Research radar for unmanned navigation

A small MMW radar has been designed whose processing requirements are sufficiently low to enable real-time terrain imaging on board a small autonomous UAV platform. A high operating frequency (94 GHz), and subsequently narrow azimuth beamwidth (0.2deg), combine to minimize instantaneous Doppler from targets off bore-sight, providing 2-D LIDAR-like range-measurements without the need for scanning in elevation and operable in light rain and fog. Simulations employing Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) data from the Aerosonde UAV and a reflectivity image inferred from detailed aerial photography predict that deviations in platform motion from the ideal straight-line track (pitch & yaw) can be corrected for; however rolling errors resulting in substantial changes in beam footprint position, are harder to deal with due to the reduction in SNR as the ground moves outside the radar´s range footprint.