JP5768436B2 - Beam management apparatus, radar apparatus including the same, beam management method and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a radar apparatus or the like provided with a plurality of active phased array antennas (hereinafter referred to as “APAA: Active Phased Array Antenna”).

  The synchronous radar apparatus includes a plurality of APAAs, and simultaneously irradiates a search beam that periodically irradiates a predetermined area and a tracking beam that periodically irradiates a specific tracking target from each APAA. As a result, discovery and tracking of multiple targets will be implemented.

  Patent Document 1 discloses an APAA beam control apparatus. This beam control device is a search distance selection type search for calculating beam parameters necessary for satisfying the maximum detection distance specified according to the excess or shortage of time energy for each search beam input from the search sequence control device. A frame parameter monitor, a frame time monitor that obtains a search frame time with reference to a search beam determined to be capable of beam irradiation within a unit time by a scheduling processor, and obtains a difference between the search frame time and a prescribed value; A maximum detection distance selection device that selects a maximum detection distance from a difference between a specified search frame time input from a frame time monitor and an actual frame time and sends the maximum detection distance to a search beam parameter calculator.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a beam management method used in a radar apparatus. The radar apparatus searches and tracks a plurality of targets by arranging a plurality of APAAs close to each other and irradiating beams for searching and tracking targets from each APAA. The beam management method is as follows. Beam irradiation for target search uses the same pulse repetition period, transmission pulse width, and transmission timing for each APAA. In the beam irradiation for target tracking, the tracking target of each APAA is grouped for each same pulse repetition period type, and then the beam of each APAA is irradiated simultaneously. At this time, the beam transmission time for target tracking of each APAA and the reflected signal are received from the tracking target according to the distance of the tracking target in each APAA with reference to the tracking target of the maximum distance in each pulse repetition period group. The delay time of the transmission timing of each APAA with respect to the APAA tracking the tracking target of the maximum distance is calculated so that the reception time does not overlap each other.

  Patent Document 3 discloses an APAA beam control apparatus in which the technique described in Patent Document 2 is improved. This beam control device not only consumes time resources due to the common pulse repetition period, but also selects the target combination for simultaneous beam irradiation in consideration of the time resource consumption due to the common number of hits. And the target number that can be tracked is prevented from degrading as much as possible.

JP-A-10-213653 (summary etc.) Japanese Patent No. 2576249 (Claim 1 etc.) JP 2006-258482 A (summary etc.)

  However, since the synchronous radar apparatus needs to irradiate a predetermined region periodically, the time available for irradiation of the tracking beam is limited. Therefore, when the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases and the tracking beam time is insufficient, there is a problem that the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam decreases.

  On the other hand, in a laser device that is not a synchronous type, that is, a radar device configured by a single APAA or a plurality of APAAs that do not generate interference, the tracking beam increases when the tracking target increases and the time of the specified tracking beam is insufficient. Various researches have been made to solve the problem that the irradiation frequency of selenium decreases. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-228561 discloses a technique for dealing with the above problem by adjusting the time used for the search beam and the tracking beam according to the number of tracking targets. However, in the synchronous radar apparatus, since radio wave interference occurs between APAAs, it is impossible to determine the time that each APAA uses independently for a search beam and a tracking beam. It cannot be used.

  In the synchronous radar apparatus, in order to effectively use the tracking beam so that the specified tracking beam time is not short, the tracking target assigned to each APAA is grouped based on the specification of the tracking beam, and the group target On the other hand, Patent Documents 2 and 3 disclose a technique for simultaneously irradiating a tracking beam from each APAA.

  However, with these technologies, the time used for searching is constant, so there is room for further performance improvement. In synchronous radar, since beam irradiation is performed simultaneously on all APAAs, the above-mentioned problem must be solved in consideration of radio wave interference between APAAs.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a radar device or the like that can maintain the irradiation frequency of a tracking beam with respect to a tracking target while maintaining the search performance of other APAA even when the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases. It is to provide.

