Matched field processing classification

Abstract

Matched field processing (MFP) has traditionally been performed using vertical line arrays. During the Shallow Water Cell Experiment SWellEx-96, which was conducted off the coast of San Diego in the spring of 1996, it was shown that MFP could also be done using horizontal line arrays (HLA). The MFP correlation using the 250-m long HLA used in this experiment was large enough for detection, but because of the high sidelobes, classification by depth was not possible. However, simulations predicted that the sidelobe levels for an approximately 500-m long HLA would be small enough to make classification by depth possible. To verify this prediction, the SWellEx-99 experiment was conducted in spring of 1999. During this experiment, which was conducted in approximately 200 m of water, a number of large (∼500 m) horizontal line arrays were deployed. A J15-3 source, which transmitted multi-tone signals at various levels, was towed along various tracks. In this paper, data from the SWellEx-99 experiment are used to examine the detection and classification performance of adaptive matched field processing on large horizontal line arrays.