2013 16th International Conference on Information Fusion - (FUSION 2013) (FUSION)

It is a great pleasure to welcome you to the International Conference on Information Fusion and to Istanbul. The technical program this year is exceptional, and we hope that it stimulates many thought provoking conversations and information exchanges among all researchers and scientists. We also hope that you enjoy a few quiet moments to discover the unique charm of Istanbul—it is an ancient city with remarkable architectural marvels, and a welcoming modern city of great cultural diversity. A new event this year is a Welcome Luncheon for Students hosted on the first day of the conference by this year’s ISIF President, Dr. Wolfgang Koch. We hope this will become an annual event. This year we received 415 papers. Of these submissions, 305 (~73%) were accepted. All papers were reviewed by at least two reviewers and the great majority by at least three. We received 34 special session proposals (highest number of all previous Fusion conferences) and after evaluations 29 are included in the technical program. Along with regular sessions, we have eight parallel technical sessions. We are thankful to our sponsors whose help and support has been invaluable right from the beginning. Fusion 2013 sponsors are (in alphabetic order): Ankara University, Aselsan, Havelsan, Kale Havacilik, Koç Savunma, Meteksan Savunma, Metron, Inc., Office of Naval Research Global (ONRG), Sabanci University, Savunma Teknoloji Mühendislik (STM) and Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI). An exciting social program has been planned. A welcome reception on Wednesday July 10 at the Askeri Museum will begin with stirring music and transition to an open courtyard. The highlight event is the Gala Banquet on the evening of Thursday July 11 on an island in the Bosphorus. Entertainment will be traditional and contemporary music, and attendees will be able to enjoy ballroom dancing by moonlight over the Bosphorus. In addition, the conference organizers FlapTour have made arrangements for many land and water-borne tours to help you enjoy all that Istanbul has to offer.We thank the 221 members of Technical Program Committee (TPC) for their hard work and dedication, and for giving so generously of their time during the paper review process. We thank them also for their help in narrowing the search for the Best Paper and Best Student Papers. Members of the Awards Committee are ineligible for these awards and deserve special thanks for their selfless professional service to the Conference. The Organizing Committee also thanks the many volunteers and helpers, and the event organizer FlapTour, for making this conference a successful and memorable occasion for all participants, their families, and guests.