Data fusion concepts applied to a suite of dissimilar sensors

This paper presents a discussion on the feasibility and usefulness of data fusion applied to a suite of dissimilar sensors. This suite comprises surveillance radar, forward looking infrared (FLIR), electronic support measurement (ESM), an interrogation friend and foe (IFF), a synthetic aperture radar (SAR), acoustic sensors and a data link (LINK 11). An analysis of applicable sensor fusion processes is presented followed by a discussion on the expected performance improvements. Finally, a three step incremental approach is proposed with recoverable steps where different level of fusion sophistication can be implemented based on the availability of the technology and the actual status of the sensors.