To enhance maritime domain awareness, Sentient, Australian specialist in computer vision technology, has launched Kestrel Maritime, a computer vision solution for automated EO/IR surveillance in the maritime environment. This expands the Sentient's Kestrel product range beyond the existing Land MTI solution currently deployed in Afghanistan.
Kestrel Maritime automatically detects and tracks objects on the surface of the ocean below an aerial vehicle. It assists ISR operators by processing and exploiting EO/IR imagery in real-time, locating objects too small for fatigued human eyes to detect. The solution complements radar by detecting objects in littoral environments or objects with a low electronic signature.
Kestrel Maritime is capable of detecting small objects through scattered clouds and in high sea states, despite whitecaps and sun glare. It has been successfully tested in a maritime surveillance role on the P-3 Orion and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) such as the Insitu ScanEagle.
Kestrel Maritime has the potential to significantly enhance maritime patrol operations. In one possible concept of operations, the system processes real-time imagery on board the UAV, and thus enables multiple Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) to operate over the horizon (OTH).
