Innovative Semi-Active Laser (SAL) Signal Processing Techniques in Noisy Environments

This effort will focus on developing new SAL signal processing approaches and algorithms for pulse discrimination in dirty battlefields and active EOCM environments. This will be accomplished by identifying specific candidate approaches and algorithms, and evaluating them to select the most promising. Subsequent phases of this effort will design and prototype the selected algorithms and demonstrating their performance in the Army"s Automated Laser Seeker Performance Evaluation System (ALSPES). Most existing US systems, notably the HELLFIRE missile, were developed in the 1970s and 1980s and were limited by technology available at that time. Those limitations determined approaches that were possible with regard to performance in dirty-battlefield environments and in dealing with active electro-optical countermeasures (EOCM). Recent changes in hardware to replace obsolete parts have significantly increased the processing capability of the HELLFIRE laser seeker and guidance unit, and new systems being developed are being designed from the beginning using the greatly-increased digital processing capability presently available. The possible improvements that GRA proposes to explore under this task are in areas such as: Adaptive Discrimination, Multi-Gate Discrimination, Improved Spot-Jump Algorithm, Improved Backscatter Rejection, Improved Resistance to Saturation or Overload of the Pulse Processing, and Improved Rejection of EOCM Pulses.