The Advanced Simulation System for MMW Imaging Radar Seeker onboard Air-to-air Missile

Millimeter wave (MMW) radar is booming in application to target seeker onboard the air-to-air missile (AAM), which has the capability to obtain all-weather radar images for auto target recognition (ATR) and intelligent active homing guidance. An advanced simulation system for MMW imaging radar seekers of AAM was introduced in this paper. The system is composed of parameter initialization module, signal simulation module and image formation module. It is capable of investigating and demonstrating the system performance of MMW radar seeker. The modeling of radar signal and the geometric model for missile-to-target were presented in particular. The echo signal for major radar operation modes could be generated by the system, including high-resolution range profile (HRRP) mode, Doppler beam sharpening (DBS) mode as well as the high-resolution burst-SAR mode. The image formation algorithms for each radar operation mode were integrated in the system to generate highly accurate radar imagery. Computer simulation results for an actual aircraft were presented, which validate the correctness of the simulation system. It is an advanced tool for the investigation of imaging algorithms and the optimization of the system parameter selection, as well as the demonstration of the radar scenario