This paper documents the design of a Laser/RF Personnel Identification System developed for the US Army Communications and Electronics Command (CECOM) for soldier identification. The system has dual use applications, including law enforcement officer protection, and includes a laser interrogation unit with a programmable activation code. The interrogation unit is very directive for low probability of intercept (LPI), which is of interest during covert operations. A responder unit, worn by the law enforcement personnel or soldier, transmits an LPI radio frequency (RF) response only after receiving the proper interrogation code. The basic subsystems for the identification system are a laser interrogation unit, an RF responder unit, and a programming/synchronization unit. In this paper, the operating principles for the subsystems are reviewed and design issues are discussed. In addition to the design performed for CECOM, a breadboard system was developed to validate the concept. Hardware implementation is reviewed and field testing of the breadboard is presented.

Date Published: 30 May 1995
PDF: 9 pages
Proc. SPIE 2497, Public Safety/Law Enforcement Technology, (30 May 1995); doi: 10.1117/12.210502

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 2497:
Public Safety/Law Enforcement Technology
Raymond J. Mataloni Sr.; Raymond D. Mintz, Editor(s)