Real-time visual tracking using geometric active contours and particle filters

Image processing and filtering are essential elements for airborne visual tracking systems. This paper presents a visual tracking methodology based on particle filtering in the framework of the Chan-Vese active contour model. We describe a fast implementation of the algorithm which greatly improves the computational time of the segmentation process. We have tested particle filtering using this fast active contour model, and the filtering algorithm has shown the ability to robustly track an aerial target under varied conditions. The computational speed of the algorithm has allowed us to employ it for formation flight among several unmanned aircraft. This paper describes results from recent flight tests. We have also demonstrated the utility of the filtering algorithm for multiple target tracking in the presence of occlusions.