The beam management device according to the present invention is:
For a plurality of APAAs that irradiate a search beam and a tracking beam, in a beam management device that calculates an irradiation schedule including irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam,
Basic irradiation schedule storage means for storing a basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance;
Tracking target input means for inputting a tracking target assigned to the APAA;
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam An irradiation schedule calculating means for calculating the irradiation schedule so as to
It is provided with.

A radar apparatus according to the present invention
A plurality of APAAs that irradiate a search beam and a tracking beam and receive a reflected signal from the target;
A transmitter / receiver that drives these APAAs according to a transmission signal and generates a reception signal based on a reflection signal received by the APAA;
A reception processing unit that assigns a tracking target to the APAA based on the reception signal generated by the transmission / reception unit;
A scheduler as a beam management device according to the present invention;
A beam parameter calculation unit that calculates phase data of the APAA based on the irradiation schedule calculated by the scheduler and outputs the phase data to the transmission / reception unit;
It is provided with.

The beam management method according to the present invention includes:
In a beam management method for calculating an irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam,
A basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance is stored,
Enter the tracking target assigned to the APAA,
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam Calculating the irradiation schedule to
It is provided with.

The beam management program according to the present invention includes:
In a beam management program for calculating an irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam,
Basic irradiation schedule storage means for storing a basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance;
Tracking target input means for inputting a tracking target assigned to the APAA;
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam An irradiation schedule calculating means for calculating the irradiation schedule so as to
Is to make the computer function.

  According to the present invention, even when the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases, the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam with respect to the tracking target can be maintained while maintaining the search performance of other APAAs. The reason is that even if the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases and it becomes difficult to maintain the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam, the surplus time can be reduced by shortening the search time of the search beam of the specific APAA. This is because it can be used for irradiation of a tracking beam.

FIG. 1 [1] is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a beam management apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 [2] is a flowchart showing an embodiment of a beam management method according to the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the computer in one Embodiment of the beam management program which concerns on this invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a radar apparatus according to the present invention. 4 is a chart showing a basic irradiation schedule of APAA in the radar apparatus of FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a timing diagram showing each beam in the radar apparatus of FIG. 3, in which FIG. 5 [1] is an auxiliary tracking beam, FIG. 5 [2] is a search beam, and FIG. 5 [3] is a search beam (half the number of pulses). It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the scheduler in the radar apparatus of FIG. 7 is a chart showing the operation of the scheduler in the radar apparatus of FIG. 3, FIG. 7 [1] is a basic irradiation schedule, and FIG. 7 [2] is a calculated irradiation schedule. FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing an operation of a scheduler in the radar apparatus of FIG. 3.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as “embodiments”) will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 [1] is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a beam management apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 1 [2] is a flowchart showing an embodiment of a beam management method according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a computer in an embodiment of the beam management program according to the present invention. Hereinafter, a beam management apparatus, a beam management method, and a beam management program according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to these drawings.

  The beam management apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment calculates an irradiation schedule c composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam. The beam management device 10 includes a basic irradiation schedule storage unit 11 that stores a basic irradiation schedule a that includes irradiation timings of a predetermined search beam and tracking beam, and a tracking target input unit that inputs a tracking target b assigned to the APAA. 12 and when the number of allocated tracking targets b increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for the search beam irradiation is shortened, and the remaining time is used for the tracking beam irradiation. The irradiation schedule calculation means 13 for calculating the irradiation schedule c is provided.

  According to the beam management apparatus 10, even when the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases, the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam with respect to the tracking target can be maintained while the search performance of other APAA is maintained. The reason is that even if the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases and it becomes difficult to maintain the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam, the surplus time can be reduced by shortening the search time of the search beam of the specific APAA. This is because it can be used for irradiation of a tracking beam.

  For example, the irradiation schedule calculation means 13 shortens the time required for irradiation of the search beam by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and irradiates the tracking beam with specifications that do not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. It is good also as calculating an irradiation schedule so that it may utilize for. More specifically, the irradiation schedule calculation means 13 shortens the time required for irradiation of the search beam by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and uses the search beam, the pulse width, and the pulse repetition period. Calculate the irradiation schedule so as to be used for irradiation of the same tracking beam.

