Clutter-Masked Waveform Design for LPI/LPD Radarcom Signal Encoding

• Main Authors: Richard Washington, Brenton Bischof, Dmitriy Garmatyuk, Saba Mudaliar
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-01-01
• Series: Sensors
• Subjects: clutter modeling; radar-communication fusion; software-defined radar; UWB radar
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/21/2/631

In this work we propose a method of in situ clutter deconvolution and modeling using experimentally obtained UWB radar data. The obtained clutter models are then used for random sequence encoding of radar-communication (radarcom) signals to achieve clutter-masked transmissions and improve communication security. We present the results of clutter modeling from the laboratory data obtained with the software-defined radar system. We then show that such clutter-masked radarcom signals generated using the local clutter model are highly likely to be interpreted as just clutter returns by an unauthorized interceptor. We also present the results of communication and radar performance of these radarcom signals and contrast them with those obtained using a linear frequency modulated waveform. It is shown that the proposed radarcom design method has high potential to achieve secure communications in adversarial conditions, while simultaneously addressing radar sensing needs.