Antenna-rotation compensation apparatus and method for phased array antennas

摘要

Electronic antenna-rotation compensation apparatus is provided for correcting data errors introduced into radar return signals by the rotation of phased array antennas. The apparatus includes circuitry for sampling and A-to-D converting I (in phase) and Q (quadrature) radar return signal components provided by individual antenna elements comprising the array antenna and for providing and applying correction factors to each ith signal components sample from each nth element across the antenna. The correction factors may be precomputed and stored in a memory for use when required or may be computed as needed. The corrected, digital I and Q signal component samples are supplied to a conventional processor, for example, as adaptive array processor, for extracting useful target data from return signal interference and clutter. A corresponding method is provided for compensating for the effects of phased array antenna rotation.