Target tracking with two passive infrared non-imaging sensors

A new solution for target tracking in air space with two infrared (IR) sensors is presented. The principle of triangulation is used as a basic method for range estimation. However, when the target directions are nearly collinear relative to the baseline, this method produces unacceptable results. The problem is solved by introducing the ratio of IR energy adsorbed at the end of a baseline in a measurement vector within the extended Kalman filter type target state estimator. Also, a recursive estimator for the extinction coefficient that describes the influence of the atmosphere is designed. This combination results in a new adaptive structure for simultaneous estimation of target kinematic states and atmospheric parameters. Such a structure performs much better than the standard triangulation method, yielding acceptable results even in the case where target directions are close to the baseline. Simulation and experimental results demonstrate the feasibility and limitations of the proposed approach.