GB2251712A

GB2251712A - Apparatus for monitoring a terrain

Info

Publication number: GB2251712A
Application number: GB9200309A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Frank-Lutz Dittmann
Original assignee: Diehl GmbH and Co
Current assignee: Diehl Verwaltungs Stiftung
Priority date: 1991-01-14
Filing date: 1992-01-08
Publication date: 1992-07-15
Anticipated expiration: 2012-01-08
Also published as: GB9200309D0; FR2671639B1; FR2671639A1; DE4100827A1; DE4100827C2; GB2251712B

Abstract

Apparatus 10 for monitoring a terrain and for activating a reconnaissance system upon ascertainment of a vehicle in the monitored terrain has at least one transmission/reception module 12 with at least one interface 14 for the connection of a sensor stage 16. The/each sensor stage 16 is provided with at least one sensor module 18 connected by a lead 26. The/each sensor stage 16 is terminated, at its end portion 22 remote from the transmission/reception module 12, by a coupling module 20. The/each transmission/reception module 12 is intended for the exchange of data with at least one sensor station or at least one relay module or a central control. <IMAGE>

Description

1 L k --5 - 1 L APPARATUS FOR MONITORING A TERRAIN This invention relates

to an arrangement or apparatus for monitoring a terrain.

Such apparatus may be usable for the protection of objects, in underground or aboveground mining for carrying out blasting operations, or in connection with weapon systems.

A weapon system consisting of fully automatic antitank mines having sensor systems for tank recognition, for alignment and triggering of the mines, as well as for location of and intercommunication with other mines is known from DE 36 25 334 C2; the mines form a mine f ield and are provided with electronics for sensor system evaluation as well as with additional pre-programmable pre-electronics with stores for processsing exchanged items of information, by means of which the topology of the mine f ield is surveyed. Each individual mine of the weapon system is provided with intercommunication equibment or apparatus for the exchange of items of information from the sensor systems and electronics with the other mines. The intercommunication equipment consists, in the case of each mine of this known weapon system, of a laser transmitter and a laser receiver with scanner, as well as a 3600- retromodulator with IFF receiver. The sensor system for the target recognition, weapon alignment and triggering of the mine contains a laser range-finder and the laser transmitter and the laser receiver are part of this laser range-finder of the sensor system. Such intelligent mines are, as a result of their construction with sensor systems and electronic systems, comparatively expensive.

An aim of at least some embodiments of the present invention is to provide monitoring apparatus with which, 2 in a cost-favourable manner, wide-area terrain monitoring is possible, said apparatus forming a flexible system which is configurable at will by the user, the incorporation of optional or a desired redundancy being 5 possible.

According to the present invention there Is provided apparatus for monitoring terrain and for activating a reconnaissance system upon ascertainment of movement of a vehicle in the monitored terrain, characterised by at least one transmission/reception module having at least one interface for the connection of a sensor stage which has at least one sensor module connected by a lead and in which the/each sensor stage is terminated at an end portion remote from the transmission/reception module by a coupling module, and the/each transmission/reception module Is intended for the exchange of data with a central control.

Preferred further developments of the apparatus in accordance with the present invention are related In the dep ent claims of this specification.

With the apparatus in accordance with at least some embodiments of the invention advantages may emerge of a simple and comparatively price-favourable apparatus construction, a cost-favourable wide-area terrain monito ring and also the possibility of realising any arbitrary desired redundancy (so that the apparatus represents a system which is configurable at will as desired by a user or applier).

As has already been mentioned at the beginning hereof, the apparatus in accordance with the invention may be, for example, suitable for the protection of objects or for carrying out operationally safe. and reliable blasting operations in mining, and the apparatus may find a preferred application in military technology.

Apparatus in accordance with the present invention will now be described, by way of example only and in connection with a military-technology use, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:- FIGURE 1 shows a first embodiment of the apparatus for terrain monitoring and for activation of a reconnaissance system, and FIGURE 2 shows a representation of a second embodiment of the apparatus which, in comparison with the comparatively simple design shown in FIGURE 1, is cross- linked, i.e. network-shaped in design.

FIGURE 1 shows apparatus comprising an item of equipment for monitoring a terrain and for activating a reconnaissance system upon ascertainment (detection) of a movement of a vehicle in the terrain monitored by the apparatus 10. The equipment 10 has a transmission/ reception module 12 with standardised interfaces 14. A sensor stage or leg (Sensorstrecke) 16 is connected to one of the interfaces 14. The sensor stage 16 has a sensor module 18 (for example of an acoustic sensor module and/or a seismic sensor module and/or a light-wave conductor module). A coupling module 20 serves for termination of the sensor stage 16 at its end portion 22 remote from the transmission/reception module 12. The coupling module 20 is designed with interfaces 24.

