1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and a system for detecting target objects using an imaging electro-optical image sensor.
2. Background Description
To detect target objects inside a monitoring area, combinations of different sensors are particularly advantageous, in that a first sensor device with at least one first sensor, for example, a radar system and/or a passive or active laser sensor, detects a target object and determines a first target parameter therefor, and further information is obtained by a second sensor device with at least one second sensor, wherein the second sensor is formed by a different sensor type than the first sensor. In particular, electro-optical imaging image sensors are becoming increasingly important as second sensors of this type due to the possibility, by evaluating an image obtained thereby, of classifying more narrowly target objects that cannot be distinguished with other sensors. Such electro-optical image sensors are designed in particular for the visible or the infrared spectral range.
Electro-optical image sensors of this type represent an important aid for identifying and classifying targets especially in the military field and in the case of sovereign functions such as, e.g., police monitoring and border security.
In systems with electro-optical sensors, methods are known in which these sensors in all-round search operation scan a predetermined search region in order to detect targets therein and to display/represent them to the operator in order then to automatically continue searching or, upon a command from an operator, to wait to continue the search. Electro-optical sensors have also hitherto been manually controlled by an operator, who aligns the electro-optical sensor manually to targets of interest based on the current situation display based on other available sensors and situation information from tactical data links.
It is also known to carry out an optimization of drones equipped with electro-optical sensors or the like unmanned aircraft such that an optimum flight path is calculated for the drone based on the tactical ground situation and the optimum flight path is selected from several possible flight paths in order to update the ground situation with the sensor data.
It is also known that with a stationary or in a manned flying platform (e.g., police helicopter) in which an electro-optical sensor is fixedly aligned or manually aligned by an operator, the current image information is fed to an automatic image evaluation and the targets detected therewith are classified and this information is displayed in the image information so that the operator is alerted to potential objects of interest or the detection ability of the operator is supported.
The informational content of an image recorded by an image sensor of this type is a priori high and the automatic image evaluation of an individual image is computer-intensive and time-consuming, so that with an all-round search operation by an optical image sensor typically only slow-changing scenarios can be usefully detected and optically evaluated.
It is therefore known that a situation display based on different sensors, e.g., active and/or passive radar and laser sensors, is displayed to a viewer and the viewer aligns an electro-optical image sensor to target objects discernible in this situation display, which is also referred to as assigning the image sensor to a target object. However, the evaluation of the displayed situation display and the selection of the target objects is highly subjective and, particularly in threat scenarios, cannot cope with a possibly quickly changing situation and a suitable reaction.