Hybrid Signal Fusion for Target Detection in Distributed PA-MIMO Radar Systems on Moving Platforms

Distributed phased multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) radar systems on moving platforms combine the spatial diversity of MIMO radars with the coherent gain of phased-array radars, making them ideal for dynamic environments. However, challenges such as motion-induced channel variability, Doppler shifts, and complex parameter estimation often hinder target detection. Traditional methods like noncoherent fusion (NCF) and coherent fusion (CF) struggle to adapt to such variability, leading to suboptimal performance. In this article, we propose a hybrid signal fusion (HSF) scheme that integrates joint space-time-phase compensation (JSTPC) with a compressed fusion network. The JSTPC module mitigates motion-induced phase errors and ensures precise alignment of received signals, while the compressed fusion network combines CF and NCF stages, leveraging their respective strengths to adaptively manage channel correlation variability. We also develop a joint parameter estimation algorithm to accurately extract direction of departure, direction of arrival, and Doppler frequency, thereby ensuring precise signal reconstruction and enhancing the detection process by estimating key parameters in real time. Theoretical analyses of detection thresholds and probabilities, derived using moment-matching techniques, further validate the reliability of the proposed scheme. Monte Carlo simulations and theoretical analyses for diverse radar configurations and channel correlation scenarios show that the proposed HSF scheme achieves 2 dB detection gain improvement over NCF.