Tracking of objects in a multi-sensor fusion system for border surveillance

Abstract

In this work, we present a Fusion and Tracking system developed within the EU project FOLDOUT aimed to facilitate border guards work by fusing separate sensor information and presenting automatic tracking of objects detected in the surveillance area. The focus of FOLDOUT is on through-foliage detection in the inner and outermost regions of the EU. Fusing several sensor signals increases the effectiveness of detection, particularly in forested and other areas hidden by foliage. We use weighted maps (also called Heatmaps) to combine multi-sensor information; tracking is performed on the resulting fused objects; a track is created or updated based on cost calculation of associating fused detections temporally. We compare tracking results from individual sensors and from fused objects from data collected in a simulated border that is representative of actual EU borders in Bulgaria. The results show how tracking is enhanced if performed on fused data rather than from individual sensor information.