Abstract
In order to detect and image concealed weapons and explosives, an electromagnetic imaging tool with its related signal processing is presented. The aim is to penetrate clothes and to find personal-born weapons and explosives under clothes. The chosen UWB frequency range covers the whole X-band. The frequency range is justified after transmission measurements of numerous clothes that are dry or slightly wet. The apparatus and the 3D near-field SAR processor are described. A strategy for contour identification is presented with results of some simulants of weapon and explosive. A conclusion is drawn on the possible future of this technique.
Highlights
The detection of concealed weapons or concealed explosives has become a major issue
We propose in this paper to operate in X-band (8.2– 12.4 GHz) and to use an Ultra Wide Band (UWB) frequency sweep for electromagnetic imaging
The microwave electronics is based on a portable Network Vector Analyzer (NVA) used both as transmitter and as receiver
Summary
The detection of concealed weapons or concealed explosives has become a major issue. Metal detectors are not imager sensors and anyway cannot detect nonmetallic objects. We propose in this paper to operate in X-band (8.2– 12.4 GHz) and to use an Ultra Wide Band (UWB) frequency sweep for electromagnetic imaging. It is well known that, for an electromagnetic imaging sensor, the image resolution increases with frequency. This is why the use of the highest frequencies seems the most interesting. This argument considered alone is a bit simplistic, and there is a compromise to be found between resolution and penetration in matter. (iii) There may be less “clutter” or “speckle” due to roughness (of clothes, of objects) at microwave frequencies.
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