GRK 2680:  Cooperative Synthesis of Apertures for Radar Tomography

• Subject Area: Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
• Term: since 2022
• Website: Homepage
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 437847244

The aim of the Graduiertenkolleg KoRaTo is to train and promote young scientists in the field of cooperative aperture synthesis, which will be researched for the first time, to record geophysical parameters in the bio-, geo-, hydro-, and cryosphere. Cooperative aperture synthesis refers to tomographic imaging radar methods in which large-area / large-volume radar apertures are synthesized from a large number of individually mobile, non-coherent spatially distributed sub-radar apertures using novel, coherent cooperation methods. The sub-radar apertures are carried by mobile flight robots (UAV – unmanned aerial vehicle) that move in a swarm. The four research priorities are as follows: 1) Methods to spatially and temporally couple the non-coherent sub-radar apertures on different UAVs so that coherent, multistatic radar measurements for tomography and interferometry can be carried out; 2) Optimized time-variant apertures, which are spanned by the movement of several UAVs, as well as jointly optimized trajectories of the movements; 3) Methods for tomographic imaging in non-homogeneous media, made possible by the cooperative spatial aperture synthesis; 4) Concepts for data storage, transmission and processing based on compressed sensing methods and resource optimization for the sensor data of the cooperative aperture synthesis. The proposed cooperative aperture synthesis approach enables novel tomographic radar imaging principles and is being researched for the first time in KoRaTo and validated with the first demonstrations. For radar remote sensing in the geosciences – for example for mapping dynamic processes in the biosphere, cryosphere, geosphere and hydrosphere – it promises a completely new quality of earth observation in terms of resolution and information content. One example is the spatially correct, multi-perspective three-dimensional acquisition of optically completely or partially hidden structures in non-homogeneous media, for instance in ground, snow or ice areas or in the biomass.

• DFG Programme: Research Training Groups
• Applicant Institution: Universität Ulm
• Co-Applicant Institution: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
• Spokesperson: Professor Dr.-Ing. Christian Waldschmidt
• Participating Researchers: Professor Dr.-Ing. Christian Damm; Professor Dr.-Ing. Robert Fischer; Professor Dr.-Ing. Gerhard Krieger; Professor Dr.-Ing. Robert Schober; Professor Dr.-Ing. Martin Vossiek