A monopulse imaging concept for reliable radar level measurements

Radar devices for level measurement within vessels are commonly used in the process industry. Throughout the years suitable high gain microwave antennas were developed for many different applications providing mechanical robustness, insensitivity to heat and pressure while preserving the ability of highly accurate level estimation. However the systems have to cope with strong parasitic reflections originating from pipes, stirrers and tank walls. Hence, the reliability of the estimated level is not sufficient for certain applications. This contribution presents an imaging approach based on the monopulse principle enabling the use of an algorithm suppressing the influence of parasitic reflections to increase the measurement reliability.