Date of Graduation

2015

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

MS

College

Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources

Department

Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering

Committee Chair

Jeremy Dawson

Committee Member

Lawrence Hornak

Committee Member

Thirimachos Bourlai

Committee Member

Brian Lemoff

Abstract

The capability to detect, observe, and positively identify people at a distance is important to numerous security and defense applications. Traditional solutions for human detection and observation include long-range visible imagers for daytime and thermal infrared imagers for night-time use. Positive identification, through computer face recognition, requires facial imagery that can be repeatably matched to a database of visible spectrum facial mug shots. Nighttime identification at large distances is not possible with visible imagers due to lack of light, or with thermal infrared imagers due to poor correlation with visible facial imagery. An active-SWIR imaging system was developed that is eye-safe, invisible, and capable of producing close-up facial imagery at distances of several hundred meters and full body images to thousands of meters, even in total darkness. The SWIR images correlate well to the visible spectrum allowing for biometric facial recognition and long range target detection either day or night. The process of researching existing technologies, establishing requirements of a suitable system, design process, and hardware implementation will be discussed in great detail. Once the system is assembled, it will be used to acquire data not yet produced by any existing technology. The results will be examined and a discussion made into future work.

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