Radar Trail Data Filtering for Wake Display Visibility

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional radar apparatuses display trails for all acquired echoes, including land echoes, which reduces the visibility of other echoes and trails, especially in modes like the relative trail mode where land echoes are prominent, leading to decreased visibility of moving target trails.

Innovation Solution

A radar apparatus with an acquisition module, echo data creation module, memory, and display unit that creates and displays only necessary trail data by determining, for each display area or pixel, whether trail data should be newly created based on echo characteristics, such as land or moving target identification, thereby filtering out unnecessary trail data like land echoes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of information

If trail data is created for all acquired echoes, then complete trail information is available, but visibility of other echoes and trails is lowered due to land echoes covering large display areas

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetrail information completenessVSAvoidvisibility of echoes and trails
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSIllumination intensity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts and removes land echo trail data from the display by comparing echo positions across multiple scans. The system identifies echoes that persist at the same location across multiple scans as land echoes and prevents their trail data from being created or displays them with reduced prominence, thereby eliminating the obscuring effect while preserving trails of moving targets.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent segments the echo data into different categories based on their temporal persistence and positional characteristics. By analyzing echo positions across multiple scans, the system distinguishes between stationary land echoes and moving target echoes, applying different trail display strategies to each segment to optimize overall visibility.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Loss of information

If trails of all target objects are displayed, then comprehensive target tracking is achieved, but visibility is lowered when a large number of target objects are displayed

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetarget tracking completenessVSAvoidvisibility of echoes and trails
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSIllumination intensity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies different display qualities to different regions of the display based on the nature of the echoes. Land echo trails are suppressed or displayed with lower intensity in their specific display regions, while moving target echo trails maintain full visibility. This local differentiation preserves important information while reducing clutter in specific areas.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Loss of information

If land echo trails are displayed, then complete echo coverage is maintained, but the echo of land covers many display areas reducing visibility of other echoes

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveecho coverage completenessVSAvoiddisplay area covered by land trails
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSArea of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent specifically extracts land echo data from the overall echo set by comparing positions across multiple scans. Land echoes that appear at the same location in consecutive scans are identified and their trail generation is prevented or suppressed, removing the harmful display coverage while maintaining the integrity of moving target detection.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

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 enhances the visibility of moving target trails by preventing the creation and display of land echoes' trails, improving the accuracy and detail of trail data displayed, especially in modes like the relative trail mode, by ensuring only relevant trail data is shown.

Implementation Method 1

an acquisition module configured to acquire an echo based on a reflected wave from a target object, of a transmitted electromagnetic wave

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElectromagnetic wave reflection: Reflection

Data Source

PatentEP3435112B1Radar device and wake display method
Publication Date: 2024.01.17 FURUNO ELECTRIC CO LTD
  • EP3435112B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3435112B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3435112B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The purpose is to provide a radar apparatus which can create and display only necessary trail data. The radar apparatus may include an acquisition module, an echo data creation module, a memory, a trail data creation module, and a display unit. The acquisition module may acquire an echo based on a reflected wave from a target object, of a transmitted electromagnetic wave. The echo data creation module may create, based on the echo, echo data at least indicative of a position of the target object. The memory may store determination data set, for every given display area, whether trail data indicative of a moving trail of the target object is to be newly created based on the echo. The trail data creation module may create the trail data based on the echo and the determination data. The display unit may display the echo data and the trail data.