24 GHz FMCW MIMO Radar for Marine Target Localization: A Feasibility Study

Abstract

Radar detection and tracking of targets in the marine environment are common tasks performed to ensure the safe navigation of ships or monitor traffic in harbor areas. More recently, radar technology has been proposed to support the collision avoidance system of autonomous surface vehicles, which are characterized by severe constraints in terms of payload and space. The paper investigates the performance of a small and lightweight 24 GHz Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) radar, originally developed for automotive applications, to localize marine targets at short range. A complete signal processing strategy is presented combining MIMO radar imaging, detection, and tracking algorithms. The validation of the proposed signal processing chain is firstly performed thanks to numerical tests based on synthetic data. After, results of experimental trials carried out in the marine environment are reported. These results demonstrate that the considered radar together with the adopted signal processing strategy allows the localization of static targets and the tracking of moving targets with satisfactory performance, thus encouraging its use in marine environments.

Retrieval of Sea Surface Currents and Directional Wave Spectra by 24 GHz FMCW MIMO Radar

“…1), which is responsible for the radar configuration, data acquisition, and data transfer to a PC. More details about the RadarBook2 platform can be found in [30], [31].…”

“…The spacing between the Tx antennas (Tx1 and Tx2) is equal to 7𝜆 𝑐 /2 (𝜆 𝑐 is the free-space wavelength at the center frequency), while the spacing between the Rx antennas is 𝑑 = 𝜆 𝑐 /2. Based on the spacing between Tx and Rx antennas, the 2×8 MIMO array is equivalent to a monostatic virtual array of 16 antennas (channels), with an overlap between the eighth and ninth elements [30]. This concept is graphically represented in the bottom panel of Fig.…”

“…As can be seen, at any slow time 𝑡 ̃= 𝑡 ̃1, 𝑡 ̃2, … 𝑡 ̃𝑀, the signals backscattered by sea surface 𝑠 𝑛 (𝑡), n=0, ...15, n≠8, defined by eq. ( 12), are processed according to a beamforming algorithm (see [30] for more details) based on a double Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), the first one along the time (range-FFT) and the second one along the channels (angle-FFT). In this way, after conversion from slant range r to ground range 𝜌 on the MSL, a focused intensity image 𝐼(𝜌, 𝜃, 𝑡 ) of the sea surface is achieved.…”

“…Further advantages of SRK-band radars are their small size, low weight, and reduced electromagnetic emissions. These peculiar features enable their installation on platforms with a limited payload such as Autonomous Surface Vehicles (ASVs) to perform wave height measurements [26] or target detection [29] and tracking [30] for enhancing navigational safety.…”

“…In this paper, we investigate the application of a 24 GHz Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) radar for sea wave monitoring. The radar was originally developed for automotive applications [31] and its target detection and tracking capabilities in the marine environment have been recently demonstrated [30]. The radar signal processing pipeline here proposed consists of two main steps: radar imaging and sea currents and directional wave spectrum estimation.…”