Seismic and ultrasonic data analysis for characterizing people and animals

Abstract

In this paper we analyze the seismic signals generated by people and animals walking. It is known that when a person walks, the heel strikes first and then the front of the foot; whereas animals walk on their hoofs. This difference in the walking patterns result in significant changes in the seismic signatures for both people and animals. Similarly, men walk differently than women and they also have different weight distributions resulting in different signatures for men and women. They also have different cadence or gait patterns. We distinguish the significant features in seismic signatures to distinguish people and animals. Ultrasonic Doppler returns capture the variations in the gait. The Doppler returns will be analyzed to distinguish people and animals. Algorithms to classify the signatures will be provided. The algorithms will be tested on the data collected at a horse farm with women, men and people walking. The results will be discussed along with possible future research directions to reduce the number of false alarms.