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Sensor Evaluation Program (SEP)
Surveillance System Performance Monitoring
SEP Performance Monitor optimizes sensor surveillance systems by increasing sensor accuracy and performance. Accuracy has been proven to be increased by 10 - 25%.
The SEP Performance Monitoring system provides vital aid to Air Traffic Management and Air Traffic Equipment Maintenance Managers as it ensure proper and safe operation of the radar network. SEP captures any issues or concerns which occur with any radar(s) in the network - round the clock - so that restorative measures can be made timely.
SEP continuously records radar data which is then used to analyze and monitor radar sensor performance. Conclusive reports are made with an exeptionally high reliability due to years of operation and continuous upgrade and development.
Benefits
1) Specification Verification of New Sensors
After commissioning of new radars, the SEP Performance Monitor may be used to compare the radar's actual performance with the radar's given technical specifications.
2) Performance Accuracy Analysis
The SEP Performance Monitor includes an analysis of the radars ability to detect targets (PD), and to assess the radar accuracy with respect to the target's position in geography and in time.
3) Performance Degeneration Analysis
The SEP Performance Monitor is designed to analyze relevant parameters within radar performance, and not least to recognize incremental performance degeneration over time. This provides valuable information for preempting serious breakdowns. Also, continued monitoring facilitates the fault-finding process when sporadic errors in the sensor surveillance system occur.
In same context it is possible to follow the degeneration of radar performance between regular maintenance sessions, and thereby to examine, quantify, and document the effects - and hopefully benefits - of such maintenance.
Furthermore, comparisons between yesterdays performance of a radar with the past performance of same radar can be made, i.e. comparisons between the average performance during last month, last year, or even with the performance of any other radar, - as long as SEP has recorded data.
4) Archive of Radar Data
The SEP Performance Monitor stores all radar information in an archive in which historical data can be protected for all time.
Furthermore, the same archive can be used off-line for detailed analysis of past events, such as near miss, boarder violation, and accidents.
5) Archive of Air Traffic Behavior
The archive can be used to analyze the evolution in air traffic density and flight patterns.
When unique or simply untraditional patterns of behavior in the air space are discovered, the data in the archive allows for an evaluation of whether a newly observed behavior is in fact new, or whether it has occurred before. For instance, if a specific behavior occurs every summer, in thunder, or in heavy rain, such behavior can be quantified and analyzed for subsequent modification and repair the radar.
6) Archive of Program Enhancements
When the SEP Performance Monitor is enhanced by new functions, the historic data can be implemented as input with a view to testing such new software enhancements, thereby providing a basis for evaluating and correcting new capabilities and functionalities.
In more detail...
To get the full benefit of the applications of the SEP Performance Monitor, information from both primary and secondary radars (IFF) must be available. Furthermore, the different radars being analyzed must to some extent have overlapping coverage.
The same SEP data base is implemented in two different monitoring systems with two different outputs applicable for two different purposes:
o The Off-line Performance Monitor, in which recorded data by nature is available in large quantities, is therefore primarily meant to aim at analysis reliability rather than at analysis speed, which actually is not a main issue in the off-line monitor.
o The Online Performance Monitor (OPM), in which data by nature is available in limited quantities, aims primarily at speed - or urgency - without compromising the level of reliability which can be achieved within the constraint set by the amount of data.
Read more about OPM.
Download SEP Information sheet.