Multi-Modal Tunnel Detection
Abstract
In today's asymmetric warfare, adversaries' persistent and expanded use of underground tunnels for tactical advantage is largely unchallenged. Underground and subterranean tunnels are being increasingly employed to hide a variety of tactical and strategic functions, including command and control, missile and artillery protection, lines of communication and staging area for military operations. Today's tunnel detection systems are based on single mode commercial sensor technology (Ground Penetrating Radar, seismic, resistivity, gravity, cone penetrator, and electromagnetic gradiometer). Despite significant technical efforts, these approaches still fail to identify tunnels in the presence of variable geology and urban complexity and clutter. Moreover, there is currently no technical basis for combining these modes into a more powerful detection schema. The Multi-Modal Tunnel Detection program will overcome these limitations by going back to basics to exploit the underlying physics of a tunnel's response to a variety of energy sources (acoustic, seismic, electromagnetic, chemical, resistivity, conductivity, lidar, multi/hyperspectral, and gravity/gravity gradient). This multi-sensor approach will be used in conjunction with advanced mathematics, new algorithms and processing techniques to develop and demonstrate approaches that optimally combine sensor modalities to characterize tunnels and reject clutter. Upon completion the Multi-Modal Tunnel Detection program will deny the use of underground facilities that currently thwart our existing ISR systems. This capability is expected to transition to the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Special Operations Command upon completion of a system demonstration phase.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Accomplishment
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2013
- Source ID
- 868a282818aea02809a1c252e260fa06
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- Root: SENSOR TECHNOLOGY