EDA high-resolution passive radar locks development milestone

Spanish contractor Indra has completed development and demonstration of the Array Passive ISAR (APIS) adaptive processing equipment, which it claims is the world's first passive radar to make use of Inverse Synthetic-Aperture Radar (ISAR) technology.

Alongside Indra (which has acted as lead contractor), development of the European Defence Agency- (EDA-) sponsored APIS architecture has involved Italy's Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per le Telecomunicazioni (CNIT) and Vitrociset SpA, Hungary's Academy of Sciences' Computer and Automation Research Institute (Hungarian acronym MTA SZTAKI), Spain's Universidad de Alcalá and the University of Cyprus.

As described by the EDA, the 24-month-long APIS programme has been designed to "study and realise" a multi-channel, multi-static single receiver for an Array Passive Radar (APR) that makes use of digital signals-of-opportunity (in this case, digital terrestrial TV transmissions).

In more detail, the envisaged APR would exploit multiple-frequency channels from an illuminator-of-opportunity (IO), multiple IOs located in different positions but operating in the same band - an example here being Digital Video Broadcast - Terrestrial (DVB-T) repeaters - and/or other possible combinations that would include terrestrial, airborne and space-based emitters.