MOVING TARGET DETECTOR DATA UTILIZATION INVESTIGATION

The Moving Target Detector (MTD), developed by M.I.T.'s Lincoln Lab., the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Lincoln Laboratory under contract to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), M.I.T.'s Lincoln Lab., was designed as an improved video processor for use with the Airport Surveillance Radars within the Automated Radar Terminal System (ARTS) III automated Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. This device interfaces between the analog radar system and the digital automatic tracking system to provide automatic target detection and false alarm regulation. In addition to range, bearing, and amplitude data, the MTD provides doppler information on detected targets. This data is in the form of unconsolidated reports that are to be centroided and tracked to provide a primary radar data base for ATC functions. In order to evaluate the potential benefits of this MTD data on the ATC tracking operation, the present study was conducted using experimental data gathered by the FAA and Lincoln Laboratory with an FPS-18 radar at the National Aviation Facilities Engineering Center during the summer of 1975. The principal investigations focus on: development of a centroid algorithm for extracting significant target features; and using these features within the subsequent tracking function.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Original contains color plates: All DTIC and NTIS reproductions will be in black and white.
• Corporate Authors:

  Johns Hopkins University, Laurel

  Applied Physics Laboratory, 11100 Johns Hopkins Road
  Laurel, MD  United States  20723-6099

  Federal Aviation Administration

  Systems R&D Service, 800 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC  United States 
• Authors:
  • Castella, F R
  • Feil, M J
  • Miller, J T
  • Roe, C L
• Publication Date: 1980-3

Media Info

• Pagination: 109 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Airport operations; Algorithms; Automation; Doppler radar; False alarms (Security); Moving target indicators; Radar; Radar tracking; Search radar; Tracking systems
• Old TRIS Terms: Airport radar systems; False alarms; Moving targets; Target detection; Video signals
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00318882
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: JHU/APL/FP8-T-041, FAA-RD-80-29
• Contract Numbers: DOT-FA74WA-3423
• Files: NTIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Oct 27 2002 12:00AM