SECURE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS BASED ON ENCODING OF CHAOTIC CARRIERS

SCALED PROBABILISTIC METHODS OF NONLINEAR SIGNAL PROCESSING HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO BE CAPABLE OF SEPARATING KNOWN NONLINEAR SIGNALS FROM NOISE AT VERY POOR SIGNAL TO NOISE RATIOS. SECOND, THESE METHODS CAN RESTORE THE NONLINEAR SIGNAL, EVEN IF IT HAS BEEN DISTORTED IN SOME WAYS, SUCH AS BY SUPPRESSING CERTAIN FREQUENCY BANDS. THESE METHODS ALSO RESTORE THE NONLINEAR TIME DOMAIN SIGNAL ITSELF AND NOT ONLY THE GEOMETRIC PROPERTIES SUCH AS THE ATTRACTOR STRUCTURE. AS A RESULT, SCALED PROBABILISTIC METHODS MAY PROVE KEY TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF COVERT COMMUNICATIONS METHODS THAT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE NOISE-LIKE BROAD BAND NATURE OF CHAOTIC NONLINEAR SIGNALS TO HIDE THEIR PRESENCE. THIS PHASE I SBIR PROJECT WILL DEMONSTRATE THE FEASIBILITY OF USING NONLINEAR SIGNALS AS CARRIERS OF INFORMATION, EVEN UNDER ADVERSE NOISE CONDITIONS, BY THE APPLICATION OF THE SCALED PROBABILISTIC METHODS. ANTICIPATED BENEFITS/POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS - THE RESULTS OF THIS RESEARCH WILL DEMONSTRATE NEW METHODS OF PROVIDING SECURE AND COVERT COMMUNICATIONS. MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE APPLICATIONS INCLUDE USE IN THE BATTLEFIELD, UNDERWATER COMMUNICATIONS WITH REMOTELY CONTROLLED VEHICLE AND DEMOLITION TEAMS AND COVERT INTELLIGENCE COMMUNICATIONS. IT COULD ALSO BE USED TO IDENTIFY FRIEND OR FOE. COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS INCLUDE ALL COMMUNICATIONS OVER PUBLIC AIRWAVES WHERE PRIVACY IS DESIRED, SUCH AS BANKING AND COMMUNICATIONS TO NEGOTIATING TEAMS.