Intelligent visualization of radar data

This paper discusses the utilization of state-of-the-art software tools by radar research and development scientist and engineers, providing a capability to search, select, process and distribute gigabytes of radar data easily and efficiently. Our approach allows the user to view the radar scene via virtual reality visualization tools. The user is permitted to navigate the radar flight profile, view and identify: terrain types, cultural features and potential targets. Digitized terrain data, land use land cover data, digital line graph data, radar auxiliary data, and target beacon data are stored in relational database management systems. These software tools query the database(s) and render different areas in virtual reality, allowing the user to visualize the terrain, identify targets, and through color codes and text, present to the user information about the objects the radar is encountering. This capability allows the user to intelligently select training data and the length of the coherent processing interval (CPI) for detection processing, and aid in further analysis for the characterization of the interference environment.