Discrete-Phase Sequence Design with Stopband and PSL Constraints for Cognitive Radar

in Proceedings of EuRAD 2020 (in press)

We present the design of discrete-phase sequences considering simultaneously the peak sidelobe level (PSL) and avoiding reserved frequency bands which are occupied by narrowband interferers or ... [more ▼]

We present the design of discrete-phase sequences considering simultaneously the peak sidelobe level (PSL) and avoiding reserved frequency bands which are occupied by narrowband interferers or communications. We use the coordinate descent framework and propose an algorithm to design discrete-phase sequences with spectral power suppressed in arbitrary bands and with low auto-correlation sidelobes in terms of PSL. Our proposed algorithm exploits fast Fourier transform and is, therefore, computationally efficient. The over-the-air experiments using implementation on software-defined radio show reasonable agreement with numerical simulations and feasibility for field-deployment [less ▲]

A Hybrid Approach to Optimal TOA-Sensor Placement With Fixed Shared Sensors for Simultaneous Multi-Target Localization

in IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing (2022)

This paper focuses on optimal time-of-arrival (TOA) sensor placement for multiple target localization simultaneously. In previous work, different solutions only using non-shared sensors to localize ... [more ▼]

This paper focuses on optimal time-of-arrival (TOA) sensor placement for multiple target localization simultaneously. In previous work, different solutions only using non-shared sensors to localize multiple targets have been developed. Those methods localize different targets one-by-one or use a large number of mobile sensors with many limitations, such as low effectiveness and high network complexity. In this paper, firstly, a novel optimization model for multi-target localization incorporating shared sensors is formulated. Secondly, the systematic theoretical results of the optimal sensor placement are derived and concluded using the A-optimality criterion, i.e., minimizing the trace of the inverse Fisher information matrix (FIM), based on rigorous geometrical derivations. The reachable optimal trace of Cramér-Rao lower bound (CRLB) is also derived. It can provide optimal conditions for many cases and even closed form solutions for some special cases. Thirdly, a novel numerical optimization algorithm to quickly find and calculate the (sub-)optimal placement and achievable lower bound is explored, when the model becomes complicated with more practical constraints. Then, a hybrid method for solving the most general situation, integrating both the analytical and numerical solutions, is proposed. Finally, the correctness and effectiveness of the proposed theoretical and mathematical methods are demonstrated by several simulation examples. [less ▲]

Contactless radar-based breathing monitoring of premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit

in Scientific Reports (2022), 12(1), 1--15

Vital sign monitoring systems are essential in the care of hospitalized neonates. Due to the immaturity of their organs and immune system, premature infants require continuous monitoring of their vital ... [more ▼]

Vital sign monitoring systems are essential in the care of hospitalized neonates. Due to the immaturity of their organs and immune system, premature infants require continuous monitoring of their vital parameters and sensors need to be directly attached to their fragile skin. Besides mobility restrictions and stress, these sensors often cause skin irritation and may lead to pressure necrosis. In this work, we show that a contactless radar-based approach is viable for breathing monitoring in the Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). For the first time, different scenarios common to the NICU daily routine are investigated, and the challenges of monitoring in a real clinical setup are addressed through different contributions in the signal processing framework. Rather than just discarding measurements under strong interference, we present a novel random body movement mitigation technique based on the time-frequency decomposition of the recovered signal. In addition, we propose a simple and accurate frequency estimator which explores the harmonic structure of the breathing signal. As a result, the proposed radar-based solution is able to provide reliable breathing frequency estimation, which is close to the reference cabled device values most of the time. Our findings shed light on the strengths and limitations of this technology and lay the foundation for future studies toward a completely contactless solution for vital signs monitoring. [less ▲]

Improving Pulse-Compression Weather Radar via the Joint Design of Subpulses and Extended Mismatch Filter

in IGARSS 2022-2022 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (2022)

Pulse compression can enhance both the performance in range resolution and sensitivity for weather radar. However, it will introduce the issue of high sidelobes if not delicately implemented. Motivated by ... [more ▼]

Pulse compression can enhance both the performance in range resolution and sensitivity for weather radar. However, it will introduce the issue of high sidelobes if not delicately implemented. Motivated by this fact, we focus on the pulse compression design for weather radar in this paper. Specifically, we jointly design both the subpulse codes and extended mismatch filter based on the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM). This joint design will yield a pulse compression with low sidelobes, which equivalently implies a high signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) and a low estimation error on meteorological reflectivity. The experiment results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed pulse compression strategy since its achieved meteorological reflectivity estimations are highly similar to the ground truth. [less ▲]

Statistical Performance Analysis of Radar-Based Vital-Sign Processing Techniques

Scientific Conference (2022)

Radar-based vital-sign monitoring provides several advantages over standard methodologies. Despite the huge amount of recent work, the preference for particular technique(s) is in debt, due to lack of a ... [more ▼]