  At this time, according to the beam management apparatus 10, when the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases, it is possible to maintain the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam with respect to the tracking target while maintaining the search performance of other APAAs. The reason is that even if the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases and it becomes difficult to maintain the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam, the search time is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam of the specific APAA. This is because the surplus time can be used to irradiate a tracking beam of various specifications that does not cause radio wave interference with other APAA search beams.

  The beam management method of the present embodiment captures the operation of the beam management apparatus 10 as a method invention and includes the following steps. A basic irradiation schedule a composed of irradiation timings of a predetermined search beam and tracking beam is stored (step 21). The tracking target b assigned to APAA is input (step 21). When the number of allocated tracking targets b increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for the search beam irradiation is shortened, and the remaining time is used for the tracking beam irradiation. An irradiation schedule c is calculated (step 23).

  At this time, in step 23, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. The irradiation schedule c may be calculated as described above. To describe a more specific example, in step 23, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the remaining time is tracked with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. An irradiation schedule c is calculated so as to be used for beam irradiation.

  The beam management program of the present embodiment is a program for causing the computer 30 to function as each unit of the beam management apparatus 10. That is, the beam management program of the present embodiment inputs the basic irradiation schedule storage means 11 for storing the basic irradiation schedule a composed of irradiation timings of a predetermined search beam and tracking beam, and the tracking target b assigned to the APAA. When the number of tracking target input means 12 and the allocated tracking target b increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for the search beam irradiation is shortened and the remaining time is tracked. This is a program for causing the computer 30 to function the irradiation schedule calculation means 13 for calculating the irradiation schedule c so as to be used for beam irradiation.

  The computer 30 may be a general computer including a CPU 31, a ROM 32, a RAM 33, an input / output interface 34, and the like. The program and the basic irradiation schedule a may be written in the ROM 32 in advance, or may be read into the RAM 33 from an external storage device. The CPU 31 reads the program from the ROM 32 or the RAM 33, interprets it, and executes it. The program may be recorded on a non-transitory storage medium, such as an optical disk or a semiconductor memory. In this case, the program is read from the recording medium by the computer 30 and executed by the computer 30.

  The beam management method and beam management program of the present embodiment also provide the same operations and effects as the beam management apparatus of the present embodiment.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a radar apparatus according to the present invention. Hereinafter, description will be given based on this drawing.

  The radar apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment drives a plurality of APAAs 101a and 101b that receive a search signal and a tracking beam and receive a reflection signal from a target, and the APAAs 101a and 101b according to a transmission signal, and the reflections received by the APAAs 101a and 101b. The transmission / reception units 102a and 102b that generate reception signals based on the signals, the reception processing unit 108 that assigns the tracking targets 109a to 109e to the APAAs 101a and 101b based on the reception signals generated by the transmission / reception units 102a and 102b, and FIG. And a beam parameter calculation unit 107a that calculates phase data of the APAA 101a and 101b based on the irradiation schedule calculated by the scheduler 106 and outputs the phase data to the transmission and reception units 102a and 102b as shown in FIG. And it includes a 07b, a.

  Here, the scheduler 106 corresponds to an example of the beam management apparatus illustrated in FIG. The reception processing unit 108 includes signal processing units 103 a and 103 b, a tracking processing unit 104, and a tracking target APAA allocation processing unit 105. The beam parameter calculation units 107a and 107b and the reception processing unit 108 may be implemented in a computer by a program together with the scheduler 106. Hereinafter, the radar apparatus 100 will be described in more detail.

  The radar apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes APAAs 101a and 101b, transmission / reception units 102a and 102b, signal processing units 103a and 103b, a tracking processing unit 104, a tracking target APAA allocation processing unit 105, a scheduler 106, and a beam parameter. It is comprised including the calculation parts 107a and 107b. These components generally operate as follows.

