A new way of estimating radar pulse intercepts

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to give some useful estimates for radar pulse intercept times when emitter and receiver parameters are given as some multiple of a basic unit of time. The scan of the emitter (that is, the main beam when the emitter is rotating) and the frequency scanning receiver are modelled as periodic ON/OFF window functions. We are interested in the time required for these two periodic functions to coincide. We provide an algorithm that rapidly produces accurate maximum and mean time estimates to first radar pulse coincidence for those phases that lead to intercept. The algorithms presented are much faster and less computationally intensive than simulation, and may prove a useful tool for electronic support applications.