The dual band beacon SMP2000 has been successfully deployed in various missions providing combat identification, multiple drop/landing/assault marking, and as point designators for targeting. However, the SMP2000 does not satisfy the future requirement for Combat ID and Blue Force tracking due to size, weight, GPS capability, Joint-STARS compatibility, and radar reflective .aircraft for Blue Force tracking. The advent of Silicon Germanium (SiGe) based RFICs permits the implementation of complex multi-GHz circuits onto a single chip. Sierra Monolithics proposes to develop a miniaturized version of SMP-2000 incorporating combat ID/blue force tracking capabilities onto a SiGe RFIC for each band. The proposed architecture, frequency source, and modulation scheme will allow beacon, JSTARS, and radar reflective tag functions to be incorporated onto the same RFIC chip set. In the Phase I effort, using the SMI-1070 X-band transceiver chip, Sierra successfully demonstrated a prototype MMRB that performs beacon functions typical of the Microponder SMP-1000 as well as the JSTARS functionality. The X-band MMRB also incorporates a stand-alone GPS receiver which provides position data and route tracking capabilities. The proposed Phase II effort will develop two SiGe chips, one for X-band and one for Ku-band. The two chips together will provide dual band beacon functions, dual band radar reflective function, and X-band JSTARS ID functions. A follow-on Option 1 is also proposed to build a prototype dual band MMRB module using the 2-chip set to provide dual band beacon functions, JSTARS ID functions and a GPS receiver, all in the same housing.
Keywords: Combat Identification, Blue Force Tracking, Transponders, Beacons.
