Tracking simulated UAV swarms using particle filters

. This paper provides an initial examination of the use of particle filters in tracking swarms of small targets such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles using a radar. From the standpoint of conventional tracking solutions, such swarms present a severe challenge — due not only to the quasi-erratic motion of the UAVs relative to the swarm trajectory as a whole, but also from the effects of the small target size upon radar resolution and detection probability. It is shown here that a particle filter is capable of providing a stable track on the swarm centroid, although not the individual constituent UAVs.