Frequency diverse array offset jitter for range ambiguity resolution

Abstract

With the advent of low-cost, highly capable unmanned aerial platforms, the need arises for equivalently low-cost, highly capable sensors. Traditional high-power pulsed RF systems can be costly and complicated, making them unsuitable for these applications. However, in this paper, we discuss a simplified technique and architecture for employing a continuous wave frequency diverse array radar to achieve unambiguous ranging and angle determination with an omni-directional receiver. Using a novel frequency offset jitter, we resolve range ambiguities whilst angle is resolved through comparison of time between transmission and detection for two unique scan rates. Theory and simulated results are presented to validate the method, with future work to experimentally verify the predicted performance.