Pose angular-aiding for maneuvering target tracking

With high-resolution radar sensors such as HRRR and SAR, ground targets become visible more as a rich set of radar signatures corresponding to the target geometrical details than as a single reflector with an equivalent RCS. This has enabled target classification and identification (ID). As a "by-product" of the target ID process, the pose angles are available. For ground targets, which are constrained to move on the earth surface, their velocity vector direction is aligned most of time along the body's longitudinal axis. As a result, the pose angles carry kinematic information that can be used to aid target tracking particularly during the maneuvering periods. In this paper, we investigate the potential benefits of pose angular aiding and the requirements on pose angular measurements in order to realize such benefits. Simulation results are presented to illustrate the concept and performance.