Perimeter surveillance using a miniaturized millimetre-wave radar

An FM-CW radar at 94 GHz has been equipped with antennas with high azimuthal gain and a broad beam in elevation and mounted on a rotating pedestal. The radar covers a range interval of 500 m. A change detection algorithm is used to discriminate invading persons from the background. Tracking of non-stationary target objects is maintained by Kalman filtering. The RCS of detected objects is determined using a pre-calibration against a precision corner reflector at a defined range. The measured RCS is compared with a threshold value to discriminate between dangerous and nondangerous persons. Additional information from a video camera is necessary for a first discrimination between target classes.