Increasing the efficiency and robustness of angular radar calibration by exploiting phase symmetry

Abstract

For imaging radars, the calibration effort increases with higher frequency and finer angular resolution demands and is therefore one of the largest cost factors in radar production. In case of high angular resolution, the calibration is also sensitive to array misalignment, resulting in costly calibration procedures. This paper proposes an angle-dependent radar calibration method with significantly reduced calibration effort. The high efficiency and robustness against misalignment is achieved by exploiting phase symmetry of a target in the measured radar response. Based on an initial theoretical formulation followed by an experimental verification, this novel approach does not only yield a cost-effective calibration, but also increases the robustness against array misalignment.