The Effect of Spectral Shape on Clutter Standard Deviation

Many radar systems now employ wideband waveforms and noncoherent averaging techniques to reduce the scintillation of the backscatter from ground clutter. The purpose of this paper is to quantify the effects of the wideband spectral shape on the clutter standard deviation after noncoherent averaging of the received signal. Relationships are developed which quantify the clutter standard deviation for any spectral shape and any ratio of transmitted band-width to processed bandwidth.     

Design considerations for a real-time random-noise tracking radar

Random-noise radar has been applied successfully to range measurement, velocity estimation and terrain/target imaging. For applications involving stationary targets, long integration times and process averaging are easily tolerated. In situations where the target or radar platform moves at high speed, the impact of this relative motion on system design should be considered. This work addresses the statistical performance of a generic random-noise radar receiver and examines the inter-relationships between design parameters and performance tradeoffs. Complementing this examination, a random-noise monopulse system is also investigated as a possible architecture for real-time angle estimation. Simulations and numerical illustrations provide the basis of processor design and performance prediction.     

Correspondence - Optimum Radar Signal for Detection in Clutter

It is shown that in order to maximize the detectability of a radar target in clutter whose Doppler is unknown and is uniformly distributed over the Doppler bandwidth a simple CW or narrowband signal is optimal. The optimality criterion is the average deflection coefficient, with the averaging being over target Doppler frequency. Most remarkably the result does not depend on the clutter spectrum but holds for any distribution of clutter energy with frequency.     

Radar modelling to improve CFAR performance in the littoral

Littoral operation of radars poses severe signal processing difficulties due to the highly stressing, inhomogeneous clutter. This report describes an initial investigation into the feasibility of utilising site specific radar modelling to provide a localized estimate of the clutter statistics which can then be used to predict the required threshold to maintain a given false alarm rate. The technique has been applied to littoral clutter recordings obtained from the experimental S-band phase array radar, MESAR2. Results are presented for the technique in comparison with a conventional, non-adaptive, cell averaging CFAR. The paper concludes that significant performance enhancements are possible through the use of this new technique.     

Improved CFAR performance in the littoral

Littoral operation of radars poses severe signal processing difficulties due to the highly stressing, inhomogeneous clutter. This report describes an initial investigation into the feasibility of utilising site-specific radar modelling to provide a localised estimate of the clutter statistics which can then be used to predict the required threshold to maintain a given false alarm rate. The technique has been applied to littoral clutter recordings obtained from the experimental S-band phased array radar, MESAR2. Results are presented for the technique in comparison with a conventional, non-adaptive, cell averaging CFAR. This paper concludes that significant performance enhancements are possible through the use of this new technique.     

海面低飞情况下机载航管二次雷达覆盖研究

二次雷达较之一次雷达有许多优点，使其在军用和民用领域得到广泛应用。但当装有航管二次雷达的飞机在海面低飞时，会出现常见的多径效应现象。文章详细分析了飞机机体和海面对航管二次雷达方向图的影响，并利用HFSS软件对飞机在海面低飞时航管二次雷达方向图进行仿真。结果表明，海面影响航管二次雷达的方向图并导致根据其分叉变形，根据平面对天线方向图的影响及其计算公式，对不同飞行高度的方向图进行了计算，得出了在海面低飞时的最佳飞行高度。     

Adaptive Radar Detection with Asymptotically Regulated False-Alarm Rate

An adaptive detection procedure is described by which the detection threshold is so adjusted as to provide an asymptotic false-alarm probability PFA that is approximately invariant with changes in radar clutter return amplitude probability density functions (pdf's) in a broad class. The class includes Rayleigh, chi, Weibull, and lognormal pdf's. The receiver noise is also taken into account. The clutter-plus-noise pdf is approximated by a truncated generalized Laguerre series, the coefficients of which are estimated from the radar returns using "cell averaging" techniques. This estimation is assumed to be perfect. The results obtained indicate that the "bias" error, defined as the normalized difference between the design PFA and the asymptotic PFA corresponding to the computed threshold, lies within a fraction of an order of magnitude for 10-3?PFA ? 10-6. For PFA ?10-6 the bias error is more than an order of magnitude. These results are for the case when a single independent radar return is processed at a time. The bias error decreases as the number of postdetection integrations of independent returns increases.     

