The Resolution Performance of Range Estimators

The theoretical basis and methods of implementation of a moment algorithm for the range separation estimation of two closely spaced point targets are presented. Moment estimation and noise filtering techniques introduced here result in a considerable improvement over Baum's algorithm. The error bounds are established and it is shown that the spectral moment estimator exhibits optimum (zero bias, minimum variance) performance when the target separation normalized to the standard deviation of the Gaussian pulse is 2?1.5. Monte Carlo simulation is performed to verify the approximations made and to demonstrate the feasibility of the working models.     

Automatic Light Control Electro-Optical CCDTV Systems

For electro-optical TV systems, a simplified method of analysis has been developed for an automatic light control (ALC) loop preliminary ary design and performance trade-offs. With iris and shutter control mechanization incorporated, not only does the input light range increase, but the video response overshoot and settling time are reduced as well. This study shows that the appealing notion of heavily damped response is not often true, particularly in the realtime ime airto-ground surveillance of targets with varying backgrounds. In addition, with exponential and geometric feedback functions introduced, the resultant ALC dynamics are independent of the input light level. To verify the assumptions made and to demonstrate the feasibility of a working model, a complete system simulation is performed.     

A real-time statistical polarimetric target model

A statistical approach to modeling and simulation of polarimetric electromagnetic fields backscattered from a reflecting body of a complex shape is described. A statistical scattering matrix is formulated and estimated for Rayleigh and Rician fluctuating (reciprocal and nonreciprocal) targets. The backscattered and received fields are modeled as a stochastic processes for arbitrary combination of transmit and receive polarization. A Monte Carlo simulation of a tank target is performed to verify the assumptions and approximations made and to demonstrate the feasibility of the real-time model. The results presented can be generalized to polarimetric clutter and to decoy modeling and simulation     

Measurement of Closely Spaced Point Targets

An algorithm for the measurement of closely spaced point targets is developed. The underlying concept is the method of moment estimation, in both the time and frequency domains. It is shown that Baum's algorithm is a special case of the results presented. The estimation techniques described herein do not assume that the separation of the point targets is greater than the waveform resolution. As a result, the distance between the point targets could be measured well below the Rayleigh limit. Since the results presented are based on the use of a single-pulse record, the outlined methodology is particularly suitable for real-time signal processing. Digital simulation is performed to demonstrate the feasibility of the working models.     

A Real-Time Statistical Radar Target Model

Radar glint arises from the spatial phase perturbations of the radar signal echoed from a complex target. The glint phenomenon is closely related to the target radar cross section (RCS). This relationship plays a significant part in modern missile seeker signal processing. We present a statistical glint/RCS target model for realtime simulation of target signatures. Particular emphasis is placed upon the modeling and simulation of the appropriate glint/RCS statistical dependency. The fundamental approximation of locating uniformly distributed scatterers around the instantaneous radar centroid employed in the Delano-Gubonin [1, 2, 3] model is removed. A key result which follows from this representation is that the mean glint estimator is unbiased. This enables the estimation of model parameters from the first-order glint and RCS statistics which can easily be computed from measured data. A method of estimating model parameters is presented, and the results are applied to data from a typical combat aircraft target. It is shown that the Delano-Gubonin results are a special case of the results presented here. The 14.6 percent probability of glint falling beyond the target extent as derived by Delano [1] is not true in general. It is further shown that glint and RCS are uncorrelated but are statistically dependent. A Monte-Carlo simulation is performed to verify the assumptions made and to demonstrate the feasibility of the working models.