Distributed Buoy Vessel Detection System

Non-cooperative vessel tracking to assess potential threats is becoming increasingly important to the defense of the U.S. coastline and ports of entry; so there is a need to identify and intercept potential threats well before they reach our shores. To support this critical surveillance activity the Phase I Program will establish a relatively low cost, long life, moored buoy based vessel detection / signal processing system concept, that could be readily deployed by Coast Guard or Navy vessels in forward areas as a barrier and have an acoustic detection range of 20NM. The system would provide a communication link to a shore station for sorting and tracking the detected vessels of interest. LewTech Company plans to commercialize the resulting technology from this and the follow-on programs by fully supporting the Coast Guard / Navy Maritime Domain Awareness mission requirements. The critical Phase I work is to development the passive acoustic sensor and the associated signal processing approach that will convert the sensor detections into contact and track reports. This technology will also be readily expanded or used directly in supporting various tactical operations and surveillance systems for such organizations as the DEA, BATFE, NOAA, FBI and Special Forces operations.