Airborne Radar Antenna Beamforming for Sense and Avoid
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional airborne radar systems for drones face challenges in achieving adequate angular coverage and precision for 'Sense & Avoid' functions due to high frequency requirements, leading to complexity, bulkiness, and inefficiencies in energy usage between surveillance and tracking phases.
Innovation Solution
A radar device employing computational beamforming with multiple antenna systems and phase shifters allows for simultaneous surveillance and tracking, optimizing energy distribution and reducing costs by subdividing the coverage domain into sub-domains and using electronic scanning for emission beams, enhancing angular precision and signal-to-noise ratio.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional radars operate in millimeter band with high frequency, then tracking precision is improved, but scan speed becomes insufficient to cover required angular domain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical rotary antenna system with an electronic beamforming system. Instead of physically rotating the antenna to scan different directions, the system uses multiple fixed antennas combined with computational beamforming to electronically steer and scan beams across the angular domain, achieving both high tracking precision and fast scan speeds.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the angular coverage domain into multiple sub-domains, with each antenna system responsible for a specific sub-domain. This segmentation allows parallel processing of different angular regions, improving overall scan speed while maintaining precision through dedicated beamforming for each sub-domain.
2Adaptability or versatility
If conventional radars use rotary mechanical antenna to achieve angular coverage, then coverage is improved, but device bulkiness and aerodynamic performance deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the need for a rotary mechanical antenna structure by using a fixed array of multiple antennas with electronic beamforming. This substitution removes the protruding rotary mechanism that caused bulkiness and aerodynamic issues, while achieving the same or better angular coverage through computational methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a single rotating antenna in three-dimensional space to a two-dimensional array of fixed antennas. By distributing multiple antennas across a planar surface and using electronic phase control, the system achieves full angular coverage without requiring mechanical rotation in the third dimension.
3Ease of manufacture
If CBF system uses low frequency band to reduce module count and cost, then cost is reduced, but angular precision deteriorates due to wide lobes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the overall angular coverage into multiple sub-domains, each handled by a dedicated antenna system. This allows the use of lower frequency bands with fewer modules per sub-domain while maintaining precision, because each sub-domain requires fewer computational lobes to achieve the same angular resolution.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different beamforming strategies to different sub-domains. Each antenna system is optimized for its specific sub-domain, allowing local optimization of frequency selection and module configuration to balance cost and precision requirements for each region of the angular space.
4Adaptability or versatility
If emission antenna pattern is optimized for surveillance coverage, then coverage is improved, but energy efficiency deteriorates during tracking phase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic beamforming that adapts the emission antenna pattern based on the operational phase. During surveillance, the system uses wide beams to cover the entire angular domain. During tracking, the system dynamically narrows and steers beams toward detected targets, concentrating energy efficiently and reducing waste in directions where targets cannot be present.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a multi-functional emission system that can operate in different modes (surveillance and tracking) using the same antenna hardware. The system universally covers all angular domains during surveillance while efficiently concentrating energy on specific targets during tracking, achieving both broad coverage and energy efficiency through software-controlled beamforming.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables efficient detection and tracking with improved angular precision and reduced energy consumption, achieving better signal-to-noise ratios and cost-effectiveness by adaptively managing the radar's range and precision across different phases.
Implementation Method 1
means for emitting microwave-frequency signals; means for receiving signals reflected by a target
Implementation Method 2
the antenna beam on reception being formed by CBF by the computation means on the basis of the signals received by the reception antennas
Implementation Method 3
the antenna beam on emission is pointed by an electronic scanning system in a number greater than or equal to two directions inside the given angular sector
Data Source
AI summary
A radar device includes means for emitting microwave-frequency signals; means for receiving signals reflected by a target; computation means; a plurality of antenna systems disposed around the aircraft, an antenna system comprising a set of emission antennas coupled to the emission means and a set of reception antennas coupled to the reception means, each antenna system being dedicated to the coverage of a given angular sector Ω; for a given antenna system, the antenna beam on reception being formed by CBF by the computation means on the basis of the signals received by the reception antennas and the antenna beam on emission is pointed by an electronic scanning system in a number greater than or equal to two of directions inside the given angular sector Ω. The invention applies notably in the field of airborne radars, in particular radars with large angular coverage and short range that are necessary for example for carrying out a function of the “see and avoid” type on drones, which function is also commonly called “Sense & Avoid”.