Radar-based vital-sign monitoring provides several advantages over standard methodologies. Despite the huge amount of recent work, the preference for particular technique(s) is in debt, due to lack of a formal comparison between them. In addition, collection of real data is a time-consuming process and therefore most of the proposed solutions are only evaluated under very limited scenarios. In this paper we present a simulation framework and a selection of results which allow easy performance comparison between radar-based vital-sign processing techniques. The proposed simulation tool scans over multiple breathing and heartbeat frequencies, and the combined effects along the entire signal processing chain can be analyzed, for different combinations of scenarios and techniques. The results have shown specific limitations for each method, thus indicating a need for proper selection based on operating conditions. In addition, while breathing estimation performance is only limited by noise, heartbeat estimation is limited by the presence of breathing harmonics and, despite promising results at specific breathing/heartbeat frequencies, the presented methods fail to fully mitigate this type of interference in all scenarios. [less ▲]

Automotive Squint-forward-looking SAR: High Resolution and Early Warning

in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Signal Processing (2021)

Forward-looking automotive radars can sense long-distant targets to enable early warning, but the lateral resolution is limited. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) techniques can achieve very high azimuth ... [more ▼]

Forward-looking automotive radars can sense long-distant targets to enable early warning, but the lateral resolution is limited. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) techniques can achieve very high azimuth resolution but cannot resolve targets in the forward direction. As a trade-off, squint-forward-looking SAR (SFL-SAR) can perform 2D imaging on a distant area squint to the moving direction, providing both high resolution and early warning. In this paper, we analyzed and derived the constraints of automotive SFL-SAR to satisfy both the required resolution and braking distance. Simulations and imaging results verified the analysis. [less ▲]

Subpulse Processing for Unambiguous Doppler Estimation in Pulse-Doppler Noise Radars

in IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems (2021)

Spatial- and Range- ISLR Trade-off in MIMO Radar Systems via Waveform Design

in IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing (2021)

This paper aims to design a set of transmit waveforms in cognitive colocated Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO) radar systems considering the simultaneous minimization of the contradictory objectives of ... [more ▼]

This paper aims to design a set of transmit waveforms in cognitive colocated Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO) radar systems considering the simultaneous minimization of the contradictory objectives of spatial- and the range- Integrated Sidelobe Level Ratio (ISLR). The design problem is formulated as a bi-objective Pareto optimization under practical constraints on the waveforms, namely total transmit power, peak-to-average-power ratio (PAR), constant modulus, and discrete phase alphabet. A Coordinate Descent (CD) based approach is proposed where the solution in each iteration is handled through novel methodologies designed in the paper. The simultaneous optimization leads to a trade-off between the two ISLRs and the simulation results illustrate significantly improved trade-off offered by the proposed methodologies. [less ▲]

Sidelobe Performance Analysis of Noise Waveforms Considering the Doppler Mismatch

in Proceedings of the 21st International Radar Symposium (IRS), Warsaw, Poland, 2020 (2020)

Waveform design and optimization algorithms generally assume a zero-Doppler ideal case to reach an optimum or satisfactory solution in terms of the matched filter output. Therefore, its performance is ... [more ▼]

Waveform design and optimization algorithms generally assume a zero-Doppler ideal case to reach an optimum or satisfactory solution in terms of the matched filter output. Therefore, its performance is usually characterized only in terms of the resultant waveforms autocorrelation function, neglecting the practical situation in which the received signal is modulated by the target’s Doppler shift. Within this context, this work investigates the Doppler mismatch effects in the Integrated Sidelobe Level (ISL) performance of previously designed/optimized noise waveforms. The analysis has shown that, despite much better results for steady targets, the increasing Doppler mismatch reduces the ISL performance of optimized waveforms, until similar levels achieved when no optimization is performed. To address that, a subpulse Doppler processing approach is also considered, and the results have shown that, besides increasing the Doppler tolerance, it has also increased the optimized waveform robustness to the Doppler mismatch, reducing the resultant ISL loss and thus extending its applicability. [less ▲]

Designing MPSK Sequences and Doppler Filter Bank in Cognitive Radar Systems

in International Radar Conference, france, Toulon 23-27 September, 2019 (2019)

In this paper, we propose an attractive method to jointly design discrete phase radar sequence and receive filter bank with the aim of enhancing Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio (SINR) in a ... [more ▼]

In this paper, we propose an attractive method to jointly design discrete phase radar sequence and receive filter bank with the aim of enhancing Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio (SINR) in a cognitive radar system. Towards this, we consider maximizing the worst case SINR at the output of the filter bank when transmitting M-ary Phase Shift Keying (MPSK) sequences, an exercise hitherto not considered. This maximization results in a max-min optimization problem that is multi-variable and non-convex, where we propose an efficient algorithm based on the Coordinate Descent (CD) framework to address it. The gains demonstrated by the proposed algorithm over the state of the art as well as its discrete phase property render the designed sequences attractive for hardware implementation while enabling efficient utilization of transmit power. [less ▲]