Modified joint probabilistic data association with classification-aided for multitarget tracking

Joint probabilistic data association is an effective method for tracking multiple targets in clutter, but only the target kinematic information is used in measure-to-track association. If the kinematic likelihoods are similar for different closely spaced targets, there is ambiguity in using the kinematic information alone; the correct association probability will decrease in conventional joint probabilistic data association algorithm and track coalescence will occur easily. A modified algorithm of joint probabilistic data association with classification-aided is presented, which avoids track coalescence when tracking multiple neighboring targets. Firstly, an identification matrix is defined, which is used to simplify validation matrix to decrease computational complexity. Then, target class information is integrated into the data association process. Performance comparisons with and without the use of class information in JPDA are presented on multiple closely spaced maneuvering targets tracking problem. Simulation results quantify the benefits of classification-aided JPDA for improved multiple targets tracking, especially in the presence of association uncertainty in the kinematic measurement and target maneuvering. Simulation results indicate that the algorithm is valid.

Maneuvering Multi-target Tracking Algorithm Based on Modified Generalized Probabilistic Data Association

Aiming at the problem of strong nonlinear and effective echo confirm of multi-target tracking system in clutters environment, a novel maneuvering multitarget tracking algorithm based on modified generalized probabilistic data association is proposed in this paper. In view of the advantage of particle filter which can deal with the nonlinear and non-Gaussian system, it is introduced into the framework of generalized probabilistic data association to calculate the residual and residual covariance matrices, and the interconnection probability is further optimized. On that basis, the dynamic combination of particle filter and generalized probabilistic data association method is realized in the new algorithm. The theoretical analysis and experimental results show the filtering precision is obviously improved with respect to the tradition method using suboptimal filter.

Rough Sets Probabilistic Data Association Algorithm and its Application in Multi-target Tracking

A rough set probabilistic data association(RS-PDA)algorithm is proposed for reducing the complexity and time consumption of data association and enhancing the accuracy of tracking results in multi-target tracking application.In this new algorithm,the measurements lying in the intersection of two or more validation regions are allocated to the corresponding targets through rough set theory,and the multi-target tracking problem is transformed into a single target tracking after the classification of measurements lying in the intersection region.Several typical multi-target tracking applications are given.The simulation results show that the algorithm can not only reduce the complexity and time consumption but also enhance the accuracy and stability of the tracking results.

Augmented input estimation in multiple maneuvering target tracking

This paper presents augmented input estimation(AIE)for multiple maneuvering target tracking.Multi-target tracking(MTT)is based on two main parts,data association and estimation.In data association(DA),the best observations are assigned to the considered tracks.In real conditions,the number of observations is more than targets and also locations of observations are often so scattered that the association between targets and observations cannot be done simply.In this case,for general MTT problems with unknown numbers of targets,we present a Markov chain Monte-Carlo DA(MCMCDA)algorithm that approximates the optimal Bayesian filter with low complexity in computations.After DA,estimation and tracking should be done.Since in general cases,many targets can have maneuvering motions,then AIE is proposed to cover both the non-maneuvering and maneuvering parts of motion and the maneuver detection procedure is eliminated.This model with an input estimation(IE)approach is a special augmentation in the state space model which considers both the state vector and the unknown input vector as a new augmented state vector.Some comparisons based on the Monte-Carlo simulations are also made to evaluate the performances of the proposed method and other older methods in MTT.

FGAs-Based Data Association Algorithm for Multi-sensor Multi-target Tracking

A novel data association algorithm is developed based on fuzzy geneticalgorithms (FGAs). The static part of data association uses one FGA to determine both the lists ofcomposite measurements and the solutions of m-best S-D assignment. In the dynamic part of dataassociation, the results of the m-best S-D assignment are then used in turn, with a Kalman filterstate estimator, in a multi-population FGA-based dynamic 2D assignment algorithm to estimate thestates of the moving targets over time. Such an assignment-based data association algorithm isdemonstrated on a simulated passive sensor track formation and maintenance problem. The simulationresults show its feasibility in multi-sensor multi-target tracking. Moreover, algorithm developmentand real-time problems are briefly discussed.

A novel maneuvering multi-target tracking algorithm based on multiple model particle filter in clutters

To solve the problem of strong nonlinear and motion model switching of maneuvering target tracking system in clutter environment, a novel maneuvering multi-target tracking algorithm based on multiple model particle filter is presented in this paper. The algorithm realizes dynamic combination of multiple model particle filter and joint probabilistic data association algorithm. The rapid expan- sion of computational complexity, caused by the simple combination of the interacting multiple model algorithm and particle filter is solved by introducing model information into the sampling process of particle state, and the effective validation and utilization of echo is accomplished by the joint proba- bilistic data association algorithm. The concrete steps of the algorithm are given, and the theory analysis and simulation results show the validity of the method.

