Abstract:
The frequency diverse array (FDA) radar beampattern depends on the angle, time
and range whereas phased array radar has angle-dependent beampattern only.
Therefore, the FDA is more attractive and flexible than phased-array radars. The
beampattern design is important for effective target localization. In this thesis,
transmit array weights optimization is performed using the IFFT algorithm to
design a transmit beampattern to illuminate the desired angular direction and
range. The designed beampattern has a high dwell time, and therefore, it can
accurately detect even weak targets with a high probability. Each target is characterized
by its range and angle. Thus, estimation of both the angle and range
for the proposed FDA radar is performed to accurately locate the target using the
double-pulse method. The double-pulse method first transmits a pulse with zero
frequency offset to determine the angle of the target independently, and then another
pulse is transmitted at a non-zero frequency offset to determine the range of
the target by using the estimated angle. The proposed scheme can also minimize
noise effects using the minimum power distortionless response (MPDR) beamformer
at the receiver. Therefore, the target parameter estimation method is used
to determine the exact 2D spatial location of the target. In addition, the Cramer-
Rao lower bound (CRLB) for the FDA radar is derived. The root-mean-squared
error (RMSE) for both the angle and range is plotted to compare the existing FDA
radar performance with the proposed FDA radar and simulations are performed
to verify the results.
