Speaker: Prof. LU Yilong (IEEE Fellow, AAIA Fellow, AIIA Fellow)

Affiliation: Nanyang Technological University

Report Title: Unlocking New Frontiers in Digital-Array Radar Data Processing

Abstract: 

In a modern digital-array radar, the signal chain runs: beamforming based waveform generation → transmitters → antenna array → microwave digital receivers → signal-processing stage → digital beamformer → data-processing layer. While researchers have thoroughly optimized every preceding block, radar-data processing is still relatively under-explored. 

This talk presents two case studies demonstrating how advanced radar data processing unlocks significant performance gains. By embracing flexible waveform and antenna array designs, and leveraging artificial intelligence, one can achieve capabilities beyond the reach of conventional approaches with novel radar data processing. The first case study examines a highly sparse digital-array radar designed for wide field-of-view, low-cost automotive applications. The second explores a vector digital-array architecture delivering ultra-wideband direction-finding for space-surveillance missions. Composite Multiple Resolution processing techniques are applied in both case studies. High-fidelity simulations will quantify the gains delivered by the new processing chains. Hopefully, this talk may spark fresh ideas for tackling open radar problems.

Biography: 

LU Yilong studied or worked at six leading universities across Asia, Europe, and North America, namely,  Harbin Institute of Technology, Tsinghua University, UESTC, UCL, UCLA, and Nanyang Technological University (NTU). He taught at NTU for more than three decades, retired with honor in 2023, and remains active in radar research and applications. His research spans radar systems, array-signal processing, and SAR applications, and he has conducted extensive collaborative projects with prominent organizations and companies in Singapore, France, USA, Netherlands, and China. He also rendered distinguished professional service to the global radar community, inter alia as a member of the IEEE Medal and Recognition Committee for the IEEE Dennis J. Picard Medal - the highest honor award for radar technologies and applications - of the IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society's Fellow Evaluation Panel, the Editorial Board of IET Radar, Sonar & Navigation, and the Advisory Board of the European Union's DBF-SAR project - DIFFERENT. He is an IEEE Life Fellow, an AAIA Fellow, and an AIIA Fellow.