AbstractThis paper will review the

during wartime mines implanted by our

development and applications of Ground

enemy countries are to be detected and

Penetrating Radar (GPR) technology to

diffused properly in order to save the

address

reliably

lives of our soldiers. So we should say

detecting landmines. The paper will

that detecting landmines is important for

present both the civil and the military

every country today.

the

programmes,

challenges

which

of

involve

the

technology of GPR. Comparison among

II.

LANDMINE

many landmine detection technologies

DETECTION

will be discussed. The military programs

TECHNIQUES

are largely based on the requirement to

maintain the pace of military operations

Mine detection techniques can generally

and have different requirements in terms

be divided in to two basic groups: those

of speed and detection performance to

that detect explosives and those that

civilian

demining

detect other than explosives. As all mines

programs. Moreover, it will discuss on

contain explosives, relaying on detection

the available GPR technologies and

of mines via its explosives seems to be

current

more realistic and more appropriate.

or

humanitarian

national

landmine

detection

However, most of the currently using

programmes worldwide.
KeywordsDetection
Humanitarian
Detection

Technologies,

demining,

Landmine

Techniques,

Ground

detection methods are based on the non

explosive detection methods.
Current demining techniques are heavily
reliant on metal detectors and prodders.

Penetrating Radar.

Mechanical devices such as ploughs,

rollers, and flails are usually followed by

I.

INTRODUCTION

manual demining to obtain the desired

level of clearance. These machines are

Now a day in places like Afghanistan

expensive

and Iraq we know that land mines are

Dogs, rats and pigs are good when they

causing serious threat to the lives of

work but can only operate for limited

civilians. The mines that are implanted

periods

during

remain

acclimatized. In order to assist deminers,

undetected for several decades and may

a range of advanced sensor technologies

the

wartime

may

suddenly be activated after that. Also

for

of

developing

time

and

countries.

must

be

are being investigated, including GPR,

create images that reveal the thermal

Infrared IR imaging.

contrast between the soil immediately

surrounding a buried mine and the top

A. Prodders
The most common techniques for mine
detection are manual, using either
prodders or metal detectors. The most
basic approach to mine detection is
prodding. Using prodders, rigid sticks
of metal about 25 cm long; the deminer
scans the soil at a shallow angle of
typically 30. Each time he detects an
unusual object, he assesses the contour,
which indicates whether the object

Another currently used technology for

mine detection

is the metal detector

(MD). The basic MD used for mine

detection measures the disturbance of
an emitted electromagnetic field caused
by the presence of metallic objects in
Magnetometers

also

are

employed but almost exclusively for

ferromagnetic

objects

(e.g.

UXO).

MD's identify all metallic objects,

however, they cannot differentiate a
mine or UXO from other metallic
debris.

volume effect. When the contrast

results from the disturbed soil layer
above and around the mine (because of
burial), it is a surface effect. The
surface effect is detectable for weeks
after burial and enhances the mines
signature.

detected using trained animals such as

dogs, pigs, birds and rats. common
method

Mines retain or release heat at a rate in

different

from

their

surroundings. Infrared (IR) cameras

of

detecting

explosives

is

through trained, dogs that, they can

reliably detect 10 to 13 g of explosives.
How dogs detect explosives remains a
mystery. It is not known whether dogs
use senses other than the olfactory
senses. Also unclear is the substance that
dogs detect, vapors or trace particles, and
the concentration of the substance they
detect.
E.

C. Infrared (IR) Imaging

which

(alteration of the heat flow), it is a

Landmines and explosives can also be

B. Metal Detectors

soil.

from the presence of the buried mine

D. Biological Detectors

is a mine.

the

layer of soil. When this contrast results

Passive Millimeter
(MMW) Detection

Wave

In the millimeter wave band, soil has a

high emissivity and low reflectivity,
while metal has a low emissivity and
strong

reflectivity.

Soil

radiation

depends, therefore, almost entirely on its

metallic landmines as far as there exists a

temperature, and metal reflection relies

difference in electromagnetic contrast

mostly on the low-level radiation from

between the ground and the object.

the sky. It is possible to detect mines by

measuring this contrast with a millimeter
wave

(MMW)

radiometer.

Passive

MMW radiometers are relatively simple,

Sensor
Technology
Prodder

Maturity Cost &

Complexity
Available Low

Metal detector

Near

Low

less complicated than GPR. They can

Infrared IR
Far
High
Imaging
Biological(Dogs) Available Medium

also generate clear two-dimensional

Passive MMW

Near

High

images of surface or shallowly buried

GPR

Near

Medium

metallic objects, yielding best results in

dry environments and for metal mines.

III. COMPARISON OF
DETECTORS

IV. WHAT IS A RADAR

BULLET?
The radar bullet is a special type of
bullet. The main use of radar bullet is

Modern landmines are mostly non-

to find landmines without setting

metallic or contain small metal. The

foot on the ground. This consists of

effectiveness of some of the detectors

firing a special bullet in to the ground

becomes lower and the clearance process

from a helicopter, which could pin

becomes

point buried land mines.

very

slow

and

costly.

Comparison among detectors is given in

terms of price of the devices, ability to
detect all types of landmines, reach
ability, modernity, durability, ability to
use for the military and humanitarian
demining and ability to use in all
environments. Accordingly, GPR has the
ability to detect metallic and non-

The bullet units a radar pulse as it

grounds to a halt. This pulse strikes
the mine and its image gets available
on the computer in the helicopter,
offering a safe and efficient way of
finding land mines.