Personnel and Vehicular Monitoring and Tracking at a Distance

"We propose a robust tracking and monitoring system based on a high frame rate, stereo vision 3D sensor combined with color video data. The envisioned system is capable of detecting people or vehicles moving in a large facility - indoors or outdoors, andkeeping track of each target individually in real time as they pass from one monitored view to another despite crowds, partial occlusions or lighting changes. A prototype tracking system will be demonstrated, extended and evaluated for performance usingexisting high-performance stereo correspondence hardware. The envisioned system will be structured to serve as a platform for acquiring 3D data to be integrated with other biometric methods for identification and threat classification. Finally, issuesregarding practical field use such as cost, installation and maintenance will be identified and addressed. The Department of Defense (DoD) is at a heightened state of awareness since the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001. Military and civilianfacilities need technology that will help them monitor and track potential terrorists before an attack takes place. Existing identification technology and security systems, based on single image sensors or basic motion sensors, are not sufficient tofulfill this need because they are not robust with respect to real world environments. 3D technology though recognized as a invaluable tool for surveillance tracking and identification has been too