Doppler-Clutter-Mitigation Processing

To address the need for enhanced Doppler processing to improve the performance of pulsed continuous-wave (CW) waveform processing in the presence of stationary clutter, own-ship induced clutter, and active interference, Applied Research in Acoustics LLC (ARiA) will develop and demonstrate the feasibility of signal- and information-processing algorithms for mitigation of Doppler clutter. ARiA will develop and evaluate (1) a subarray/subspace robust adaptive beamformer (ABF) mitigation of motion-induced Doppler spreading, (2) a novel model-based space-time processor for mitigation of motion-induced Doppler spreading based on a more complete physical model of the physical and signal-processing sources of Doppler clutter, and (3) a robust compressive-sensing beamformer (CSBF) for active-interference mitigation. The Phase I effort will (1) develop Doppler-clutter-mitigation (DCM) processing that will improve the performance of Doppler processing in the presence of stationary clutter, ownship-induced clutter, and active interference; (2) demonstrate that DCM processing can feasibly meet Navy needs by improving the probability of detection and correct classification and reducing false-alert rate (FAR) and operator work load; and (3) establish that DCM processing can be developed into a useful product for the Navy that is compatible with existing hardware (e.g., the AN/SQS-53C) and software architectures (e.g., the AN/SQQ-89A(V)15, BFFS, and MFAFS).