Dynamic Scene Generation, Multimodal Sensor Design, and Target Tracking Demonstration for Hyperspectral/Polarimetric Performance-Driven Sensing

Simulation of moving vehicle tracking has been demonstrated using hyperspectral and polarimetric imagery (HSI/PI). Synthetic HSI/PI image cubes of an urban scene containing moving vehicle content were generated using the Rochester Institute of Technology’s Digital Imaging and Remote Sensing Image Generation (DIRSIG) Megascene #1 model. Video streams of sensor-reaching radiance frames collected from a virtual orbiting aerial platform’s imaging sensor were used to test adaptive sensor designs in a target tracking application. A hybrid division-of-focal-plane imaging sensor boasting an array of 2×2 superpixels containing both micromirrors and micropolarizers was designed for co-registered HSI/PI aerial remote sensing. Pixel-sized aluminum wire-grid linear polarizers were designed and simulated to measure transmittance, extinction ratio, and diattenuation responses in the presence of an electric field. Wire-grid spacings of 500 [nm] and 80 [nm] were designed for lithographic deposition and etching processes. Both micromirror-relayed panchromatic imagery and micropolarizer-collected PI were orthorectified and then processed by Numerica Corporation’s feature-aided target tracker to perform multimodal adaptive performance-driven sensing of moving vehicle targets. Hyperspectral responses of selected target pixels were measured using micromirror-commanded slits to bolster track performance. Unified end-to-end track performance case studies were completed using both panchromatic and degree of linear polarization sensor modes.