UWB FMCW Radar for Concealed Weapon Detection

Abstract

Current methods for concealed weapon detection are mainly used at stationary security check-points due to complexity and other serious limitations for real-time outdoor scenarios. A mobile imaging radar is considered as a proper solution for fast screening of people at mass events because of its ability to detect both metal and non-metal weapons through clothes. In this thesis, the design of an RF front-end for an UWB Microwave Imaging Radar based on MIMO 2-D array and multichannel FMCW electronics is presented. Requirements to the design were low power emissions and minimization of data acquisition time, cost and complexity. The UWB technology provides high resolution, while MIMO technique helps reducing the number of required antennas in the 2-D array, without a net degradation of performance. The final RF-scheme was selected based on the availability of commercial off-the-shelves RF-components. The performance of the designed RF front-end was evaluated both via theoretical analysis and simulations in a dedicated software Advanced Design System (ADS, by Agilent). The obtained results in terms of sensitivity, dynamic range, down-range resolution and measurement speed demonstrate that the proposed solution is feasible for through-dress detection of concealed weapons.