Study of millimeter-wave radar for helicopter assisted landing system

This paper discusses the development of an algorithm used to simulate the effectiveness of millimeter-wave radar in imaging a rough terrain, for the purpose of helicopter assisted landing. Using an externally generated terrain and the physical optics approximation, the algorithm computes the backscatter response of the terrain when illuminated by a real aperture antenna. Results are presented from simulating terrains with different macroscopic features, such as a hump, ditch or a slope. It shown that operating at millimeter-wave, more specifically at W-Band frequencies, is ideal for such an application where a compact sensor is required to achieve high resolution imaging.