Helicopter classification with a high PRF radar

In this paper, we propose a helicopter classification scheme using a high pulse repetition frequency (PRF) radar. In some critical cases that different helicopters have almost the same L/N-quotient, the traditional schemes fail to classify them. Therefore, a time-frequency mask is proposed based on the assumption that the returned signal belongs to some class, and different classes lead to different masks. From the agreement of the masks and the time-frequency representation of the returned signal, the helicopter can be classified properly for the critical cases. This scheme can be regarded as a complement of L/N-quotient scheme. The simulation results valuate the proposed helicopter classification algorithm.