REAL TIME PASSIVE MILLIMETER-WAVE IMAGING FROM A
HELICOPTER PLATFORM
Christopher Martin, John Lovberg, Stuart Clark, Joe Galliano, Trex Enterprises, San Diego, CA
Abstract
Real time passive millimeter-wave imaging
systems have a wide variety of uses from aircraft
navigation and landing in fog to detection of
concealed weapons. A useful imaging system for
flight platforms requires a large number of pixels
and a high frame rate combined with a small
antenna volume and a low cost. We present a
millimeter-wave imaging system which uses 32
MMIC low noise amplifiers to display a 60 x 75
pixel image at a 30 Hz frame rate. The system's
pupil-plane phased array architecture allows for a
relatively thin large aperture antenna. A remotely
located processor utilizes microwave guiding circuit
boards to perform phase and frequency
discrimination on the radiation received by the
antenna array.
The imaging system was mounted on a
helicopter platform and used to gather real-time
imagery of a variety of targets. Targets include
improved and unimproved runways, roadways,
vehicles on roadways, and power lines. We present
video-rate millimeter-wave imagery of ground
features which are obscured from visible and
infrared sensors by fog. The helicopter is shown to
be able to follow and navigate ground features
while travelling above a layer of fog using only the
millimeter-wave imagery.
Introduction
Passive millimeter-wave imaging is widely
recognized as a potentially powerful tool for
navigating and landing aircraft in low visibility
conditions. Millimeter-wavelengths pass through
obscurants such as clouds, smoke, and fog, which
scatter shorter wavelength radiation such as
infrared, typically imaged at 3-5 pm or 8-12 pm,
and visible light (0.4-0.7 pm). Radar systems
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typically use wavelengths equal to or longer than
millimeter-waves and thus, also penetrate
obscurants. However, radar systems' ability to map
ground features can be limited by multi-path
reflections and range-angle calculations that present
distorted images of three-dimensional targets.
Millimeter-wave imagers present the user with a
true representation of the scene without computer
interpretation. Additionally, the passive imager has
the military advantage of being nearly electronically
silent.
The source of the millimeter-waves received
by the imager is blackbody radiation, which is
energy radiated by all objects based upon their
temperature and composition. Infrared cameras
exploit blackbody radiation to form images based
upon the heat given off by targets in the form of
infrared radiation. Millimeter-wave imagers
operate on the same principle as infrared cameras,
but the phenomenology of millimeter-wave imagers
can be very different. Objects tend to be more
reflective in the millimeter-wave portion of the
spectrum than the infrared, and metal objects, even
when painted, are totally reflective. As a result, the
contrast in millimeter-waveimages depends as
much on the composition of the objects being
imaged as the object temperature. For instance, an
asphalt runway contrasts the surrounding dirt
because it is more reflective then the dirt, even
though the physical temperature may be the same.
The primary source of contrast in millimeter-wave
imagery taken from an aircraft is the sky, which can
have a radiometric temperature of as low as 80 K on
a clear, dry day. Metal objects which reflect the sky
will then have a temperature differential of up to
220 K from their surroundings. Other objects
which partially reflect the sky will also display a
greater temperature differential than their physical
temperatures would indicate. Thus millimeter-wave
imagers can differentiate between many objects
2.B.1-1
 despite having relatively poor temperature
sensitivities compared to infrared imagers.
The advantages of passive millimeter-wave
imaging have been proven through years of remote
sensing on satellites and airborne platforms. But
the use of millimeter-wave imagers for aircraft
navigation has been limited by drawbacks including
low frame rate, narrow field of view, large size and
weight, and high cost. Trex Enterprises' passive
millimeter-wave camera (PMC) uses a novel
architecture to overcome these traditional
drawbacks. The PMC images radiation from 90.6
to 96.6 GHz over a 6" x 8" (V x H) field of view
comprised of 60 x 75 pixels. The approximately 90
cm x 80 cm aperture gives the system a 0.20" x
0.23" spatial resolution, or 30 x 35 real beamwidths
in the field-of-view. The higher pixel count makes
the system approximately twice over-sampled in
either direction. The PMC is a true staring array,
which produces imagery at 30 frames per second
without any mechanical scanning, collecting
135,000 pixels per second. While many staring
systems require one receiver per pixel, the PMC
accomplishes this using only 32 low noise MMIC
receivers in the system front end by employing
pupil plane architecture. The PMC antenna is a
frequency-scanned phased array made up of thirty-
two elements, each with a low noise amplifier. The
pixel information is frequency multiplexed by each
antenna stick and phase-encoded by the array. A
remote millimeter-wave processor performs phase
and frequency processing on the signals before
routing the energy to diode detectors. This
architecture allows for a flat antenna which has a
large area for high spatial resolution, but is both
thin and light. This antenna can be mounted at an
appropriate location for navigation, and the bulkier
processor can be located at a more convenient
location in the aircraft interior. The use of
relatively few MMIC receivers reduces the cost of
the system and is not directly linked to number of
pixels or field of view. With the high performance
levels achieved with this cheaper and more compact
architecture, the PMC is a millimeter-wave imager
appropriate for aircraft use.