  The APAAs 101a and 101b irradiate the beam based on the phase data calculated by the beam parameter calculation units 107a and 107b, and receive the reflected signals. The transmission / reception units 102a and 102b perform frequency conversion and phase detection on the received signal. The signal processing units 103a and 103b perform target detection processing after performing AD conversion and pulse compression processing on the received signals, and output observation information including target plots. The tracking processing unit 104 performs correlation processing between the tracking target and the target plot by using a Global Nearest Neighbor (GNN) method based on the observation information, and then performs tracking filter processing such as a Kalman filter, and the position and speed of the tracking target. Update the state. The tracking target APAA allocation processing unit 105 performs allocation calculation to determine which of the APAAs 101a and 101b should irradiate the tracking target with respect to the tracking target based on the state of the tracking target. As a result, a tracking target existing at a position where the beam can be irradiated is assigned to each APAA 101a and 101b. When a plurality of APAAs can be assigned to one tracking target, an APAA with a small number of assigned tracking targets is selected.

  The scheduler 106 calculates the irradiation schedule of the APAA 101a and 101b according to the tracking target assignment of the APAA 101a and 101b and the basic irradiation schedule in which the irradiation timing of the tracking beam and the search beam is input in advance. The irradiation schedule includes information such as the irradiation direction of each beam, the number of pulses, the pulse width, and the pulse repetition period. The scheduler 106 calculates a schedule until the APAA 101a, 101b completes a search of a predetermined search area (one scan), and calculates a new schedule when the execution of the schedule is completed. Beam parameter calculation units 107a and 107b calculate phase data of APAA 101a and APAA 101b, respectively, based on the irradiation schedule.

  FIG. 4 is a chart showing the basic irradiation schedule of the APAA 101a and the APAA 101b. FIG. 5 is a timing chart showing each beam. FIG. 5 [1] is an auxiliary tracking beam, FIG. 5 [2] is a search beam, and FIG. 5 [3] is a search beam (half the number of pulses). FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the scheduler 106. FIG. 7 is a chart showing the operation of the scheduler 106, FIG. 7 [1] is a basic irradiation schedule, and FIG. 7 [2] is a calculated irradiation schedule. FIG. 8 is a timing chart showing the operation of the scheduler 106. Hereinafter, the operation of the scheduler 106 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 8.

  The scheduler 106 calculates the irradiation schedule of the APAAs 101a and 101b according to the tracking target allocation, the irradiation timing of the tracking beam and the search beam, and the basic irradiation schedule in which some specifications are set in advance.

  FIG. 4 shows the basic irradiation schedules of the APAAs 101a and 101b. Beam specifications such as beam direction, number of pulses, pulse width, and pulse repetition period of the search beam are pre-defined in the basic irradiation schedule, and the pulse number, pulse width, and pulse repetition period of all search beams are set equal. Yes. The basic tracking slot is a time used for irradiation of the tracking beam with respect to the allocated tracking target. The beam specifications of the tracking beam are not included in the basic irradiation schedule because they are calculated so as to be optimal for the tracking target. In order to prevent radio wave interference between the APAAs 101a and 101b due to the tracking beam, the time during which one APAA irradiates the tracking beam is scheduled so that the other APAA does not perform beam irradiation.

If it is determined that the tracking beam irradiation frequency cannot be maintained with the number of basic tracking slots entered in advance in the basic irradiation schedule, the surplus time is secured by halving the number of pulses of two consecutive search beams. By providing an auxiliary tracking slot in the surplus time, an operation is performed to maintain the irradiation frequency of the tracking beam. The auxiliary tracking slot is a time used for irradiation of the tracking beam with respect to the allocated tracking target in the same manner as the basic tracking slot. Since the auxiliary tracking beam is set to the same beam specifications as the search beam, radio wave interference does not occur even when the search beam is simultaneously irradiated from another APAA. Also, a search beam with half the number of pulses can be irradiated simultaneously with other search beams because the pulse width and pulse repetition period are the same as those of the original search beam. Although the S / N ratio of the target signal obtained is reduced by halving the number of search beam pulses, the maximum detection distance is reduced because the pulse repetition period is the same, but the distance at which the target can be detected does not change.

  Referring to FIG. 5, even if the auxiliary tracking beam (FIG. 5 [1]), the search beam (FIG. 5 [2]), and the search beam (FIG. 5 [3]) with a halved number of pulses are simultaneously irradiated, Explain why there is no interference. As shown in the figure, the transmission process and the reception process of each beam can be synchronized because the pulse width and the pulse repetition period are equal. Therefore, even if these beams are irradiated simultaneously, no radio wave interference occurs between the APAAs 101a and 101b.

