were rendered based on its corresponding infrared signatures [70,71], as stated in Section 3.1.…”

Learning to Track Aircraft in Infrared Imagery

“…The former experiments were conducted on synthetic infrared imagery, composed of simulated aircraft and a real cloud background. The aircraft was simulated based on the OpenScene-Graph (OSG) toolkit and was rendered according to its infrared signatures [37][38][39][40]. The generation of the simulated image was integrated with the navigation and guidance processes of the missile.…”