The sensor stage 16 has a lead 26 with attachment or connection members 28 and the lead 26 preferably possesses both an alarm lead line and a monitoring lead line.

FIGURE 1 illustrates a so-called single or simple system, in the case of which one sensor stage 16 is 4 arranged in a line or linear fashion. In contrast, apparatus comprising a system with cross-linked or interlinked items of equipment 10 for terrain monitoring and activation of a reconnaissance system is illustrated in FIGURE 2. In FIGURE 2, two transmission/reception modules 12 are represented, and two sensor stages 16 emanate from the one transmission/reception module 12, whilst from the other transmission/reception module 12, shown to the right in FIGURE 2, three sensor stages 16 emanate. Each of the sensor stages 16 has a number of sensor modules 18 and each sensor stage 16 is terminated, at its end portion 22 remote from the associated transmission/reception module 12, by a coupling module 20. Through the coupling modules 20 terrain monitoring units 30, 32 are established, the limits of which are indicated by thin broken lines 34, 36.

The mode of operation of an item of equipment 10 for monitoring a terrain and for activating a reconnaissance system upon ascertainment of a movement of a vehicle in the monitored terrain is described hereinunder, in which respect, in using the equipment in the military-technology field, so-called forefield or approach reconnaissance components as well as a so-called early waking/warning system, are of importance. Forefield reconnaissance components are sensor components which allow rough or approximate information regarding enemy attack movement to be given in the forefield of the future combat area. The problem posed comprises the detection of attacking movements of vehicles that are to be combatted as well as the determination of the position, the speed, the direction, the type and the number of the enemy vehicles that are to be combatted. The items of information emerging in this respect make possible or assist, for example, the firing commands for barrel or rocket artillery (which artillery can be equipped with scattering or target-seeking munition) as well as the firing commands of mine fields (which mine fields may have been laid, for example, by rockets). With the aid of the said items of information, also guidance of partially autonomous combat drones may, for example, be possible, which is realisable by specifying the direction and the distance with regard to the target area.

In an advantageous manner, the sensor components themselves do not possess any active part, so that - in contrast to conventional mine fields - an early laying of the components in times of strife is possible, without endangering or hampering one's own troops. As a result of the early delivery of the sensor components it may be, in an advantageous manner, possible to lay sensors which are of less complex construction and, in particular, in a vehIcle-assisted manner.

A considerable advantage is also seen in the fact that the technical expenditure for the communication and for the position determination of individual sensor components may be considerably reduced, which has a correspondingly advantageous effect on the system cost.

On account of the relatively trifling locatability of the sensor stage, i.e. leads, laid out in the terrain, it is possible to carry out communication between the individual sensor elements or sensor modules, at least where terrain absolutely has to be retained, frequently by way of these leads. Radio connections or communications are, in contrast, meaningful only where it is expected either that the battle field position will temporally change rapidly or respectively where radio connections are used as a redundant communications possibility, if the corresponding lead connections are damaged or interrupted.

In the case of the above-mentioned early waking/ warning system, the system can consist of a cost- 6 favourable sensor system loss, 1. e. appropr ate sensor modules and a cost-favourable transmission/recept on module of low transmitting power. This system is delivered in a position-dependent manner and monitors corresponding or appropriate terrain sectors of variable size. If, for example, tank or armoured units move In the monitored sectors, then the position thereof is reported by the transmission/reception module to a central control or control station spatially remote therefrom. This report can be effected, for example, by way of a relay module. By reason of the position information supplied to the central control the corresponding terrain sectors can be blocked for example by mine fields. At the same time also direct combat of the reported tank or armoured units by air-mobile systems is possible. In conjunction with the air- mobile systems, a coupling of the early waking/ warning system with a sensor station or respectively with the said central control is meaningful. The sensor station is intended, in particular, for carrying out, after activation by the early waking/warning system, a more detailed enemy reconnaissance for seemingly optimum use of the air-mobile systems.

The individual sensor modules can be linked by leads of the same length and thus equidistant connection points.

The initial and end positions of a sensor stage can in case of need be surveyed or measured by a suitable item of equipment and be communicated to the associated transmission/reception module. In the transmission/ reception module, upon initialisation of the system, the position of the individual sensor modules is calculated and stored away together with the address of the corresponding sensor module. The positions of the individual sensor modules, coupling modules and transmission/reception modules are reported to the central control and can automatically be entered onto a digital 7 terrain map.

By suitable combination of the individual modules of the early waking/warning system in the terrain monitoring, widths of several kilometres can be realised.

The/each transmission/reception module preferably has four interfaces, so that it is possible to combine with the/each transmission/reception module a number of sensor modules and four coupling modules, in which respect the totality of all these modules forms a terrain/monitoring unit. This means that four monitoring units can be linked by way of one coupling module.

