Unattended Ground Sensors (UGS) are valuable tools for the U.S. military and border patrol, however, their utility is
often limited due to their cost, size, and weight. Recently specific advances in micro power electronics, transducers,
packaging, and signal processing techniques have enabled the development of a small, lightweight, and affordable UGS.
Originally intended for small unit clearing/monitoring operations, a sensor has evolved to achieve detection
performance comparable to state-of-the-art UGS. To meet a broader mission capability, battery life and detection
capabilities have been extended and affordable networked cameras and repeaters have been developed. This paper will
provide an overview of the key enabling technologies for affordable UGS, provide an overview and enhancements of
this affordable UGS system, and review results of system testing.
The unattended ground sensors (UGS) have come a long way over the more than 40 years they have been used to detect
adversarial activities. From large, single phenomenology sensors with little signal processing and point to point
communications the technology has now changed to small, intelligent sensors using network communications. This
technology change has resulted in far more capable sensors but challenges remain for UGS to be effective in providing
information to users.
UGS usage has transitioned from military applications in Vietnam directed at detecting enemy movements to much more
sophisticated applications for classifying activity, tracking targets, identifying targets, and providing real time target
response. The era of individual sensors has now moved into an era of collaborative sensors. The technologies behind this
collaborative capability include networking many sensors together, performing complex processing of target features,
integrating multiple sensing phenomenologies, fusing information from many sources, and presenting the user with
advanced information visualization for events of interests. The influx of advanced technology will lead to a new era of
ubiquitous UGS applications.
The combination of changing technology in the marketplace and new requirements for UGS will provide a continuing
force for improving the performance of UGS systems in the future. The characterization of UGS as a System has already
transformed UGS from an individual sensor reporting a target detection to a user in proximity to the sensor into the
current paradigm of many UGS units interacting over a network to provide much more target information. As the
technology continues to move forward, the amount of target information and the precision of the information are going
to advance. This paper will provide examples of research underway to meet these future UGS needs and estimates of
when these advances will become deployable systems.
The SBInet program to secure our border with physical fences and electronic surveillance uses Unattended Ground
Sensors (UGS) to detect illegal crossing activity. The presentation will discuss the role of UGS in SBInet for cueing
tower based surveillance systems and as an independent surveillance system in areas where tower surveillance is
impractical. The presentation will provide a status of UGS integration into the SBInet Common Operating Picture
(COP). McQ as the supplier of UGS for SBInet has supported the system integration with radars and long range imagers.
McQ has worked with DHS and the Border Patrol in refining the UGS surveillance application and in training for their
use. The presentation will address new UGS technology for border monitoring.
Monitoring national borders for illegal border crossing activity is a difficult task. Relying on border monitoring personnel patrolling large border areas as the sole solution is very taxing and expensive due to varying terrain and the need to monitor 24 hours every day. Augmenting personnel with technology is required to maintain the level of persistent surveillance needed for high probability of crossing activity detection and alertment of personnel for interdiction and apprehension. This presentation describes the technical capabilities current unattended ground sensors provide to support border monitoring applications. Target coverage, target classification and identity, real time reporting, and distributed information access are necessary.
McQ's OmniSense® Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) System has been deployed in large numbers to support current
DOD warfighting efforts. This networked UGS system connects the user to the remotely deployed sensors to receive
target information and to allow a user to remotely reconfigure the sensors. These intelligent sensors detect and classify
the targets, in addition to, capturing a picture of the target. The ability to geographically distribute both the users and the
sensors is based on using a network oriented common data structure. McQ developed and has implemented for tactical
DOD use the Common Data Interchange Format (CDIF) sensor language. This has enabled UGS to be networked over
NIPRnet and SIPRnet links so that operators in the field, at Forward Operating Bases, at Tactical Operations Centers,
and at Command Centers can simultaneously share the data. The Army Research Laboratory has further enhanced and
extended this network architecture by integrating a common radio (Blue Radio) and demonstrating in Army C4ISR
exercises that UGS systems from multiple vendors can be integrated into the Future Combat System FBCB2 situation
awareness capability. McQ has extended its OmniSense® UGS capability with direct network connectivity to the
soldier, long range standoff imagers controlled over the network, terrestrial network relays, and with a new low cost
OmniSenseCORTM sensor. McQ will present an overview of the technology provided by the OmniSense® UGS
system.
Protection of the Nation's borders in the post-911 era has taken on increased importance while it has become more technically challenging due to dramatic increases in the number of illegal aliens attempting unauthorized border crossings. Unattended ground sensors, used in large numbers, have been a key element of the US Border Patrol's inventory of sensing systems that are deployed along the borders to alert agents to intrusions. The legacy sensors are based upon decades old technology and limited in their ability to be networked and integrated into a cohesive web that can provide timely information that can be readily integrated into the Border Patrol and DHS information networks. This paper presents an introduction to a system developed by McQ for border monitoring and intrusion detection that provides full networked capability, from the sensor to the display. The paper also includes results of testing and integration with DHS information systems. The significance of Internet protocol based information generation at the sensor level and real time distribution of data is emphasized, including resource and infrastructure sharing and scalability to nationwide scope will also be discussed.
This paper will review the work being performed at McQ on the development of a family of truly low cost unattended ground sensor systems using conventional technology and manufacturing techniques. The goal of this work is to produce tactically useable sensors that can be manufactured in large quantities (1-10M units/year) for $10 each. Secondary goals are small size (10-50 cm^3), lightweight (15-60gm), moderate lifetimes (48-72hrs) and moderate communications ranges (10-1000m). Our research indicates that sensors meeting these performance metrics can be manufactured today using conventional manufacturing techniques. The paper will review the basic system architecture proposed, projected sensor performance and projected manufacturing costs.
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