System Description
The PMC is composed of four main elements:
the antenna and front end amplifiers, the phase
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processor, the frequency processors, and the
computer. Each element and its contribution to the
system operation is described below.
Antenna and Front End
The PMC antenna is comprised of an array of
32 frequency scanned antenna elements. Each
antenna element is a three foot (91 cm) length of
slotted W-band waveguide with a feed on one end
and a load on the other end. The 600 regularly
spaced slots couple energy incident on the antenna
element into a travelling wave inside the
waveguide. Based upon the slot spacing and the
propagation speed in the waveguide, there is a
correspondence between angle of incidence of
incoming energy and the frequency at which the
energy will efficiently couple to the waveguide,
resulting in frequency scanned antennas. The
frequency at which any broadband source couples
to the antenna will be determined by the sources
relative position to the antenna. The PMC antenna
elements scan at approximately 1 "/GHz over the
operating range.
The 32 antenna elements are arrayed with a
linearly increasing spacing over 80.6 cm. Radiation
incident on the array is transmitted to the array
elements with a unique phase relationship which
depends upon the angle of incidence with respect to
the array direction. As the array direction is
orthogonal to the element scan direction, the source
position of incoming radiation is encoded in the
phase and frequency of the signals in the antenna
elements. Note that the array of 32 elements over
80.6 cm results in a fill factor of only 6%, resulting
in a low efficiency array pattern. The main beam
efficiency of the array is only 40%, but the irregular
element spacing results in low grating lobe levels at
any specific angle.
The feeds of the antenna elements are attached
to femte circulator switches which allow for
switching between the antennas and fixed
temperature loads. The array is Dicke switched at a
3.84 k.Hz rate to maintain system calibration. W-
band MMIC amplifiers located after the switches
set the system noise figure of 10.5 dB, including the
antenna and switch losses. The MMIC amplifier is
followed by a downconversion stage where mixers
fed by a doubled 42 GHz local oscillator, divided
32 ways, shifts the signals down to 6.6 to 12.6 GHz.
 The signals are then amplified again and fed to the
phase processor unit. The phased array system
must maintain phase matching between all 32
elements from antenna to phase processor. Care is
taken to match the phase lengths of all components
in this path. Residual phase errors are corrected by
shifting the signal from the local oscillator before it
reaches the individual mixers, and by employing
adjustable length line stretchers in the signal path.
Phase Processor
The phase processor serves to unfold the phase
information collected by the antenna array and
output signals correspondingto columns of pixels
in the final image. Operationally, the processor is
equivalent to a microwave lens. Microwaves from
the thirty-two array elements are launched into the
processor with a spacing proportional to the antenna
array spacing. Each of the seventy-five output ports
from the phase processor correspond to a particular
azimuthal angle imaged by the antenna array.
The PMC phase processor is a 22-inch square
sheet mounted behind the antenna support plate.
Also mounted to this support plate are the MMIC
amplifiers, mixers, and associated electronics. The
entire structure is less than 20 cm thick. Up to the
phase processor, all signal path lengths have been
short to preserve phase matching and to limit loss in
the W-band sections. With the phase processing
complete and the signals converted to lower
frequencies, the signals output from the phase
processor are launched onto seventy-five co-axial
cables which are routed to a remotely located
frequency processor and system computer.
Frequency processor
After an amplification stage to compensate for
losses in the processors, each of the seventy-five
signals is fed into a frequency processor unit. The
frequency processor performs a real-time spectrum
analysis on the 6 GHz bandwidth signals, sorting
them into sixty separate 100 MHz frequency bins.
This effectively reverses the operation of the
frequency scanned antenna, with each bin
corresponding to an elevation angle from which the
antenna received a signal. The frequency processor
steers a signal according to its frequency to one or
more of the sixty output ports, which are spaced at
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equal frequency intervals. The frequency processor
has a resolution from 100 MHz at 6.6 GHz to 195
MHz at 12.6 GHz. In all cases, the resolution is
better than the diffraction limited resolution of the
antenna.
