Order statistic filters as postdetection processors

The performance of radar detection systems can be improved through postdetection processing. The performance of the binary integrator from the viewpoint of order statistics is examined, and the binary integrator as an order statistic (OS) filter is described. A general analysis for OS filters in detection systems is developed and it is used to show the OS filter is a consistent and biased estimator of the quantities of the received signal distributions. The features of the OS filter and n -pulse integrator that are critical to detection performance are compared to determine the proper application of each processor. It is shown that the OS filter can be used to emphasize selective regions of the input distributions where good statistical separability between the class of input signals exist. A computer simulation is performed to illustrate the performance of binary and n-pulse integration for the detection of a white chi distributed target in white Weibull clutter and a white Rayleigh distributed target in white Rayleigh clutter