Virtual SIMO radar modelling in arrayed MIMO radar

In this paper, an equivalent `virtual´ SIMO (Single Input Multiple Output) radar representation of the MIMO radar system is established which enables the analysis of the full MIMO system geometry. Analytical expressions are derived to describe the key geometrical properties of the virtual array´s manifold, which fully characterises the entire transmit-receive system geometry. A new family of subarrayed collinear MIMO array structures is presented for obtaining uniform linear virtual arrays. It is shown that this reduces the required radar platform size by up to a half, compared to popular existing methods, without reducing virtual array aperture.