New computing method of weighted coefficients for tracking a maneuvering target using PDAF in the presence of clutter

To avoid or reduce the influence of unpredictable motion mode on data association, a new computing method of weighted coefficients of measurements for PDAF is presented in which it is assumed that the current turn rate of a maneuvering target changes within a limited range and its turn may be in arbitrary direction during data association. Thus, the predicted center for computing the weighted coefficients is a curved surface in 3-D space, which differs from the predicted center for setting up a validation gate, namely, a point in 3-D space. The distance between a measurement and the curved surface is used to compute its weighted coefficient. To reduce the computational complexity of weighted coefficients, the formulas for computing the maneuvering direction angle and turn rate corresponding to a measurement are presented. Simulation results show the proposed method reduces the percentage of lost tracks and improves the state estimation accuracy in tracking a maneuvering target using PDAF in the presence of clutter.

Optimal set integer programming algorithm for multiple maneuvering targets tracking in clutter

The aim of this paper is to solve the problems of multitarget tracking in clutter. Firstly, the data association of measurement-to-target is formulated as an integer programming problem. Through using the linear programming （LP） based branchand-bound method and adjusting the constraint conditions, an optimal set integer programming （OSIP） algorithm is then proposed for tracking multiple non-maneuvering targets in clutter. For the case of maneuvering targets, this paper introduces the OSIP algorithm into the filtering step of the interacting multiple model （IMM） algorithm resulting in the IMM based on OSIP algorithm. Extensive Monte Carlo simulations show that the presented algorithms can obtain superior estimations even in the case of high density noises.

Track Association for Dynamic Target Tracking System Based on AP Algorithm

Track association of multi-target has been recognized as one of the key technologies in distributed multiple-sensor data fusion system,and its accuracy directly impacts on the performance of the whole tracking system.A multi-sensor data association is proposed based on aftinity propagation(AP)algorithm.The proposed method needs an initial similarity,a distance between any two points,as a parameter,therefore,the similarity matrix is calculated by track position,velocity and azimuth of track data.The approach can automatically obtain the optimal classification of uncertain target based on clustering validity index.Furthermore,the same kind of data are fused based on the variance of measured data and the fusion result can be taken as a new measured data of the target.Finally,the measured data are classified to a certain target based on the nearest neighbor ideas and its characteristics,then filtering and target tracking are conducted.The experimental results show that the proposed method can effectively achieve multi-sensor and multi-target track association.

VIDEO MULTI-TARGET TRACKING BASED ON PROBABILISTIC GRAPHICAL MODEL

In the technique of video multi-target tracking,the common particle filter can not deal well with uncertain relations among multiple targets.To solve this problem,many researchers use data association method to reduce the multi-target uncertainty.However,the traditional data association method is difficult to track accurately when the target is occluded.To remove the occlusion in the video,combined with the theory of data association,this paper adopts the probabilistic graphical model for multi-target modeling and analysis of the targets relationship in the particle filter framework.Ex-perimental results show that the proposed algorithm can solve the occlusion problem better compared with the traditional algorithm.

Maneuvering target state estimation based on separate model-ing of target trajectory shape and dynamic characteristics

The state estimation of a maneuvering target,of which the trajectory shape is independent on dynamic characteristics,is studied.The conventional motion models in Cartesian coordinates imply that the trajectory of a target is completely determined by its dynamic characteristics.However,this is not true in the applications of road-target,sea-route-target or flight route-target tracking,where target trajectory shape is uncoupled with target velocity properties.In this paper,a new estimation algorithm based on separate modeling of target trajectory shape and dynamic characteristics is proposed.The trajectory of a target over a sliding window is described by a linear function of the arc length.To determine the unknown target trajectory,an augmented system is derived by denoting the unknown coefficients of the function as states in mileage coordinates.At every estimation cycle except the first one,the interaction(mixing)stage of the proposed algorithm starts from the latest estimated base state and a recalculated parameter vector,which is determined by the least squares(LS).Numerical experiments are conducted to assess the performance of the proposed algorithm.Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm can achieve better performance than the conventional coupled model-based algorithms in the presence of target maneuvers.

Target tracking based on frequency spectrum amplitude

The amplitude of frequency spectrum can he integrated with prohabilisfic data association （PDA） to distinguish the target with clutter echoes, especially in low SNR underwater environment. A new target-tracking algorithm is presented which adopts the amplitude of frequency spectrum to improve target tracking in clutter. The prohabilisfic density distribution of frequency spectrum amplitude is analyzed. By simulation, the results show that the algorithm is superior to PDA. This approach enhances stability for the association probability and increases the performance of target tracking.

A new algorithm of bearings-only multi-target tracking of bistatic system

Much research mainly focuses on the batch processing method （e.g. maximum likelihood method） when bearings-only multiple targets tracking of bistatic sonar system is considered. In this paper, the idea of recursive processing method is presented and employed, and corresponding data association algorithms, i.e. a multi-objective ant-colony-based optimization algorithm and an easy fast assignment algorithm are developed to solve the measurements-to-measurements and measurements-to-tracks data association problems of bistatic sonar system, respectively. Monte-Carlo simulations are induced to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.

