Concept for measuring and compensating array deformation

Phased array antennas are increasingly used in modern radar systems. Such systems are very liable to distortion of the relative phases between the radiating elements. For airborne, spaceborne, and naval phased array systems, vibrations of the array structure are an important source of phase distortions. In this paper, a system concept will be presented to measure array deformation and provide phase compensation information with which the received data can be corrected. Such realtime measurement and compensation of array vibrations may considerably improve the performance of operational systems. Therefore, a study was started to investigate the feasibility of this concept. Shaker experiments proved that the required measurement accuracy is within reach using off-the-shelf sensors and suitable signal processing.