Low Elevation Angle Estimation Using an Iterative Array Processing Method

Resumo

Multipath phenomenon reduces the performance of elevation angle estimation, intensively. In this study, a precise even symmetry relation and novel iterative array processing method have been presented based on the fixed beam method for estimating the elevation angle of low-altitude targets in specular and diffuse multipath environment. We propose an iterative beamforming process for retaining antenna aperture with precise even symmetry to eliminate multipath. The Kalman filter (KF) prediction have been used to reduce the computational load of the proposed method, and the frequency diversity and KF estimation to smooth sudden fluctuations in angle estimation. The proposed method estimates the elevation angle with very high precision as shown in simulation results in the multipath environment without the need for any advance knowledge.