Signal Image Processing (SIP). The top priorities for SIP are:

Improving techniques for conditioning, transmission, storage, and processing
of sensed signals

Determining and refining methods that support the extraction of information
from sensed signals to support

The “Kill Chain”

Homeland Security

Information Superiority
SIP will concentrate on:

New algorithm designs for conditioning, processing and information
extraction that exploit both signal processing and phenomena

Incorporating life cycle software tools to manage exploration, design,
implementation, and deployment using a common framework

Improved processing speed in the design, simulation, verification and
implementation phases (including real-time requirements)

Improved data transmission and storage, because sensors produce increasingly
overwhelming amounts of data

Increased use of COTS tools

Training in new software tools and methodologies (Core)SIP project tasks for
FY03 include:

SIP-03-001: High Productivity Computing for Signal and Image Processing
(PI: Stan Ahalt, The Ohio State University [OSU])

SIP-03-002: Signal Formation, Compression, Access, and Analysis (PI: John
Nehrbass, OSU)
The strategic roadmap for SIP is as follows:
Functional Area: SIP
Strategic Focus
FY02
Areas
1. New algorithm design
FY03
SIP003
SIP005
2. Improved data
transmission & storage
SIP017
3. Improved processing
throughput & latency
SIP003
SIP005
4. Incorporate life cycle
software tools
SIP007
5. Use of COTS
SIP007
SIP006
6. Rapid
design/deployment
SIP006
FY04
FY05
FY06
FY07
SIP-FCA (SIP03-002)
SIP-IS
SIP-IE
SIP-FCA (SIP03-002)
SIP-ATR
SIP-IE
SIP-ATR
SIP-IS
SIP-ATR
SIP-FCA (SIP03-002)
SIP-HPdC (SIP03-001)
SIP-IS
SIP-IE
SIP-FCA (SIP03-002)
SIP-HPdC (SIP03-001)
FY04-07 project areas for SIP include:

SIP-ATR: SIP/HPC algorithms for ATR — A long-standing and essential task
in many tactical and strategic situations, including both battlefield and
surveillance missions, is detection (Is there something interesting there?),
classification (Is it a missile?) and recognition (Is it a SCUD missile?) of
targets in signals from a variety of sensors such as radar, sonar, IR, and
hyperspectral data. To make Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) a reality,
the DoD must develop and test a range of new and more powerful signal and
image processing algorithms that can recognize targets of interest in very low
signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) signals. Further, in many cases, it is vital to detect
targets even when they are camouflaged or hidden (such as tanks under trees).
The development and deployment of more advanced ATR algorithms will
inevitably require the computational power and memory capacity of high
performance computers (HPC), and some of these algorithms will ultimately
be ported to embedded HPC for field application and real-time response.
Further, these algorithms must exploit sensor physics and incorporate adaptive
signal processing methods.SIP-IE: Information Exploitation — One of the
most pressing needs in the SIP community is addressing the challenge of
exploiting all the information that is present in the myriad of signals harvested
from deployed DoD sensors. These signal sources include data such as
acoustic, synthetic aperture radar (SAR), hyperspectral, and visual imagery
collected by the DoD. Extracting and transforming the information that is
extant in these rich data sources is essential if the collected data are to be
exploited by our soldiers, officers, security personnel, and senior civilian
decision makers. Applications to be addressed include long- and short-range
surveillance, individual identification, biometrics, voice modification, and
sensor webs. These applications will require that we develop efficient new
techniques in distributed computing, data mining and understanding, cognitive
processing, and embedded computing.

SIP-FCA: Signal and Image data formation, compression, and access — A
common set of fundamental processing steps constitutes the foundation of
virtually every SIP application. Data are 1) collected and formatted for use, 2)
compressed for efficient and/or robust handling, and then 3) organized for
access further downstream in the processing chain. Recent developments in
each of these foundational processing steps offer the DoD an opportunity to
reap significant advantages in applications such as 3D SAR, collection and
annotation of video surveillance and Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) ATR
data, and general sensor-fusion tasks. SIP-HPdC: High Productivity
Computing — The warfighter’s need to confirm the identity of any target
before attack often requires real-time matching to occur on onboard computer
architectures which are often space, power, and cycle-limited. However, the
new generation of petabyte sized databases — which are required for
identification in many complex search spaces — are more efficiently created
via traditional HPC. This “gap” in the two required processing architectures
necessitates innovations in structuring, accessing, and processing data, and the
software that is used in these applications. Fortunately, recent advances in
software techniques (XML and object-oriented and graphical languages) hold
promise for 1) optimized architecture-specific code, 2) maximum code reuse,
and 3) efficient incorporation of technology advancements. Further, life-cycle
software has the potential to greatly increase productivity, shorten
development time, and reduce overall costs. Advancing these goals through
development of, for example, parallel MATLAB and Simulink tools while
adapting technologies for reuse (Vector/Signal/Image Processing Library —
VSIPL) offer immediate gains for the DoD. Integrated with these tools, Java
and Java Server Pages (JSP) can be employed to portably manipulate data sets
across departments, agencies, and centers. Finally, portable graphical
programming languages, such as the Visual Toolkit (VTK), can be used to
provide custom displays of filtered and compressed information to highresolution 3D stereographic devices, PC terminals, secure web ports, or PDAs
located on the battlefield.SIP-IS: Infrastructure Software for SIP — An
emerging trend in the SIP community is the appearance of middleware and
middleware standards. High performance computing (HPC) and High
Performance Embedded Computing (HPEC) DoD applications will
significantly benefit from highly efficient and portable computational
middleware for signal and image processing. Open middleware standards such
as VSIPL, CORBA and SOAP, as well as the emergence of powerful COTS
hardware, offer a unique opportunity for the rapid development of easily
maintained HPEC codes that combine portability and flexibility across a
number of applications. Thus the timely transfer of these technologies to the
DoD community is a critical task, and one that is in its infancy. This
middleware infrastructure will support the rapid development and deployment
of portable, efficient SIP-critical applications of immediate benefit to the
warfighter.
The SIP UAP includes:

Andy Sullivan (ARL/Adelphi, Govt CTA Lead)

Keith Bromley (SPAWAR)

Rich Linderman (Rome)

Mike Bryant (Wright-Patterson Air Force Base [WPAFB])

Gary Stolovy (ARL/Adelphi)