Electronically steered radar system for detecting and monitoring slow moving ground based targets

摘要

An electronically steered radar system is provided for detecting and monitoring slow moving, ground based targets. Traditional so-called crawler radar systems provide crawler detection via measurements of successive scans of a given section that are compared with one another and a crawler moving into or out of a specific range cell at a particular bearing can be detected from a change in reflected energy between scans. A problem that is particular to detection of such targets is presented by clutter. The disclosed radar system comprises an electronically steered antenna and a receiver arranged to process signals from a remote target to identify a Doppler frequency associated with the target. The arrangement may utilise electronically steered antennas whereby the antenna stares at, rather than glides past the target and surrounding clutter. This means that the spectral spreading of static ground clutter associated with mechanical radar systems can be eliminated, overcoming one of the shortcomings of mechanical radar systems that would otherwise render a crawler radar system unsuitable for Doppler processing.