Combining Old and New Radar Processing Techniques to Increase Radar Probability of Detection

One of the age old questions when radar was developed is “How can the radar see targets farther away?” Thankfully, physics informs us that probability of detection (Pd) limitations are simple; more energy on target is the only way to increase Pd. Radar systems engineers have several controls to increase energy on target; such as, increased power, increased integration time, increased antenna gain, reduced noise power, etc. Increased signal-to-noise (SNR) is the only way to increase Pd. Additionally, there are trade-offs with every decision made. Increased integration time will lead directly to longer scan times, high power will require more cooling/power generation, increased antenna gain leads to more beams to cover search sector leading to higher scan times. This topic is to increase Pd while keeping scan time requirements the same, how is this possible with newer technology?Older radar technology such as monopulse and passive electronically scanned array (PESA) radar have inherent limitations in how antenna patterns and channels are constructed. These limitations meant that the only way to increase Pd were previously discussed parameters; however, the U.S. Army has procured over the last decade Digital Array Radar (DAR) systems. The DAR systems are using traditional beamforming and signal processing techniques to meet system requirements, yet DAR technology enables software defined architectures opposed to hardware limited. Older radars could not be changed easily without major hardware modifications and long procurement times. Aviation & Missile Solutions (AMS) will propose using old and new technologies that can be combined intelligently to increase Pd performance while mitigating risks introduced by these technologies. AMS will propose using Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) radar techniques along with Track Before Detect (TBD) to allow current and new radar systems to increase integration time while the search volume is kept. Additionally, improved resource management and DAR subarray processing techniques can be utilized to track multiple targets simultaneously to reduce time spent in track. AMS will compare a generic phased array radar with traditional methods against new methods to prove performance gains. Each of these technologies bring risks that will be mitigated throughout all phases, including waveform cross correlation inducing range sidelobes and increased processing resource needs. AMS has extensive experience supporting several U.S. Army programs of record (PoRs) including Sentinel A3, Sentinel A4, LTAMDS, TPQ-53, and Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS). Additionally, AMS supports several technical research and development (R&D) radar programs to improve existing PoR. AMS has several radar subject matter experts that have performed detailed system analysis for many programs, and transitioned algorithms to programs of record listed above.