Methods and apparatus for detecting concealed weapons

• US 6,720,905 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2002
• Issued: 04/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arthur C. Levitan, Lester Kosowsky
• Original Assignee: Personnel Protection Technologies, LLC
• Inventors: Kosowsky, Lester, Levitan, Arthur C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sotomayor, John B.
• Application Number:
  US10/229,761
• Publication Number:
  US 20040041724A1
• Time in Patent Office: 594 Days
• Field of Search: 342/27, 342/52, 342/53, 342/54, 342/55, 342/90, 342/176, 342/179, 342/180, 342/191, 342/192, 342/196, 342/22, 342/42, 342/44, 342/45
• US Class Current: 342/22
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 13/00 Means of attack or defence not otherwise provided for details of radar or sonar systems G01S7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/08 Systems for measuring distance only indirect measurement G01S13/46
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/74 Systems using reradiation of radio waves, e.g. secondary radar systems; Analogous systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/872 Combinations of primary radar and secondary radar
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 31/00 Predictive alarm systems characterised by extrapolation or other computation using updated historic data

Abstract

Methods and Apparatus for early detection and identification of a threat, and alerting against detected threats, such as individuals wearing or carrying explosive materials and/or weapons, e.g., suicide bombers and other terrorists, at a great enough distance to limit loss of life and destruction of property are disclosed. The methods comprise transmitting a signal in the direction of a potential threat, measuring the detected reflected signal, and comparing the signal level with a threshold indicative of a threat. A monitor is employed to display the threat and attributes of the detected signals. The invention further illuminates the suspicious individual(s) with a Laser illuminator/designator and provides information about the distance to the suspicious individual(s).

Claims

1. A system for detecting a threat, the system comprising:

a transmitter that transmits a signal in each of a plurality of different aiming directions to pan a scene including a potential threat;

a detector associated with the transmitter which detects a reflected portion of the signal;

a processor associated with the detector; and

a display associated with the processor which displays a visual depiction of said scene that includes the potential threat,

wherein the processor causes the display to indicate the segment of the visual depiction which is aligned with the aiming direction of the transmitter when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an alarm associated with the processor which is activated when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a camera associated with the display for capturing the visual depiction.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the camera detects energy outside the visible spectrum.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor causes the transmitter to pan the displayed scene.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor causes the transmitter to pan a designated area, and causes the visual depiction to include the designated area.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the detected signal is depicted on the display indicative of the aiming direction of the transmitter.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein the threshold is depicted on the display.

9. The system of claim 5, wherein the direction of each detected signal that exceeds the threshold is depicted on the display.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the display additionally depicts the segment in a picture-in-picture window.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein when a second detected signal exceeds the threshold, a second picture-in-picture window is additionally depicted.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said scene is an outdoor scene.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said scene includes multiple buildings.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein said scene includes multiple individuals.

15. A method for detecting a threat, the method comprising:

i) transmitting a signal in each of a plurality of different aiming directions to pan a scene including a potential threat;

ii) detecting a reflected portion of the signal;

iii) displaying a visual depiction of said scene that includes the potential threat; and

iv) indicating on the depiction the aiming direction of the transmitter when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the depiction is generated from energy outside the visible spectrum.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein said scene is an outdoor scene.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein said scene includes multiple buildings.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said scene includes multiple individuals.

20. A system for detecting a threat, the system comprising:

a transmitter that transmits a signal in each of a plurality of different directions to pan a scene including a potential threat;

a detector associated with the transmitter which detects a portion of the signal that is reflected;

a processor associated with the detector; and

an illuminator associated with the processor;

wherein the processor causes the illuminator to illuminate a portion of said scene located in the aiming direction of the transmitter when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

21. The system of claim 20, further comprising:

an alarm associated with the processor which is activated when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein the illuminator is activated for each detected signal that exceeds the threshold.

23. The system of claim 20,

wherein said transmitter is a radar transmitter;

and

wherein the illuminator aiming direction is slaved to the radar transmitter aiming direction until the detected signal exceeds the threshold, at which time the illuminator aiming direction is fixed.

24. The system of claim 20, wherein the illuminator is a laser.

25. The system of claim 20, wherein the illuminator transmits a beam which is not visible to the naked eye.

26. A method for detecting a threat, the method comprising:

i) transmitting a signal in each of a plurality of different aiming directions to pan a scene including a potential threat;

ii) detecting a portion of the signal that is reflected; and

iii) illuminating a portion of said scene in the aiming direction of the transmitter when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the illuminator transmits a beam that is not visible to the naked eye.

28. A system for detecting a threat, the system comprising:

a transmitter that transmits a signal in each of a plurality of different aiming directions to pan a physical environment including a potential threat;

a detector associated with the transmitter which detects a portion of the signal that is reflected;

a processor associated with the detector; and

an indicator associated with the processor,

wherein the processor causes the indicator to indicate the aiming direction of the transmitter in a real-time view of the physical environment including the potential threat when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

29. The system of claim 28 wherein the transmitter is a radar transmitter.

30. The system of claim 28 wherein the potential threats are ground-based.

31. The system of claim 29, further comprising an interrogator associated with the processor, wherein the interrogator transmits an interrogation signal in the aiming direction of the transmitter and determines whether a pre-arranged response transmission is received.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the pre-arranged response transmission is a friend transponder transmission.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the response is a pre-arranged signature modulation transmission.

34. The system of claim 31, wherein the indicator includes an indication of whether the response is received.

35. The system of claim 29, further comprising a distance measuring device associated with the processor, and wherein the distance measuring device measures the distance to an object in the aiming direction of the transmitter.

36. The system of claim 35, wherein the indicator includes an indication of the distance to the target.

37. The system of claim 29, wherein the radar transmitter includes a lens antenna with an associated integral random and scanning system.

38. A method for detecting a threat, the method comprising:

i) transmitting a signal in each of a plurality of different directions to pan a physical environment including a potential threat;

ii) detecting a portion of the signal that is reflected; and

iii) indicating the aiming direction of the transmitter in a real-time view of the physical environment including the potential threat when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

39. The method of claim 38, further comprising transmitting an interrogation signal, and determining whether a pre-arranged response transmission is received.

40. The method of claim 38, further comprising measuring the distance to the potential threat when the detected signal exceeds a threshold.

41. A system for detecting a threat, the system comprising:

a transmitter that transmits signals in each of a plurality of different directions to pan an area including several targets,

a detector associated with the transmitter which detects reflected portions of the transmitted signals, and

a processor associated with the detector, wherein the processor calculates a threshold as a function of an average generated from said detected signals reflected by the panned area, and identifies an aiming direction of the transmitter when a detected signal exceeds the threshold.

42. A method for detecting a threat, the method comprising:

i) operating a transmitter to transmit signals in each of a plurality of different directions to pan an area including several targets;

ii) operating a detector to detect reflected signals during an analysis period; and

iii) determining a threat threshold for the analysis period as a function of the intensity of the reflected signals from the panned area detected during the analysis period.

43. The method of claim 42, further comprising:

repeating steps (i), (ii) and (iii) for each of a plurality of different analysis periods.

44. The method of claim 42, wherein step (iii) of determining a threat threshold includes:

calculating the average intensity of the detected signals; and

calculating the threat threshold based on the average.

45. The method of claim 43, further comprising:

identifying the direction of a potential threat as a function of an aiming direction of the transmitter at a time during which the detected signal exceeds the threshold.

46. The method of claim 45, further comprising;

illuminating a potential threat in the identified direction.

47. The method of claim 45, further comprising:

displaying a real-time depiction in the identified direction.