Integrated Navigation and Networking of Virtual Array for Distributed Antenna Agile Beamforming

Mobile radios on highly dynamic platforms, when networked into a virtual antenna array, can perform distributed array agile beamforming (DAAB) to serve the purposes of communications at longer range, higher data rate, and higher quality of service, targeting (an imaging radar for intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance - ISR) at longer range and higher resolution, and more powerful electronic attack (jamming/spoofing), more efficient electronic protection (interference cancellation), and more sensitive electronic intelligence. To enable such a fault-tolerant agile beamforming, the topology of the virtual antenna array needs to be mapped (estimated) in real time for calculation of beamforming weights in the presence of geometrical and physical uncertainties with and without GPS signals. To solve this problem, we propose to develop an integrated navigation and networking of virtual array (INNOVA) technology that tightly integrates the position, navigation and timing (PNT) functionality with networking functionality. In Phase I, we will perform the algorithm design for the proposed INNOVA technology for DAAB and will evaluate its functionality and performance using simulation of realistic scenarios. In Phase II, the algorithms will be implemented into a prototype system for demonstration and evaluation.