Collecting Missile 6DOF Using an Optical Tracking System

U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command

Mr. Michael Tousek

US Army Redstone Test Center

12 May 2016

james.m.tousek.civ@mail.mil

Collecting Missile 6DOF Using

an Optical Tracking System

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MMTS optical tracking system delivered to Redstone Test Center in 2012:

Background

Mobile Multi-Sensor TSPI System

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Background

MMTS was spec’d for but quickly showed potential.TSPI 6DOF

TSPI = XYZ target position

6DOF = XYZ target position + pitch, yaw, and roll

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Tracking

Mount 2

LauncherImpact Missile

Tracking

Mount 1

Triangulating the Target Position

Angle to

Target

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Feature Identification for 6DOF

Individual target features (tip and tail) being tracked

during post-processing

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Creating a Direction Vector

Pitch and yaw are components of the

3D vector between the tip and tail points

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6DOF Post-Processing Session

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MMTS Tracking Video

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Tracking

Mount 2

LauncherImpact

50

0 m

1000 m

Rocket

Tracking

Mount 1

3 km

Layout for 2.75” Rocket

rocket height at apogee = 30 m AGL

rocket max velocity = Mach 2

Pitch

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Pitch

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Noisy towards the ends

Central “sweet spot”

Yaw

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2.75” Rocket Video

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• Data has greater noise and error at ends because:

– Triangulation geometry is worse

– Image quality is worse

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• Yaw has more noise and error than pitch because:

– yaw motion occurs in-plane with optical pointing lines

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Tracking

Mount 2

LauncherImpact

Tracking

Mount 1

Nearly Ideal Intersection Angle

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Tracking

Mount 2

LauncherImpact

Tracking

Mount 1

Poor Intersection Angle

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Tracking

Mount 2

LauncherImpact

Tracking

Mount 1

Notional 6DOF “Sweet Spot”

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Questions

Comments

Recommendations

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MMTS Tracking Pedestal

Phantom Visible

High-speed

LWIR/MWIR

Zoomable Standard-Def Visible

Low-pass Filtered Pitch

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MMTS Control Van With Pedestal

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Tracking

Mount 2

LauncherImpact

10

00

m

1500 m

Missile

Tracking

Mount 1

1 – 10 km

Typical Layout