  FIG. 6 shows a flowchart of the operation of the scheduler 106. The scheduler 106 performs this operation for each APAA 101a and 101b.

  First, in order to maintain the target tracking beam irradiation frequency, the number of necessary tracking slots required in the schedule for one scan is determined by the number of tracking targets assigned to the APAA, the tracking data rate and the scanning cycle defined in advance. (Step 201). Subsequently, it is checked whether or not the number of basic tracking slots input in advance in the basic irradiation schedule is equal to or greater than the required number of tracking slots (step 202). If this is true, the tracking irradiation frequency can be sufficiently satisfied with only the basic tracking slot, and therefore allocation is performed from the allocation tracking target having a high priority to the basic tracking slot according to the tracking data rate (step 203). At this time, the beam specification of the tracking beam with respect to the tracking target is calculated.

  On the other hand, if step 202 is false, the process proceeds to step 204. In step 204, two consecutive search beams that have not been selected in the previous step 204 are randomly selected (step 204). Subsequently, the number of pulses of the search beam selected in step 204 is halved, and the time required for the search beam irradiation is shortened to one search beam by two search beams (step 205). The obtained surplus time for one beam is set as an auxiliary tracking slot (step 206). Subsequently, it is checked whether or not the number of auxiliary tracking slots and basic tracking slots is equal to or greater than the required number of tracking slots (step 207). If step 207 is true, the process proceeds to step 203, and allocation is performed from the allocation tracking target having a higher priority to the basic tracking slot and the auxiliary tracking slot according to the tracking data rate. When a tracking target is assigned to the auxiliary tracking slot, the irradiation direction of the tracking beam with respect to the tracking target is calculated, but the parameters such as the number of pulses, pulse width, and pulse repetition period use the same parameters as the search beam. .

  If step 207 is false, it is checked whether or not a search beam that can be selected remains in the next step 204 (step 208). If true, the process proceeds to step 204. If false, the process proceeds to step 203. .

  FIG. 7 shows a specific example of the operations in steps 204, 205 and 206. FIG. 7 [1] is a basic irradiation schedule. In step 204, the continuous search beam (7) and search beam (8) are selected, and in step 205, the irradiation time of both search beams is reduced to one search beam. An irradiation schedule shown in FIG. 7 [2] is obtained by adding an auxiliary tracking slot to the surplus time in step 205. FIG.

  FIG. 8 shows a specific example of the operation in step 203. In step 203, the allocation tracking target having a high priority is allocated to the basic tracking slot and the auxiliary tracking slot according to the tracking data rate. Referring to FIG. 8, the tracking slot allocation operation for a certain allocation tracking target will be described. First, assignment is made to the basic tracking slot 501. Considering the tracking data rate, the basic tracking slot 503 is the next candidate for allocation. However, since the tracking target with high priority has already been allocated to the basic tracking slot 503, it cannot be allocated. Therefore, assignment is made to the auxiliary tracking slot 504. This process is repeated to determine allocation for one scan.

  Next, the effect of this embodiment will be described. According to this embodiment, even when the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases in the synchronous APAA radar apparatus, the tracking beam irradiation frequency with respect to the tracking target is maintained while the search performance of other APAA is maintained. Can do. The reason is that if the tracking target assigned to a specific APAA increases and it becomes difficult to maintain the frequency of irradiation of the tracking beam, the search time can be shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam of the specific APAA. This is because the surplus time can be used to irradiate the auxiliary tracking beam having specifications that do not cause radio wave interference with the APAA search beam.

  As described above, the radar apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of APAAs close to each other, irradiates a beam simultaneously with each APAA, and searches for and tracks a plurality of targets (synchronous APAA radar apparatus). In each APAA, the search time is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam according to the allocated number of tracking targets, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. It is characterized by doing. In each APAA of the synchronous APAA radar apparatus, when the number of assigned tracking targets increases and the required tracking beam irradiation frequency cannot be satisfied with only the specified tracking beam (basic tracking beam), the specifications of the search beam are changed. By adjusting, the search time is shortened, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam (auxiliary tracking beam) of the specifications that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam, thereby maintaining the beam irradiation frequency.

