Radar Range Measurement

n Ra ge

Target
tt mi e ns ra Puls T ed

ed ct le ef ulse R P

Target range

c =2

where c = speed of light = round trip time

1.4 Basic principle of radar[1]

target range, R = c t / 2
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Doppler radar
Doppler effect is the change in frequency that occurs when a source and a target are in relative motion. The Doppler affect can be used in a CW radar in order to determine velocity.

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Resting sound source

f s = fo
Fre q u e n cy fs V=340m/s Frequency fo

so u rce a t re st

o b se rve r a t re st

Sound source moving toward observer

fo > f s
Frequency fo

Observer hears increased pitch (shorter wave length)

Fre q u e n cy fs

so u rc e

o b se rve r a t re st

fo < f s
Frequency fo

Sound source moving away from observer

Observer hears decreased pitch (longer wave length)

Fre q u e n cy fs

o b se rve r a t re st

so u rc e

Cw radar
Pulsed radar is typically used to detect targets, determining range and bearing. These radars generally require high-power, are quite complex and thus expensive. Continuous wave (CW) radars typically determine target velocity, and can achieve considerable ranges without the high peak power. These radars are typically simpler, more compact and less costly.

3. FM-CW radar
An unmodulated CW radar is incapable of detecting range, as there is no reference point in the transmitted or returned signal for measuring elapsed time. By frequency modulating the CW signal, differences between the transmitted and received frequencies can be used to estimate range

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Radar altimeter
Triangular FM-CW radar is commonly used in aircraft to determine the instantaneous altitude above the terrain it is flying.

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FM-CW radar architecture

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FM-CW radar theory

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Basic principle of radar

Two common transmission techniques:
pulses continuous wave

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4. Pulsed radar
A pulsed radar is characterized by a high power transmitter that generates an endless sequence of pulses. The rate at which the pulses are repeated is defined as the pulse repetition frequency. Denote:
pulse width, , usually expressed in sec pulse repetition frequency, PRF, usually in kHz pulse period, Tp = 1/PRF, usually in sec

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4.1 Pulsed radar architecture

[1]

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