Indonesian Student Develops Affordable Long-Range Radar, Eliminating Costly Components

A bright mind from the Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) has successfully engineered a long-range radar system that boasts high resolution in angle, range, and velocity, all while significantly reducing production costs. Devy Kuswidiastuti, a doctoral graduate from the Electrical Engineering program at ITS, presented her groundbreaking research during her open doctoral promotion session on Tuesday, July 26, 2022.

Detailing her innovation, Kuswidiastuti, a native of Gresik, explained that conventional phased array radar technology suffers from a limitation: it can only transmit signals in a specific direction. "However, when trying to increase the range, the radar becomes less capable of distinguishing the direction from which the signal is received by the beam," she elaborated, as quoted on the ITS website on Thursday, July 28, 2022.

To address this critical challenge of narrow signal direction and range specifications in existing radar systems, Kuswidiastuti focused her doctoral dissertation on "Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) Multiple-input Multiple-output (MIMO) Radar with Circulating Codes (CC)." Her research culminated in a patent granted in March 2022, titled "Long-Range Radar System with Simultaneous Multiple Beam Using CC-OFDM MIMO Technique."

In her innovative approach, Kuswidiastuti ingeniously applied OFDM signals, commonly used in communication technology, to the radar technology she developed. This OFDM signal is combined with CC MIMO, a technique that enables the generation of beams directed at specific angles by introducing phase differences in the signal-emitting elements. "Each OFDM signal will be encoded with a specific code, so when the signal is received back by the receiver, the direction of origin of that signal from the beam can be determined," explained Kuswidiastuti, who also serves as a lecturer in the Electrical Engineering Department at ITS.

This integration of OFDM into the CC MIMO radar allows for the simultaneous transmission of up to 63 beams, a significant advancement over conventional phased array radars that can only transmit signals in a single direction at a time. "So, when conventional radar is used to detect objects located in a different direction, a rotor is needed to rotate the radar," she pointed out.

Kuswidiastuti further explained that altering the signal transmission direction of a radar without employing a rotor necessitates modifying the phase difference of each signal transmitter.

Currently, radars utilize phase shifter components to achieve this phase difference. "However, these phase shifter components are very expensive," added the alumna of Hochschule Darmstadt, Germany.

A key advantage of Kuswidiastuti's radar design lies in its ability to eliminate the need for these costly phase shifters. The required phase difference for steering the signal transmission direction can be obtained directly from the OFDM signal itself. "With this, the price of radar using the CC-OFDM MIMO technique becomes more affordable," she stated confidently.

With the promising advantages offered by her research, Kuswidiastuti successfully earned her doctorate in Electrical Engineering. Her aspirations extend beyond academic achievement, as she hopes her research can progress to the prototyping and commercialization stages.

"That way, Indonesia will be able to produce OFDM technology radar at a low cost," she concluded optimistically, envisioning a future where advanced radar technology is more accessible.

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