Airborne surveillance radars continue to advance towards more flexible architectures that enable them to address evolving adversary tactics facilitated by global proliferation of RF and High Performance Embedded Computing (HPEC) technologies. Aided by these technologies, the adversary can use multiple electronic counter measures that can confuse traditional monostatic radars and obscure the true order of battle. Multifunction/multimodal radar addresses this challenge by enabling coordinated, adaptive use of multiple modes, waveforms, and source-receiver geometries simultaneously to provide rich, discriminating feature sets for detection and identification of these fleeting and deceptive targets. Azure Summit Technology, provider of the Switchblade family of low SWaP-C Intelligent RF Transceivers that is the basis for PMA-290s SIGINT/ELINT Common Chassis, together with our teammate Raytheon, provider of the APY-10 and other DoD radar systems, is pleased to offer this proposal to develop the Multifunction-Multimodal Maritime Airborne (M3A) MIMO Radar system to address PMA-290s maritime/littoral radar objectives. Our solution leverages these technologies and capabilities to develop low SWaP, wideband M3A MIMO and passive radar architectures that address these emerging challenges, enable simplified integration of new radar modes and functions consistent with the APY-10 surveillance mission and fully capitalize upon PMA-290 Common Chassis next generation technologies and established logistics.
Benefit: Azures Switchblade family of Intelligent Transceivers was developed for NAVAIR PMA-290 (Mr. David Wheeler david.j.wheeler1@navy.mil) and is the basis of the Navys Common Chassis for SIGINT/ELINT. It is currently being integrated into EP-3, P-8, Triton, and Virginia Class submarines, and is under consideration for other platforms. Leveraging the Navys substantial investment to date in developing the Switchblade capability, Azure will be using Switchblade hardware for the Multifunction Multimodal Airborne radar design for this effort. This hardware commonality, along with the availability of Azure supported Software Development and Firmware Development Kits (SDK/FDK), enables simplified migration of the algorithms, software and firmware developed under this effort to other Common Chassis platforms, facilitating integration of these capabilities to new platforms and interoperability with other Navy platforms. Algorithms, software and firmware previously developed for the Navys SIGINT/ELINT mission could also be integrated onto future multifunction multimodal radar platforms as well. PMA-290 has already worked with other agencies across the Navy to establish efficient means of procuring Switchblade production and services for Navy systems. Since the Switchblade hardware used for this effort is the same hardware being used for the Navys SIGINT/ELINT Common Chassis, future multifunction multimodal radar systems can leverage the logistics for Switchblade hardware procurement and support that has already been established by PMA-290 and the Navy, providing substantial future cost savings to the Navy.
Keywords: Emitters of Opportunity, Emitters of Opportunity, MIMO, multimode, multifunction RF, Multistatic, Radar, Space-Time Adaptive Processing, small SWaP