Immediately following each output port on the
processor is a zero-bias detector diode. Each diode
correspondsto one pixel in the final millimeter-
wave image. The voltage generated by the diodes is
read out by a detector chip which integrates the data
over a 1/30-second period while also subtracting off
the reference signal provided by the Dicke switch.
The chip then amplifies the voltage and bursts the
data to the system computer.
The diodes and read-out chips are located on
the surface of the frequency processor board, which
is a 22-inch square sheet. The seventy-five
frequency processors are assembled in a single
"stack" with a height of 22 inches including
spacers.
System computer
The system computer, a commercially
available quad-processormachine with dual PCI
buses, captures the pixel data values from a custom
interface board and displays the information as an
image. The computer performs a number of image
processing tasks on the data in real time, including
gain and offset corrections for each pixel. The
computer can also perform temporal and spatial
filtering on the data to increase contrast.
In addition to being processed and displayed,
image data from the PMC is saved in real-time to
the computer memory and occasionally transferred
to hard drive as the memory fills. During the PMC
flight tests, the computer also displays and saves
data from two other video sources, a visible and an
infrared camera. All data is saved as raw data so
that signal filtering routines can be changed during
subsequent data replay.
PMC performance specifications
The system described above has a spatial
resolution of 0.20" x 0.23" over a 6" x 8" field-of-
view. The system displays 60 x 75 pixels, which
are approximately twice oversampled relative to the
antenna beamwidth. Each pixel has a temperature
resolution of 6 to 8 K depending upon its position in
the field-of-view. This sensitivity figure includes
the loss due to the sparse antenna array and is based
on a 1/60-second integration time. The system uses
a 3.84 kHz Dicke switch as its front end for
calibration and displays images at a 30 Hz rate.
This rate is not dictated by hardware and can be
increased or decreased to affect temperature
sensitivity.
Configuration For Airborne Data
Gathering
The high frame rate of the PMC system along
with the antenna's small form factor allowed for
integration into an airborne platform for real-time
imaging. A UH-1H "Huey" helicopter was selected
as the platform for its cargo carrying ability and
flexibility to perform a number of flight scenarios.
The antenna assembly was mounted to the nose of
the helicopter and the frequency processor stack,
computer rack, and power supplies and sources
were mounted in the passenger compartment.
(Figure 1)
The antenna assembly, including MMIC LNAs
and the phase processor, was contained in a
fiberglass environmental enclosure held by a
support fork. The support fork attached to a pivot
rod which mounted to hard points on the helicopter
nose through a custom fiberglass nose panel. The
pivot rod allowed the antenna assembly to be
rotated through a range of elevation angles. The
look angle of the antenna was fixed by a set of bars
anchored to the bottom of the helicopter and the
Figure I . PMC-I mounted on helicopter.
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bottom of the antenna assembly. Two sets of bars
were made which pointed the antenna to either 10"
or 40" below the horizon. Sets of co-axial cables
carrying signal from the phase processor to the
frequency processors and sets of wires carrying
power to the antenna assembly both pass through a
hole in the nose assembly to the interior. The racks
containing the frequency processor and the
computer system were mounted in the aft portion of
the cabin to maintain balance of the aircraft.
The antenna itself was protected by a Rexolite
lens which increased the system's depth of a focus
to a range of 600' to infinity. Between the lens and
the antenna, space was reserved for a polarization
twister. The slotted antenna normally receives
vertically polarized radiation, but the polarization
twister rotates the polarization of incoming
millimeter-waves by 90", allowing the antenna to
view horizontally polarized radiation. A visible
light CCD camera and a ferroelectric infrared
camera were mounted atop and boresighted with the
antenna. The in-flight imagery from these cameras
was saved to the computer alongside the millimeter-
wave imagery.
Vibration control for the flight testing was
entirely passive. Rubber bushings at the pivot rod
damped vibrations from the helicopter to the
antenna assembly. The frequency processor and
computer racks were mounted to the helicopter
floor on inflatable air shocks. No temperature
control was used for the system other than two
cooling fans that circulated air through the antenna
 assembly enclosure and cooling fans for the power
amplifiers and power supplies.
Power for the system was supplied by series
pairs of 12 V deep cycle marine batteries. The
original intent was to power all systems off the
helicopter's DC generator, but the helicopter power
proved too noisy for some of the system's low noise
components. Most electronic components were
driven from DC to DC converters directly from the
batteries' 24 V. An inverter provided AC power for
two low-noise AC to DC supplies. The computer
system was also powered by AC from the inverter
through a U P S with battery back up. The
electronics for the antenna enclosure and frequency
processor required approximately 700 W, and the
computer and accessories including the cameras and
back up VCRs required 750 W. This total of 1450
W includes conversion losses and all fan motors.
