A real time digital signal processing solution for radar pulse compression

This paper outlines the design techniques that have been applied to the development of a flexible processor which is used to perform high speed, real time signal processing applicable to low cost, pulse compression radar. The core structure of this processor is similar to a standard nonrecursive filter, modified to suit the application. Flexibility in the design permits the use of multiple code types and lengths needed for phase coded pulse compression and code sequences, which eliminate ambiguities, caused by high pulse repetition frequencies. The device used in this application is a field programmable gate array (FPGA) which has distinct advantages compared to other application specific integrated circuits (ASIC) for the purposes of this work. The FPGA provides flexibility, for example, full reconfiguration in milli-seconds and permits a complete single chip solution.