Data Fusion Analysis for Range Test Validation System

Abstract : A range test validation system (RTVS) was developed under the sponsorship of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency as a means for validating point and standoff chemical sensors with releases of chemical agent simulants over a test grid. Data were collected from various sensor systems during test chemical releases at Dugway Proving Ground in 2007 and 2008 and a data fusion analysis conducted. Environmental factors and dissemination techniques significantly affected cloud formation and persistence across the test grid. However, the combination of a grid of point sensors at ground level and a standoff FTIR system monitoring above ground areas proved effective in detecting the presence of simulants over the test grid. A Dempster-Shafer approach for data fusion was selected as the most effective strategy for RTVS data fusion due to the environmental, dissemination, and data quality challenges.