  Although the synchronous APAA radar apparatus including two APAAs has been described in the above embodiment, it is easy to expand this to N APAAs (N is an integer of 3 or more).

  In the implementation described above, the tracking data rate is handled as a fixed value. However, more effective beam irradiation is possible by calculating the tracking data rate according to the specifications of the tracking target. For example, a low tracking data rate is sufficient for tracking a remote tracking target, but a high tracking data rate is desirable for tracking a short tracking target. In this case, the required number of tracking slots is a sum of values obtained by dividing the scan period by the tracking data rate of each tracking target.

  In the above embodiment, the surplus time generated by halving the number of pulses of the search beam is assigned to the auxiliary tracking slot, but the number of pulses can be arbitrarily adjusted. For example, three consecutive search beams can be selected, and the number of pulses can be reduced to one third to secure more surplus time.

  In the above implementation, search beams that halve the number of pulses are randomly selected, but search beams that irradiate areas where the target appearance rate is high are excluded from the selection targets, so that the target detection performance is substantially reduced. An auxiliary tracking beam can be added without degrading.

  In the above implementation, a search beam that halves the number of pulses is randomly determined for each scan, but a history of pulse number reduction in the previous scan is stored, and a search beam that irradiates the same region is not selected. By doing so, search performance can be made uniform.

  In the above implementation, the tracking target is assigned without distinguishing the basic tracking slot and the auxiliary tracking slot. However, the RCS (Radar Cross Section) of the tracking target is estimated, and a sufficient SN ratio cannot be obtained with the auxiliary tracking beam. For the expected tracking target, the tracking accuracy can be further improved by preferentially allocating the basic tracking slot.

  The present invention has been described above with reference to the above embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. Various changes that can be understood by those skilled in the art can be made to the configuration and details of the present invention.

  Although a part or all of the above embodiments can be described as the following supplementary notes, the present invention is not limited to the following configurations.

[Supplementary Note 1] In a beam management apparatus that calculates an irradiation schedule including irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam.
Basic irradiation schedule storage means for storing a basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance;
Tracking target input means for inputting a tracking target assigned to the APAA;
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam An irradiation schedule calculating means for calculating the irradiation schedule so as to
A beam management device comprising:

[Supplementary Note 2] In the beam management apparatus according to Supplementary Note 1,
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. Calculate the irradiation schedule,
A beam management device characterized by that.

[Appendix 3] In the beam management apparatus described in Appendix 2,
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The irradiation time of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the irradiation time is used to irradiate the tracking beam with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. Calculate the schedule,
A beam management device characterized by that.

[Appendix 4] A plurality of APAAs that irradiate a search beam and a tracking beam and receive a reflected signal from a target;
A transmitter / receiver that drives these APAAs according to a transmission signal and generates a reception signal based on a reflection signal received by the APAA;
A reception processing unit that assigns a tracking target to the APAA based on the reception signal generated by the transmission / reception unit;
A scheduler as a beam management device according to any one of appendices 1 to 3,
A beam parameter calculation unit that calculates phase data of the APAA based on the irradiation schedule calculated by the scheduler and outputs the phase data to the transmission / reception unit;
A radar apparatus comprising:

[Supplementary Note 5] In a beam management method for calculating an irradiation schedule including irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam,
A basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance is stored,
Enter the tracking target assigned to the APAA,
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam Calculating the irradiation schedule to
A beam management method comprising:

[Appendix 6] In the beam management method described in Appendix 5,
When calculating the irradiation schedule,
The time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. Calculate the irradiation schedule,
A beam management method characterized by that.

[Appendix 7] In the beam management method described in Appendix 6,
When calculating the irradiation schedule,
The irradiation time of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the irradiation time is used to irradiate the tracking beam with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. Calculate the schedule,
A beam management method characterized by that.

