Probability of detection and clutter rate estimation in target tracking systems: generalised maximum likelihood approach

The efficacy of any moving target tracking technique depends on the understanding the background, or clutter, and the parameters that describe the detection properties of the objects. The nature of these quantities is statistical and not only are they unknown as a rule in practice, but they are also variable over both time and space. The study proposes a method for estimating the time-varying probability of detection of each tracked object individually, and the density of false alarms in the immediate vicinity of the current position of an object. The method is based on the generalised maximum likelihood approach, assuming tracking of a solitary target. The applicability and constraints of the proposed solution are illustrated by simulations.