The coupling module knows the position data of the individual sensors of the connection sensor stages. If a defect occurs in a transmission/reception module, or this module is destroyed, then the associated sensor modules can be associated by way of the corresponding coupling modules with other terrain/monitoring units. Upon destruction of a lead one proceeds correspondingly. This means, however, that through the connecting together by way of the coupling modules, an optional or desired redundancy can be produced, which leads to resistance of the entire system to interference.

Each module has standardised interfaces and supplies back, addressed by way of its address, the module status. The interrogation of the sensor modules is effected, for example, cyclically from the transmission/reception module which is associated with the corresponding sensor modules. If a sensor module responds to a target, i.e. thus a target has been detected, then the sensor module position is reported to the central control.

In the sensor modules, preferably, an adaptive threshold detection with subsequent rough or generalised 8 classification is carried out. If the classifier decides on a target vehicle, then the sensor module status is changed.

The sensor modules of the early waking/warning system are purely passive modules and thus in an advantageous manner are not locatable (detectable). The radio traffic between the/each transmission/reception module and the sensor station, the relay station or the central control has only very low data quotas or levels, so that an electronic detection of this radio traffic is possible only with difficulty.

The operational cycle of the overall system is as follows:

delivery of the early waking/warning system into the terrain, - activation or initialisation of the early waking/ warning system, early waking/warning system finds itself in the waiting position, target detection, rough (approximate) classification, entering the report regarding the status change and entering the report of the target detection position, automatic blending of the detected targets into the digital terrain map of the central control.

The communication between the early waking/warning system and the central control, the sensor station or the 9 relay station, preferably, takes place by way of an interference-free high-frequency communications stage. The transmitting power of the transmission/reception modules is just adequate in order to address the sensor stations or the said relay stations, from where the data can then be passed on by way of a more powerful communications system back to the central control. Transmitted by the transmission/reception modules to the sensor relay modules are:- a regular report that the system Is in order after initialisation, the position of each individual sensor module of the early waking/warning system, the position modules, of the target-recognIsIng sensor possible interruption points, i.e. the address and the position of the sensor module from which contact no longer exists, faults, i.e. the address and the position of the sensor modules which no longer react to an interrogation, changes in the number of the connected sensor modules, i.e. the corresponding coupling module status and the addresses of the newly added sensor modules.

The transmission/reception modules can receive by way of the sensor station or the relay module an activation or deactivation command.

It is, of course, also possible to widen the scope of the early waking/warning system, for example, by more expensive or complex sensor modules than the abovementioned acoustic sensor modules, seismic sensor modules or light-wave conductor modules. Such complex sensor modules may be e. g. IR, LEM, mmW sensors or the like. Similarly, active modules with suitable directional effect are usable, which are in particular usable for the protection of the early waking/warning system.

It is to be understood that the scope of the present invention is not to be unduly limited by the particular choice of terminology and that a specific term may be replaced or supplemented by any equivalent or generic term where sensible. Further it is to be understood that individual features, method or functions related to the

Claims

monitoring apparatus might be individually patentably inventive and might

be claimed herein. In particular, any disclosure in this specification of a range for a variable or parameter shall be taken to include a disclosure of any selectable or derivable sub-range within that range and shall be taken to include a disclosure or any value for the variable or parameter lying within or at an end of the range. The singular may include the plural and vice versa where sensible. The present invention may be that defined in the characterising clause of Claim 1. It is to be understood that any word or phrase derived from the German language of the priority document may be replaced or supplemented by a different English" meaning where appropriate.

CLAIMS 1. Apparatus for monitoring terrain and for activating a reconnaissance system upon ascertainment of movement of a vehicle in the monitored terrain, characterised by at least one transmission/reception module having at least one interface for the connection of a sensor stage which has at least one sensor module connected by a lead, and in which the/each sensor stage is terminated at an end portion remote from the transmission/reception module by a coupling module, and the/each transmission reception module is intended for the exchange of data with a central control.
2. Apparatus according to Claim 1 in which the/each transmission/reception module is designed with four interfaces for the connection of a respective sensor stage and the/each coupling module is intended for the connection of four sensor stages.
3. Apparatus according to Claim 1 or 2, in which the/each sensor stage has as a sensor module at least one acoustic sensor module and/or at least one seismic sensor module and/or at least one light-wave conductor module.
4. Apparatus according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, in which each module is designed with a self-sufficient energy supply.
5. Apparatus according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, in which several sensor stages are arranged in a line.
6. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims in which several sensor stages are arranged in 35 several lines.
7.

Apparatus according to any one of the preceding 12 claims in which several sensor stages are arranged in a network-shaped manner in several lines.
8. Apparatus for monitoring terrain substantially as herein described with reference to FIGURE 1 or FIGURE 2 of the accompanying drawings.