Overview and Prospects of Multipath Exploitation Radar Target Detection Technology

Abstract

The Multipath Exploitation Radar (MER) target detection technology is primarily based on the Non-Line-Of-Sight (NLOS) multipath propagation characteristics of electromagnetic waves, such as reflection and diffraction on the surface of the medium, enabling the effective detection of targets hidden in the “visually” blind area, such as urban street corners and vehicle occlusion. Thus, the technology can be feasible for various applications, including urban combat and intelligent driving. Further, it has significant practical and research implications. This paper summarizes the domestic and foreign literature in this field since the beginning of the 21st century to keep abreast of developments in this field and predict future development trends. The literature review revealed that according to the different types of detection platforms, MER target detection technology primarily consists of multipath detection technologies based on air and ground platforms. Both these technologies have achieved certain produced research results of practical significance. For air platforms, the following aspects are discussed: feasibility verification, analysis of influencing factors, architectural environment perception, and NLOS target detection. Further, for ground platforms, these four aspects are covered: target detection and recognition, two-dimensional target positioning, three-dimensional target information acquisition, and new detection methods. Finally, the prospects of MER target detection technology are summarized, and the potential issues and challenges in the current practical application of this technology are highlighted. These results show that MER target detection technology is evolving toward diversification and intelligence.

Keywords

• urban shelter environment
• non-line-of-sight (nlos)
• multipath exploitation radar (mer)
• target detection
• future development