Year
2004
Abstract
The system design of the Advanced Exterior Sensor (AES), test data and Sandia National Laboratories’ current work on the AES is described. The AES integrates three sensor technologies (thermal infrared waveband, visible waveband, and microwave radar) in a Remote Sensor Module communicating with three motion detection target trackers and a sensor fusion software module in the Data Processor Module to achieve higher performance than single technology devices. Wide areas are covered by continuously scanning the three sensors 360 degrees in about one second. The images from the infrared and visible detector sets and the radar range data are updated as the sensors rotate each second. The radar provides range data with approximately one-meter resolution. Panoramic imagery is generated for immediate visual assessment of alarms using the Display Control Module. There is great potential for site security enhancement using the AES, which was designed for low-cost, easy use and rapid deployment to cover wide areas beyond typical perimeters, possibly in place of typical perimeter sensors, and for tactical applications around fixed or temporary high-value assets. Commercialoff- the-shelf (COTS) systems have neither the three sensor technologies nor the imaging sensor resolution. Cost and performance will be discussed for different scenarios. Background: The AES was developed using approximately $4 million dollars of US Government (Defense Threat Reduction Agency and Air Force) funding before work was suspended in 1998. The DOE SO has resumed funding, with the objective of demonstrating the AES prototype to potential manufacturers who can make commercial units available to the DOE . _________________________ * This work is being sponsored by the Department of Energy Safeguards and Security Program. Sandia is a multi-program laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a Lockheed Martin Company, for the United States Department of Energy under contract DE-AC04-94AL85000.