DTK, Taut Wire System—An Alarm Barrier with Experience

The Taut Wire Fence Alarm System concept was developed and introduced more than fifteen years ago in Israel. A sudden expansion of the nation's border lines, the difficulty to monitor intrusions along those elongated lines, and the need for timely as well as accurate armed response to an intrusion attempt dictated the need for an alarming barrier. Traditionally, protection of perimeters was accomplished by the installation of a fence or other type obstacles (man made or natural) and surveillance by manned patrols, fixed observation posts, and/or electronic devices. Defense planners recognized therefore the need for an alarming barrier. A concentrated effort by scientists at the Technician Technological Institute (Israel's top engineering school) and Israel Aircraft Industries engineers solved the problem by developing the first Taut Wire Fence Alarm System in a configuration of an alarm barrier. The system was specified to have an extremely low false alarm rate (FAR/NAR), a high probability of detection, the capability to follow various terrains, operability in a wide range of environmental conditions, a capability to delay an intruder, ease of installation by unskilled labor, and low maintenance requirements. All above listed characteristics will probably be attributed by most of us to the unique sensor design, which is the only patented item in the system. Strangely enough this is not entirely so although, of course, the unique sensor design also makes its contribution important to the good performance of the system. The excellent performance of the system, however, is primarily attributed to the design characteristics of the taut wires, and their deployment on the perimeter. The sensor was designed to accommodate these unique performance characteristics of the taut wires, and together they form the system worldwide known as the Israeli fence. We will try here to explain the various constraints and considerations given during the design stages of the Taut Wire Alarm System so as to bring the present magnitude of users to a better understanding of the system's operation.