Three pairs of batteries provided power for over
two hours of data collection time.
Total system hardware weight in flight
configuration is 1320 pounds. The nose mounted
antenna enclosure with Rexolite lens is 200 pounds
plus 50 pounds for the support structure and
cameras. The frequency processor rack assembly
including power supplies weighs 350 pounds, and
the computer rack including monitor, UPS,and
inverter weighs 360 pounds. The batteries
contribute 360 pounds of weight, and the balance of
the weight is made up of cables and power wires.
This weight represents lab equipment with
additional hardware and systems added for
flightworthiness.
Airborne Millimeter-WaveImaging
Between November 5,1999 and January 19,
2000, the PMC flew on twelve data gathering
helicopter flights, varying in duration from one hour
to four hours in the air. The base of operations for
these flights was Mojave Airport in Mojave, CA. A
wide variety of targets were imaged from various
altitudes and speeds and in varying visibility. The
targets were selected to demonstratethe abilities of
passive millimeter-wave imaging in flight
scenarios. The highlights of these data collection
flights are described below. Examples of the actual
data on videotape or CD may be requested from the
Army Research Laboratory, Adelphi, MD.
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PMC System Set-Up
Before each flight, the system was configured
in either the 40" or 10" look down position and for
either horizontal or vertical polarization. When
multiple configurations were desired, the system
could be changed in the field during a brief landing.
The system was also calibrated before or after each
flight by taking 1000-frame(33-second)images of
both the sky and absorptive foam. Due to
differences between conditions at the airfield and in
the air over targets, these calibrations were found to
be imprecise. In many cases, new calibrations were
created for the data files by examining in-flight
imagery. But in all cases, the original calibrations
were adequate for finding targets and navigation.
Navigation by Ground Features in Low
Visibility Conditions
On December 14, 1999, the PMC flew over the
Tehachapi Valley in the early morning. A low,
thick layer of fog was advancing over the valley.
The helicopter flew at an altitude of 1400 to 1500,
while the fog rose to approximately 300. With the
PMC in the 40" look down configuration sensing
horizontally polarized radiation, the system was
able to image ground features in the valley through
the fog. In particular, the flight demonstrated the
ability to navigate in the low visibility conditions by
following a highway for several minutes using only
the PMC. Hwy 58 was visually acquired in a
section of valley not yet covered by fog. Following
the highway north, it disappeared into the fog on
first the visible and then the infrared camera. The
PMC continued to display a clear image that was
used to navigate the helicopter over the highway.
At ranges of 2300' it was possible to see both sides
of the highway, exit and entrance ramps, and
overpasses. It was also possible to clearly detect
vehicles moving on the road below. Additionally,
the system detected bodies of water and large
structures hidden in the fog. (Figure 2)
On January 12,2000, the PMC made another
flight over the Tehachapi Valley in foggy
conditions. At this time, the fog was much higher,
forcing the helicopter to fly at an altitude of 4000.
With the PMC in the same configuration, the
 VISIBLE
Fipure 2. 1mape.v nf Hwv. .%? thrnuph fnp.
system was still able to identify and follow the
highway in the fog. However, at the range of 6000,
the highway onIy appeared as a single line, and
details seen in the previous flight were absent.
Navigation was confused by other roads, which also
appeared as lines in the image. Large structures and
bodies of water were still identifiable.
Navigation By Ground Features in Look
Forward Mode
Flights in foggy conditions were conducted
with the PMC pointed at 40" down to avoid flying
the helicopter itself through the fog. However, real
world navigation is more likely to occur with the
imager looking forward to allow the aircraft to look
further ahead. Navigation by ground features in
clear weather was demonstrated with the PMC
looking only 10" below horizon. The flights
collected both horizontal and vertical polarization
data, but at these grazing angles, horizontal
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PMC IR
polarization was found to provide better
information.
Flights in the GormadQuail Lake area
demonstrated navigation using a variety of ground
features including lakeshore, aqueduct, landing
strips, and roadways. Flights along Interstate 5 and
Hwy 138 were undertaken at an altitude of 500
with a slant range of over '/2 a mile. The 11'
resolution (6' pixels) at this range enabled the
imager to discern both sides of the freeway and the
exit and entrance ramps needed for navigation.
