STO-Activities: (no title)
Activity title:
Evaluation Framework for Multi-sensor Tracking and Fusion Algorithms
Activity Reference:
SET-322
Panel:
SET
Security Classification:
NATO UNCLASSIFIED
Status:
Active
Activity type:
RTG
Start date:
2023-03-23T00:00:00Z
Actual End date:
2026-03-23T00:00:00Z
Keywords:
evaluation framework, fusion, Multisensor tracking, open source software, SET, situational awareness, Stone Soup
Background:
Multiple target tracking and state estimation is a critical capability for military Situational Awareness (SAW) and Situational Assessment (SA). The ability to detect and follow unambiguously all moving entities in a state-space is vital for SA/SAW in multiple domains relevant to NATO (e.g. Space Domain Awareness (SDA), Air Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), and Ground Moving Target Indication (GMTI)).
However, there are a multitude of tracking and fusion approaches; each with its own strengths and deficiencies in terms of accuracy, scalability, computational complexity, etc. Novel algorithms are continuously being developed and claims of performance are difficult to independently verify and validate for operational needs in all domains.
Fortunately an emerging solution exists in the form of a recent Open-Source framework, Stone Soup [https://isif-ostewg.org/stone-soup/]. This framework, developed by a consortium of defence laboratories from ‘NATO+’ nations [this document uses the term ‘NATO+’ as an abbreviation for the invited nations; i.e. NATO, STO-EOP, NZL and CHE], provides an open-source tracking and state estimation framework populated with open-source (MIT-licensed [https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT. The choice of this licence avoids ‘copyleft’ issues.]) components. Stone Soup provides a flexible and unified software platform for researchers and engineers to test, verify, and benchmark a variety of existing multi-sensor and multi-object estimation algorithms.
One of the key benefits of Stone Soup is that it allows evaluation of one or a number of algorithmic approaches against use-cases. Stone Soup users can assemble different combinations of components (in potentially new and unexpected configurations) to build and evaluate candidate trackers for defined military scenarios, applications and data sets. This TAP proposes establishing a NATO+ version of the Stone Soup code-base to collaborate more closely on evaluation and comparison of target tracking and sensor fusion algorithms in NATO relevant alliance use cases and scenarios.
Objectives:
The objectives of this RTG are:
a) To develop a solution for hosting a NATO+ version of Stone Soup; and
b) To run a set of evaluation exercises over defined use-cases of specific interest to NATO missions. These use cases were agreed in the Exploratory Team meetings to be:
• Drone Tracking (Lead: Dstl)
• Space Situational Awareness (Lead: AFRL/L3 Harris)
• Passive Radar (Lead: Warsaw University of Technology)
• Air to Air (Lead: Leonardo UK)
• Maritime (Lead: CMRE/FFI)
Products from these exercises will be an agreed metric for each use case prior to the evaluation exercise, and subsequently a report on the results of the evaluation exercise.
Topics:
The major scientific area of study is that of tracking and fusion of multi-sensor, multi-target ISR information. This covers the development of the approaches and, importantly, assessment. Assessment of candidate tracking and state estimation algorithms requires a means of objective evaluation by using a set of metrics corresponding to characteristics of interest to operational systems. Coordination of alliance experts’ efforts will be highly valuable to identify the most promising solutions. Furthermore, if the development and assessment are closely coupled (rather than air-gapped, as often the case) stakeholders will get algorithmic developments that truly meet the engineering need of the nation and alliance.
Contact:
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Title:
Created at 17/10/2022 12:00 by System Account
Last modified at 16/05/2024 15:00 by System Account
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