SEQUENTIAL ALGORITHM FOR MULTISENSOR PROBABILISTIC DATA ASSOCIATION

Based upon a multisensor sequential processing filter, the target states in a3D Cartesian system are projected into the measurement space of each sensor to extend thejoint probabilistic data association (JPDA) algorithm into the multisensor tracking systemsconsisting of heterogeneous sensors for the data association.

Maneuvering Target Tracking in Dense Clutter Based on Particle Filtering

An improved particle filtering（IPF） is presented to perform maneuvering target tracking in dense clutter.The proposed filter uses several efficient variance reduction methods to combat particle degeneracy,low mode prior probabilities and measure-ment-origin uncertainty.Within the framework of a hybrid state estimation,each particle samples a discrete mode from its poste-rior distribution and the continuous state variables are approximated by a multivariate Gaussian mixture that is updated by an unscented Kalman filtering（UKF）.The uncertainty of measurement origin is solved by Monte Carlo probabilistic data associa-tion method where the distribution of interest is approximated by particle filtering and UKF.Correct data association and precise behavior mode detection are successfully achieved by the proposed method in the environment with heavy clutter and very low mode prior probability.The performance of the proposed filter is examined and compared by Monte Carlo simulation over typical target scenario for various clutter densities.The simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed filter.

Hybrid-driven Gaussian process online learning for highly maneuvering multi-target tracking

The performance of existing maneuvering target tracking methods for highly maneuvering targets in cluttered environments is unsatisfactory.This paper proposes a hybrid-driven approach for tracking multiple highly maneuvering targets,leveraging the advantages of both data-driven and model-based algorithms.The time-varying constant velocity model is integrated into the Gaussian process(GP)of online learning to improve the performance of GP prediction.This integration is further combined with a generalized probabilistic data association algorithm to realize multi-target tracking.Through the simulations,it has been demonstrated that the hybrid-driven approach exhibits significant performance improvements in comparison with widely used algorithms such as the interactive multi-model method and the data-driven GP motion tracker.

Loopy belief propagation based data association for extended target tracking

The data association problem of multiple extended target tracking is very challenging because each target may generate multiple measurements.Recently,the belief propagation based multiple target tracking algorithms with high efficiency have been a research focus.Different from the belief propagation based Extended Target tracking based on Belief Propagation(ET-BP)algorithm proposed in our previous work,a new graphical model formulation of data association for multiple extended target tracking is proposed in this paper.The proposed formulation can be solved by the Loopy Belief Propagation(LBP)algorithm.Furthermore,the simplified measurement set in the ET-BP algorithm is modified to improve tracking accuracy.Finally,experiment results show that the proposed algorithm has better performance than the ET-BP and joint probabilistic data association based on the simplified measurement set algorithms in terms of accuracy and efficiency.Additionally,the convergence of the proposed algorithm is verified in the simulations.

A combination algorithm of Chaos optimization and genetic algorithm and its application in maneuvering multiple targets data association

The most important problem in targets tracking is data association which may be represented as a sort of constraint combinational optimization problem. Chaos optimization and adaptive genetic algorithm were used to deal with the problem of multi-targets data association separately. Based on the analysis of the limitation of chaos optimization and genetic algorithm, a new chaos genetic optimization combination algorithm was presented. This new algorithm first applied the "rough" search of chaos optimization to initialize the population of GA, then optimized the population by real-coded adaptive GA. In this way, GA can not only jump out of the "trap" of local optimal results easily but also increase the rate of convergence. And the new method can also avoid the complexity and time-consumed limitation of conventional way. The simulation results show that the combination algorithm can obtain higher correct association percent and the effect of association is obviously superior to chaos optimization or genetic algorithm separately. This method has better convergence property as well as time property than the conventional ones.

Data association based on target signal classification information

In most of the passive tracking systems, only the target kinematical information is used in the measurement-to-track association, which results in error tracking in a multitarget environment, where the targets are too close to each other. To enhance the tracking accuracy, the target signal classification information （TSCI） should be used to improve the data association. The TSCI is integrated in the data association process using the JPDA （joint probabilistic data association）. The use of the TSCI in the data association can improve discrimination by yielding a purer track and preserving continuity. To verify the validity of the application of TSCI, two simulation experiments are done on an air target-tracing problem, that is, one using the TSCI and the other not using the TSCI. The final comparison shows that the use of the TSCI can effectively improve tracking accuracy.

Posterior Cramer-Rao lower bounds for multitarget bearings-only tracking

Usually, only the Cramer-Rao lower bound （CRLB） of single target is taken into consideration in the state estimate of passive tracking systems. As for the case of multitarget, there are few works done due to its complexity. The recursion formula of the posterior Cramer-Rao lower bound （PCRLB） in multitarget bearings-only tracking with the three kinds of data association is presented. Meanwhile, computer simulation is carried out for data association. The final result shows that the accuracy probability of data association has an important impact on the PCRLB.