Flights along an aqueduct at a 500 altitude were
easily able to track the aqueduct and to identify
bridges crossing the aqueduct. Passes over larger
targets such as the landing strip, lakeshore, and a
wider aqueduct were undertaken at a 1OOO' altitude,
producing a slant range of one mile and 23'
resolution. All targets were easily identified and
followed. Further navigation capabilities were
demonstrated in 10 minute data runs where the
helicopter navigated between Quail Lake and
 Figure 3. Dirt and gravel run way (horizontal polarization).
Trapezoid in visible image indicates system field-of-view.
Pyramid Lake by following an aqueduct and
Interstate 5.
Aircrafi Landing
The helicopter mounted PMC was used to
simulate landings on unimproved runways in a
series of approaches and fly-overs of Mountain
Valley Airport in Tehachapi. This 4900 long, 50
wide runway has two asphalt sections and a dirt and
gravel section framed by dirt, grass, and scrub
vegetation. The helicopter took several low speed
runs over the runway at an altitude of 200 with the
PMC looking 10" down from the horizon at an
1100 slant range. Data was gathered in both
polarizations. (Figure 3).
Both the asphalt and dirt sections of the
runway were visible when viewed in the horizontal
polarization, with the asphalt appearing colder than
the dirt, and both sections appearing colder than the
surrounding terrain. The dirt section was difficult
to see in the vertical polarization, although the
asphalt section was visible. In order to improve the
contrast of the runway, various enhancements were
added for some data runs. In one case, a series of
18" x 24" metal targets angled at 45" lined both
sides of the runway at separations of 200 ft. These
targets were visible at the 1100' range, and provided
some added contrast. A W-band source was also
employed in some runs as an active beacon at the
end of the runway, which was easily seen by the
PMC.
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Military Targets
The helicopter mounted PMC made a number
of passes over the Marine Corps Supply Center at
Yermo, CA, to image military vehicles. Various
trucks, multi-wheeled vehicles, engineering
vehicles, and some M1 Abrams tanks were located
in fenced yards at the supply center. The helicopter
flew at altitudes of 500 and 1000 at a speed of 50
knots with the PMC in the 40" look down
configuration collecting horizontally polarized
radiation. The vehicles were easily discriminated at
this range and individual targets were
distinguishable even when the vehicles were packed
closely together. The targets were not classifiable,
though, other than by general size. For instance, the
barrels on the tank targets were not distinguishable
and truck cabs were not distinguished from their
trailers.
Wire Detection
The PMC demonstratedthe ability to detect
power lines at close range despite the sub-pixel
nature of the wires. For safety reasons, the
helicopter was not flown at the power lines.
Instead, the helicopter was flown above and along
the power lines at an altitude of 500 with the PMC
in the 40" look down configuration. The range to
the power lines was approximately 600', assuming
the power lines ran loo' above the ground. The
power lines imaged were groups of three high 1
voltage power lines estimated at 1" diameter each.
 Figure 4. Group of three power lines imaged at 600fl. range.

Three of these groups were strung between Conclusions

large metal towers. The three arcs of the wire
groups are seen in contrast to the desert floor in the
millimeter-wave imagery. (Figure 4).
Although the wires are considerably smaller
than the PMC's pixel size at this range, radiometers
have shown the ability to detect sub-pixel targets if
the temperature contrast is high enough. The
system resolution is only 30" at a range of 600', and
the wires can be assumed to fill about 3" of that
beam in one dimension and the entire beam in the
other dimension. In this case, the wires would have
about 10% of the contrast expected of a metal target
filling the entire beam. With a typical contrast of
200 K between metal and the desert floor, the wires
might have a contrast of about 20 K, which is better
than the PMC temperature sensitivity of 6 to 8 K.
When the helicopter altitude was increased to 1000,
and the range to the wires was increased to 1400',
the wires disappeared into the system noise.
Trex Enterprises has demonstrated a passive
millimeter-wave imaging system capable of real-
time imagery. The pupil-plane system architecture
allows the system to be easily fitted to and flown on
airborne platforms.. Helicopter flights have shown
the system to be useful for navigation in low-
visibility conditions. The system is also capable of
imaging runways, ground terrain, military vehicles,
and some sub-pixel targets such as power lines.
Acknowledgements
The Passive Millimeter-Wave Camera was
developed under contracts DAAL02-92-C-0057 and
DAALO1-94-C-0100 with Army Research
Laboratory, Sensors and Electronic Devices
Directorate. Army Research Laboratory also
sponsored much of the flight-testing described
above.

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