Coherent Integration in JTIDS-Based Passive Bistatic Radar Using Generalized 2-D Sidelobe Suppression Filtering

Abstract

This article presents a method to enhance target detection performance in joint tactical information distribution system (JTIDS) based passive bistatic radar (PBR) through coherent integration. The frequency-hopping nature of JTIDS signals induces random fluctuations in the range and Doppler phase of target echoes, which severely degrades coherence in the PBR system. To overcome this limitation, a generalized 2-D sidelobe suppression filter, formulated via convex optimization, is introduced to compensate for these random phase variations and recover coherently integrated target energy. The proposed filter not only supports accurate target velocity estimation but also enables the generation of high-range-resolution profiles with low-sidelobe levels. Furthermore, to address range ambiguities resulting from the high-pulse repetition frequency (HPRF) of JTIDS waveforms, a presliding technique, adapted from continuous-wave processing, is incorporated to decouple HPRF from the unambiguous detection range. The proposed algorithm demonstrates improved coherent integration and detection performance for both point and extended targets compared with the conventional approaches. A variety of experimental results are offered to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.