STAP中采样支持问题研究

在机载雷达空时二维自适应处理 (STAP)中 ,足够数量的IID采样数据才可以构成杂波相关矩阵的有效估计 ,而实际雷达工作环境中的采样数总是有限的 针对这一问题 ,提出了将前后平均 ,对角加载 ,与降维处理相结合来降低采样数目要求 ,解决采样支持问题的方案 ,并进行了理论分析与仿真。显然 ,通过采用适当的降维处理与前后平均及对角加载相结合 ,所需采样数最多可降低到仅用 3～ 5个     

Monopulse Estimation of the Centroid of an Ensemble of Radar Scatterers

The use of data obtained by a monopulse radar to estimate the location of the radar cross-section centroid of an ensemble of scatterers is discussed. Both dish and phased-array antenna radars are treated. Expressions for the bias and variance of the centroid estimates are presented, including the effects of the radar receiver and beam pattern characteristics, receiver noise, and the video waveform sampling granularity, as well as the target properties. The monopulse tracking approach discussed here is contrasted with a raster scan approach presented previously.     

机载气象雷达回波信号仿真系统

设计了一个机载气象雷达回波信号仿真系统,可用于高保真雷达回波信号的生成与演示。基于高保真风场建模数据,依照真实机载气象雷达的扫描方式初始化仿真参数,对风场数据进行机载气象雷达回波仿真,得到了可靠的仿真数据,并对可靠性进行验证。该系统采用C#与Matlab联合编程的方法进行实现,可实现的功能包括各种气象目标在不同模式下的雷达回波仿真,雷达回波数据正确性的验证及展示。得到的信号可为机载气象雷达信号处理和数据处理算法的开发提供数据支持。     

Effectiveness of MMW aerosols in defeating a battlefieldsurveillance radar: field demonstration preliminary results

The US Army ERDEC is developing advanced aerosol systems to combat threat surveillance, fire control, and seeker systems operating in the visible, infrared, and millimeter wave portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. One such system is the M56 multispectral smoke generator, which presently operates in the visible and infrared portions of the spectrum; a millimeter wave (MMW) Module is in development to extend the M56 spectral range. This paper documents preliminary results of a field demonstration test of the M56 MMW Module. An MMW instrumentation radar was modified to simulate the scan pattern and radar parameters of a tactical battlefield surveillance radar system. A test grid was populated with both stationary and moving tactical targets, and the radar scanned the grid to simulate a surveillance radar in operation. Once a realistic tactical engagement scenario was developed, MMW aerosols were deployed to demonstrate the impact such aerosols could have on radar detection and classification performance     

Dynamic imaging and RCS measurements of aircraft

Results on radar cross section (RCS) measurements and inverse synthetic aperture radar images of a Mooney 231 aircraft using a ground-to-air measurement system (GTAMS) and a KC-135 airplane using an airborne radar are presented. The Mooney 231 flew in a controlled path in both clockwise and counterclockwise orbits, and successively with the gear down, flaps in the take-off position and with the speed brakes up. The data indicates that RCS pattern measurements from both ground-based and airborne radar of flying aircraft are useful and that the inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) images obtained are valuable for signature diagnostics     

Experimental phased array radar ELRA with extended flexibility

An update of a phased array radar project with the experimental system ELRA (electronic steerable radar) is given with respect to the extended and improved possibilities for performing measurements and evaluations for different types of radar operation. The variability of waveforms for solid-state transmitters is described. Flexible control of multifunction operation with various search and localization tasks is achieved with a network of microcomputers. Different means of signal processing are used for target detection and estimation. The active receiving array is divided into subarrays, and offers digital beamforming for pattern shaping and adaptive jammer suppression. Experimental results are presented     

