Navigator alignment using radar scan
| DWPI Title: Radar system located on aircraft, has navigator component to identify orientation of antenna and to correct heading error of aircraft based on orientation of antenna |
| Abstract: The various technologies presented herein relate to the determination of and correction of heading error of platform. Knowledge of at least one of a maximum Doppler frequency or a minimum Doppler bandwidth pertaining to a plurality of radar echoes can be utilized to facilitate correction of the heading error. Heading error can occur as a result of component drift. In an ideal situation, a boresight direction of an antenna or the front of an aircraft will have associated therewith at least one of a maximum Doppler frequency or a minimum Doppler bandwidth. As the boresight direction of the antenna strays from a direction of travel at least one of the maximum Doppler frequency or a minimum Doppler bandwidth will shift away, either left or right, from the ideal situation. |
| Use: Radar system e.g. Doppler navigation radars located on aircraft. |
| Advantage: The navigator is configured to correct a heading error of the aircraft based on a direction relating to the at least one of the determined maximum Doppler frequency or the determined minimum Doppler bandwidth. An Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) utilized for the determination of direction of an aircraft and the direction of an antenna boresight is prone to drift, thus leading to manifestation of a yaw or heading error. |
| Novelty: The system (128) has a navigator (127) component to determine Doppler frequencies and bandwidths in multiple radar echoes collected during a scan of an antenna (120) of the radar system. At least one of a Doppler frequency or a Doppler bandwidth is determined in the Doppler frequencies and bandwidths. An orientation of the antenna that corresponds to at least one of the Doppler frequency or the Doppler bandwidth is identified. A heading error of the aircraft is corrected based on the orientation of the antenna. |
| Filed: 10/4/2013 |
| Application Number: US14046145A |
| Tech ID: SD 11733.0 |
| This invention was made with Government support under Contract No. DE-NA0003525 awarded by the United States Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration. The Government has certain rights in the invention. |
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