A Low-Cost DVB-T2-based Passive Bistatic Phased Array Radar for Target Detection and Localisation

RADAR systems are traditionally the domain of the military or large commercial entities due to technology costs. Recent emergence of affordable software defined radios (SDRs) have lowered the barriers to entry of radio-frequency developments available to the public, allowing for low-cost implementations and developments of technology that was previously inaccessible. In this work, a cost-effective passive bistatic phased array radar using the digital video broadcasting (DVB-T2) band is proposed, using only low-cost SDRs and commercially available DVB-T2 dipole antennas normally used for home television signal reception to reduce the cost of the system. By using beam-steering techniques to reduce noise and reconstruct the original signal from the transmitter, the array is used as both the reference and surveillance channels, eliminating the need for a dedicated reference channel. The working frequency is 554 MHz. The ability to detect the presence of and direction of commercial flights with respect to the array is demonstrated.