Location Detection and Tracking of Moving Targets by a 2D IR-UWB Radar System

Van-Han Nguyen,Jae-Young Pyun

doi:10.3390/s150306740

Abstract

In indoor environments, the Global Positioning System (GPS) and long-range tracking radar systems are not optimal, because of signal propagation limitations in the indoor environment. In recent years, the use of ultra-wide band (UWB) technology has become a possible solution for object detection, localization and tracking in indoor environments, because of its high range resolution, compact size and low cost. This paper presents improved target detection and tracking techniques for moving objects with impulse-radio UWB (IR-UWB) radar in a short-range indoor area. This is achieved through signal-processing steps, such as clutter reduction, target detection, target localization and tracking. In this paper, we introduce a new combination consisting of our proposed signal-processing procedures. In the clutter-reduction step, a filtering method that uses a Kalman filter (KF) is proposed. Then, in the target detection step, a modification of the conventional CLEAN algorithm which is used to estimate the impulse response from observation region is applied for the advanced elimination of false alarms. Then, the output is fed into the target localization and tracking step, in which the target location and trajectory are determined and tracked by using unscented KF in two-dimensional coordinates. In each step, the proposed methods are compared to conventional methods to demonstrate the differences in performance. The experiments are carried out using actual IR-UWB radar under different scenarios. The results verify that the proposed methods can improve the probability and efficiency of target detection and tracking.

Highlights

Many applications require information about an object’s location for rescue, emergency and security purposes
The frame could be repositioned to measure beyond a 2-m distance, and the radar could include the reflections from the reflecting objects located even in an 8-m away location
The biggest challenges in IR-ultra-wide band (UWB) radar-signal processing are that the received signals are deteriorated by the target distance, material and shape

Summary

Introduction

Many applications require information about an object’s location for rescue, emergency and security purposes. The approaches that access an object’s location are typically divided into two groups: active and passive localization. In the former approach, the object is associated with a mobile station (MS), such as a tag or device in a communication network. The object’s location is determined by sharing data between the MS and the base stations (BSs) [1]. System (GPS), cellular networks, Bluetooth and wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are used in active localization. In the latter approach, the object does not communicate with other devices. The object’s location can be determined by using the reflected signal from the object [2]. Radio detection and ranging (radar), sound navigation and ranging (sonar) and laser detection and ranging (LADAR)

Methods

Results

Conclusion