People tracking and data fusion for UWB radar applications

Localization of people that do not carry active tags is needed in security as well as in rescue applications. Ultra-wideband (UWB) technology is promising due to its high ranging resolution capability, robustness against multipath interference and obstacle penetration among others. In this chapter, an approach for detection, localization and tracking of people using either a single UWB sensor or a distributed network of UWB sensor nodes is described. The background behind UWB sensing, a description of UWB sensor nodes and a concept for a distributed sensor network is presented. The basic principle of person detection based on the changes the person induces on the channel impulse response is explained. Two approaches for localization based on range-only observations that can be applied in singlesensor or multiple-sensor scenarios or in the presence of a single person or multiple people are presented. The concept and each step of the approach are illustrated using data obtained in a measurement campaign at TU Ilmenau from an office environment.