Grouped People Counting Using mm-Wave FMCW MIMO Radar

The problem of radar-based counting of multiple individuals moving as a single group is addressed using an mm-wave multiple-input–multiple-output (MIMO) frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar. This problem is challenging because the different individuals are closer to each other than the range/azimuth resolution, and their bulk Doppler signatures are difficult to distinguish, as they tend to move together. A processing pipeline is proposed, based on the combination of a multiple target tracking algorithm with a classifier to track each group and count the number of people within. Specific salient features are defined for the classifier and extracted from range–azimuth maps and cadence velocity diagrams (CVDs). The proposed pipeline has been experimentally validated in several outdoor scenarios with grouped people. The results show that the combination of tracking algorithm and classifier in the proposed pipeline outperforms alternative methods from the literature as well as a commercial toolbox for people counting.