Distributed-array radar system with synchronization using known targets

Recently, radar systems with distributed-array antennas, in which multiple phased arrays are distributed and the received signals from each phased array (hereafter called subarrays) are combined, have been considered to improve radar detection performance and reduce costs. However, when synchronizing the transmit–receive timing between subarrays, signal lines across boards and housings are required for synchronization, which increases the size of the equipment. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a distributed radar system in which each subarray has an independent reference signal source and uses a known signal for synchronization. A prototype of the distributed radar system is also presented, and the principle of the proposed system is verified using actual data.