Low-cost simulator for basic radar signals

Most modern radar simulators are costly and need cumbersome operations while used. Besides, they have many features not suitable for preliminary level. Basic training of radio monitoring personnel can be carried out with a simple and inexpensive system capable of producing both staggered and frequency hopping pulse radar signals with radiation pattern modulation. For operator convenience the system is programmed with basic programming language     

Theory of Adaptive Radar

This paper reviews the principles of adaptive radar in which both the spatial (antenna pattern) and temporal (Doppler filter) responses of the system are controlled adaptively. An adaptive system senses the angular-Doppler distribution of the external noise field and adjusts a set of radar parameters for maximum signal-to-interference ratio and optimum detection performance. A gradient technique for control of the radar array/filter weights is described and shown to generate weights which asymptotically approach optimum values. Simulation results illustrate the convergence rate of adaptive systems and the performance improvement which can be achieved.     

Localization of step changes in multitemporal SAR images

Deals with multitemporal sequences of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images with regions possibly affected by step reflectivity patterns of change. Specifically, it addresses the problems of detecting a temporal step pattern with small reflectivity change against a constant pattern and of estimating the transition instant for the step. The statistically optimized signal processing techniques proposed in this work are most appropriate for the new generation of SAR systems with high revisit time that are currently under development. We propose two different techniques, based on the maximum likelihood (ML) approach, that make different use of prior knowledge on the radar cross section (RCS) levels of the searched pattern. They process the whole sequence to achieve optimal discrimination capability between regions affected and not affected by a step change and optimal estimation accuracy for the step transition instant. The first technique (known step pattern (KSP)-detector) assumes complete knowledge of the RCS levels of the searched pattern of change, while the second one (USP-detector) is based on the assumption of totally unknown step pattern.     

Resolution and synthetic aperture characterization of sparse radar arrays

The concept of radar satellite constellations, or clusters, for synthetic aperture radar (SAR), moving target indicator (MTI), and other radar modes has been proposed and is currently under research. These constellations form an array that is sparsely populated and irregularly spaced; therefore, traditional matched filtering is inadequate for dealing with the constellation's radiation pattern. To aid in the design, analysis, and signal processing of radar satellite constellations and sparse arrays in general, the characterization of the resolution and ambiguity functions of such systems is investigated. We project the radar's received phase history versus five sensor parameters: time, frequency, and three-dimensional position, into a phase history in terms of two eigensensors that can be interpreted as the dimensions of a two-dimensional synthetic aperture. Then, the synthetic aperture expression is used to derive resolution and the ambiguity function. Simulations are presented to verify the theory.     

Reentry Vehicle Radar Altimeter Antenna Patterns

An analytical technique is proposed for investigating the effect of antenna pattern shape on reentry vehicle radar altimeter performance. Initially, a method is presented that computes the average performance under all roll positions. This method is then extended to allow performance to be determined at each roll position. Some numerical results are included that show roll effects for a typical antenna pattern.     

Doppler Return from a Random Rough Surface

A theoretical analysis of the Doppler return from a random rough surface ace shows that the Doppler spectrum is composed of three distinct components. The methods of analysis for determining the average power return for the static case and an application of the ergodic hypothesis for a stationary surface show that the assumption of a single Doppler component is based on a smooth surface. In addition to this coherent component, the incoherent components of the random rough surface produce two additional frequency components. The amplitudes of these latter components depend on the variance of the surfaceand the antenna beamwidth averaging. Radar measurements were made, utilizing a scatterometer, in order to measure the surface characteristics. s. Simultaneous measurements from a Doppler radar system were analysed to identify the additional frequency components.     

Earth Footprints of Satellite Antennas

This paper develops the expressions for computing the footprint on Earth (i.e., power density contours) of a satellite antenna. The expression for determining the antenna pattern coordinate as a function of the Earth coordinates is derived. The antenna pattern operator which converts the pattern function into the available power density is obtained. In this case it is assumed that the Earth-based antenna is directed towards the satellite. The radar operator is also derived; this operator yields the power density intercepted by the Earth.