Abstract: This paper proposes a new method to solve the target detecting and tracking problem in middle trajectory of ballistic missile. The state formula and measure formula of the target in the middle trajectory are established by applying the Kalman filter to filter and forecast the target detecting data based on serial infrared images. It is difficult to determine the self-covariance matrix of the system noise and measure noise in the Kalman filter. To solve this problem, the parameters setting method of Kalman filter are studied and the filter parameters setting rules are gained by test the different noise parameters condition using the real experiment testing results. This rule can be applied to detect and track the targets in middle trajectory of ballistic missile and provide reference for the target detecting and tracking technology.

Key words: Ballistic missile, Middle trajectory, Infrared image, Target tracking, Kalman filter