Magnetic Array for Detection and Characterization of IEDs in Presence of Strong Clutter

CRS has pioneered magnetic array technology (U.S. Patent 4,675,606; 1985). The use of magnetic arrays for detection and characterization of IEDs is proposed. Magnetic array will enable: 1. attain high sensitivities by cross-correlating the ambient noise fields 2. detect and map clutter through change detection 3. characterize or classify the residual targets through inversion from different look angles achieved through spatial and temporal field mapping. CRS has a strong background in the design and development of the world’s most sensitive fluxgate and induction coil magnetometers as well as signal processing techniques necessary to use such sensors. We propose to improve the fluxgate design for AC operation and combine both fluxgate and induction coil techniques to cover a frequency range of a few Hz to hundreds of kHz. This will provide a small, compact unit (less than 10 cm) and provide very large sensitivity (better than pT). Our proposed effort consists of: (a) improved electronics – digital circuits for stability, compactness, AC operation, and digital outputs, (b) integrated signal processing units for signal processing and analysis in real-time, and (c) vector to scalar transformation, orientation, and calibration. During Phase I we plan to perform numerical simulations to ascertain the effects of vibration, noise, orientation, and orthogonality. We also plan to develop a laboratory prototype of the integrated sensor based on our experiences with fluxgate and induction coil sensors.