BYU micro-SAR: A very small, low-power LFM-CW Synthetic Aperture Radar

Brigham Young University has developed a low-cost, light-weight, and low power consumption SAR for flight on a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at low altitudes. This micro-SAR, or uSAR, consumes only 18 watts of power, ideal for application on a small UAV. To meet these constraints, a linear frequency modulation-continuous wave (LFM-CW) transmit signal is utilized. Use of an LFM-CW signal introduces some differences from the typical strip map SAR processing model that must be addressed in signal processing algorithms. This thesis presents a derivation of the LFM-CW signal model and the associated image processing algorithms used for the uSAR developed at BYU. A data simulator for the BYU LFM-CW SAR is detailed and results are provided for the case when the simulated data are processed using the uSAR algorithms. Data processing schemes are discussed, including compression, receive signal phase detection, interference filtering and auto-focusing. Finally, data collected from the instrument itself are processed and presented.

Name thesis:degree_name

MS

Grantor dc:publisher

Brigham Young University - Provo

Author dc:creator

• Duersch, Michael Israel

• synthetic aperture radar
• SAR
• low-cost
• low-power
• continuous wave
• LFM CW
• Electrical and Computer Engineering

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/728

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarsarchive.byu.edu:etd-1727