CENTURION harbor surveillance test bed

Waterborne threats to commercial and Navy ports have been recognized as a significant issue confronting maritime homeland security. This paper describes the CENTURION Harbor Surveillance Test Bed (CHSTB), sponsored by Littoral and Mine Warfare (L&MW) PMS-485, which has placed both undersea and surface sensors in a combined commercial and Navy port - Port Hueneme, California. The underwater sensor suite being evaluated includes multiple aperture fiber optic bottom arrays, and high frequency active and passive arrays deployed in the water column. The surface sensors include radar, an Automatic Identification System (AIS), and both visible and Electro-Optic Infrared (EOIR) cameras. Sensor contact fusion and correlation is presently accomplished by a customized Electronic Chart Data Information System (ECDIS), which takes acoustic and radar contacts together with received AIS signals, correlates, and plots the correlated and uncorrelated contacts onto the local Port Hueneme nautical chart. Visible cameras are used for unexpected daytime surface craft about the Port exclusion zone. The IR camera has proven invaluable for nighttime surveillance of suspicious surface contacts. The radar and cameras are integrated such that the camera will pan, tilt, and follow the radar contact The scenarios currently being evaluated by the CHSTB for timely threat alert and action include: 1) an unidentified, unplanned surface contact: which enters the exclusion zone; and 2) an acoustic contact (e.g., swimmer, swimmer-delivery, mini-sub) which will not correlate with a surface contact. Valuable operational experience is currently being realized for this test bed, as the Port Hueneme Port Security, Force Protection staff currently use the CHSTB system as an aid to their daily watches. The CHSTB was rapidly fielded and operational within 4 months of contract award. This was realized by a maximum use of available hardware and software, combined with an effective Integrated Product Team (LPT). The major subsystems consist of GFE fiber optic acoustic array systems, and Northrop Grumman/Sperry Marine shipboard sensors customized for land-based and multiple sensor integration use. Present and continuing work this year is focused on evaluating complementary acoustic sensors and processing for the diver threat, and evaluating operational effectiveness for a notional sensor suite and integration concept