[Appendix 8] In a beam management program for calculating an irradiation schedule including irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam,
Basic irradiation schedule storage means for storing a basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance;
Tracking target input means for inputting a tracking target assigned to the APAA;
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam An irradiation schedule calculating means for calculating the irradiation schedule so as to
Beam management program to make the computer function.

[Appendix 9] In the beam management program described in Appendix 8,
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. Calculate the irradiation schedule,
A beam management program characterized by that.

[Appendix 10] In the beam management program described in Appendix 9,
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The irradiation time of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the irradiation time is used to irradiate the tracking beam with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. Calculate the schedule,
A beam management program characterized by that.

  The present invention can be used for a radar apparatus that tracks a moving object (for example, an aircraft, a satellite, a space debris, a vehicle, a ship, etc.).

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Beam management apparatus 11 Basic irradiation schedule memory | storage means 12 Tracking target input means 13 Irradiation schedule calculation means a Basic irradiation schedule b Tracking target c Irradiation schedule 30 Computer 31 CPU
32 ROM
33 RAM
34 I / O interface 100 Radar apparatus 101a, 101b APAA
102a, 102b Transmission / reception unit 103a, 103b Signal processing unit 104 Tracking processing unit 105 Tracking target APAA allocation processing unit 106 Scheduler (beam management apparatus)
107a, 107b Beam parameter calculation unit 108 Reception processing unit 109a-109e Tracking target

Claims (10)

For a plurality of APAAs that irradiate a search beam and a tracking beam, in a beam management device that calculates an irradiation schedule including irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam,
Basic irradiation schedule storage means for storing a basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance;
Tracking target input means for inputting a tracking target assigned to the APAA;
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam An irradiation schedule calculating means for calculating the irradiation schedule so as to
A beam management device comprising: The beam management device according to claim 1,
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. Calculate the irradiation schedule,
A beam management device characterized by that. The beam management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The irradiation time of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the irradiation time is used to irradiate the tracking beam with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. Calculate the schedule,
A beam management device characterized by that. A plurality of APAAs that irradiate a search beam and a tracking beam and receive a reflected signal from the target;
A transmitter / receiver that drives these APAAs according to a transmission signal and generates a reception signal based on a reflection signal received by the APAA;
A reception processing unit that assigns a tracking target to the APAA based on the reception signal generated by the transmission / reception unit;
A scheduler as a beam management device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A beam parameter calculation unit that calculates phase data of the APAA based on the irradiation schedule calculated by the scheduler and outputs the phase data to the transmission / reception unit;
A radar apparatus comprising: In a beam management method for calculating an irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam,
A basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance is stored,
Enter the tracking target assigned to the APAA,
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam Calculating the irradiation schedule to
A beam management method comprising: The beam management method according to claim 5, wherein
When calculating the irradiation schedule,
The time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. Calculate the irradiation schedule,
A beam management method characterized by that. The beam management method according to claim 6, wherein
When calculating the irradiation schedule,
The irradiation time of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the irradiation time is used to irradiate the tracking beam with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. Calculate the schedule,
A beam management method characterized by that. In a beam management program for calculating an irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam for a plurality of APAAs that irradiate the search beam and the tracking beam,
Basic irradiation schedule storage means for storing a basic irradiation schedule composed of irradiation timings of the search beam and the tracking beam determined in advance;
Tracking target input means for inputting a tracking target assigned to the APAA;
When the number of allocated tracking targets increases and exceeds the predetermined number of tracking beams, the time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened and the remaining time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam An irradiation schedule calculating means for calculating the irradiation schedule so as to
Beam management program to make the computer function. The beam management program according to claim 8,
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The time required for irradiation of the search beam is shortened by adjusting the specifications of the search beam, and the surplus time is used for irradiation of the tracking beam of the specification that does not cause radio wave interference with the search beam. Calculate the irradiation schedule,
A beam management program characterized by that. The beam management program according to claim 9, wherein
The irradiation schedule calculation means includes
The irradiation time of the search beam is shortened by reducing the number of pulses of the search beam, and the irradiation time is used to irradiate the tracking beam with the same pulse width and pulse repetition period as the search beam. Calculate the schedule,
A beam management program characterized by that.

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