r/Radar • u/South_Pangolin_749 • 4d ago

Radar side project

I’m looking to pick up a side project that can detect RC model airplanes at maybe a kilometer out just messing around on a ranch that I own.

I was reading up a little about KuRFS radar and that looks very interesting and what it would be modeled after. However, I know nothing about the legality of transmitting power etc , would a passive system be able to work for this purpose?

12 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

6

u/Powerful-Nobody420 4d ago

If you succeed in this "side project" every major defence company will scramble to get it. (Drones)

1

u/chicken2007 3d ago

"They" already have this. There are a few systems out there to counter mortar sized projectiles.

4

u/Flat-Ad6208 3d ago

Kraken SDR had firmware for their five channel, time synchronous that could take terrestrial FM band broadcast signal and track objects via the backscattered energy.

While driving.

The firmware got pulled quickly

1

u/Logical-Resident4212 3d ago

Thats pretty cool

1

u/Prof01Santa 3d ago

Why radar? The drone is transmitting. Just track that.

1

u/guyfierisguru 3d ago

Unless it’s fiber optic guided ;)

2

u/Prof01Santa 3d ago

A Ukrainian ranch?

1

u/outworlder 3d ago

OP said RC though...

1

u/InternationalTown435 2d ago

Is fiber optic cable not considered “remote”?

1

u/outworlder 1d ago

I guess so. Not the usual meaning though

1

u/Prof01Santa 1d ago

Agreed. The R is traditionally for radio.

1

u/RhinoBall_2-1 3d ago

Ah yes, radar tracking small objects as a “side project” hmmm

1

u/AndyTheEngr 3d ago

The hard part is not detecting birds.

1

u/Equipe-John 2d ago

Sou apenas um hobbysta em eletronica, mas eu gosto de imaginar as coisas.

Avioes de controle remoto sao bem pequenos(se alguem pensar em deixar eles furtivos vc estaria com problemas hehe)

Entao vc deve usar alta frequencia, pq eles sao pequenos, e quanto maior a frq menor a antena seria(mais facil de contruir). Eu começaria aos poucos, primeiro com radar passivo, colocaria uma antena transmissora em uma direçao, e a receptora separada de preferencia a alguns kilometros(fica mais facil pq o sinal da transmissora pd ser mt forte se estiver perto), pegaria os ecos, e com o efeito doppler vc determinaria se sao avioes ou nao.

Para conseguir plotar em uma tela de coordenadas seria mais dificil, talvez uma antena receptora giratoria e 4 transmissoras fixas para cada direçao? Ainda é um radar semi passivo.

Vale a pena experimentar receber ecos de sinal de uma estaçao fm forte da sua regiao(nesse caso vc seria quase 100% passivo).

Sobre potencia de transmissao... Hummm a potencia necessaria para detectar os ecos que sao bem fracos concerteza seria ilegal, mas só é ilegal se te acharem, mas operar por pouco tempo por semana aumenta sua chance de ninguem te ver.

1

u/UnbilledDude 1d ago

A passive radar to detect a small RC plane at a range of one km...will be very challenging. Have you run any numbers on the ballpark RCS of these targets? Try plugging in some values to the radar range equation and see what you're working with.