Reverse-Time Tracking to Enhance Passive Sonar

Abstract

Passive sonar depends on signals of opportunity to detect, track and localize targets. These signals are typically detected and then tracked using Kalman filter-type signal followers. Target motion analysis (TMA) is then used to estimate the target's range and, from this, its position, course and speed. The accuracy of TMA is strongly dependent on the duration of the available track. Initiating a second tracker in reverse time at the time of detection can reduce or eliminate the delay between target detection and localization. A detection and tracking system for a passive sonar using a towed array receiver is described and an example ofreverse-time tracking using real data is provided. Reverse-time tracking is able to significantly increase the amount of track data that can be extracted from already available data, highlighting the need for improved data fusion. Potential improvements to this enhanced system through track association are discussed.

Independent Component Analysis for Passive Sonar Signal Processing

“…In some situations, the sonar operator performs tracking manually, but modern sonars have an automatic system to support this task. Although Kalman filters (Lee, 2004) have often been used to implement passive tracking (Rao, 2006), other techniques, (Mellema, 2006) have also been obtaining good results in target tracking application.…”