THE A P C RADAR ~ AND ITS DERIVATIVE

L. J. Kuchinski T.R. Patton Westinghouse Electric Corporation Baltimore, Maryland

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Abstract

The APG-66, an airborne radar originally designed for the F-16 A/B aircraft is described here. Applications of this radar have included the U.S. Customs where the radar was used for locating drug traffic, DIVAD in which the radar provided the fire control radar function, the Japanese F-4 and various shipboard and helicopters systems. Currently, a second generation APG-66 is being developed for the F-16 C/D aircraft. This radar, the APG-68, is even more versatile because the individual LRU's have a greater degree of flexibility. The programmable signal processor has the capacity to accommodate numerous air-to-air and air-to-ground modes plus growth. The transmitter is capable of producing high, low, and medium PRF waveforms with the same efficiency through use of a dual mode tube. The modular receiver is designed for ease of maintenance and incorporates significant advancements in stability and ECCM. A variant of the APG-68 is being produced for use on the B-IB. Developments have been initiated to further improve this radar by incorporation of an electronically agile antenna to provide superior multitarget performance and insertion of VHSIC technology to provide more processing power and higher reliability. Both these changes can be more accommodated without disturbing the basic form factor of the radar.

The APG-66 radar, designed for the F-16 aircraft is an excellent example of an avionics system with the functional modularity to handle a diverse number of applications (see figure 1) ranging from tactical fighter fire control to battlefield division air defense. The functional modularity is a result of hardware modularity combined with digital processing and control of the individual radar units. This, combined with another important considerationdesign-to-cost- suggests why the APG-66 radar has seen such widespread and diverse usage. The genesis for the APG-66 radar was an in-house Westinghousedeveloped radar labeled the WX-200. Radars up to this time exhibited low reliability, were difficult to maintain, and, because of their analog nature, did not have the flexibility to handle new threats, new modes or new applications. The WX-200 radar incorporated the first programmable signal processor (PSP) designed for airborne radar applications, was modular and provided a unique feature-digital control of all the radar line replaceable units (LRUs).

B-10 ORS

Figure 1.

The APG-66 Radar and Its Applications

Copyright @ American institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., 1984. All rights reserved.

The product of that development, shown in figure 2, was the APG-66 radar, a modular, all digitally controlled, coherent, pulsedoppler radar. Over 1000 APG-66 radars have been produced to date. Its inherent high reliability and automatic fault isolation capability minimize total life-cycle cost. Demonstrated reliability exceeded 70 hrs in the second year of USAF operational use.

The APG-66 radar consists of six functional LRU's each with its own self-contained power supply. The major elements of the radar are shown in figure 3. A digital multiplex bus system provides communications between the radar computer and the other LRU's. The digital signal processor (DSP) is connected via a dedicated high-speed parallel bus; the other LRU's communicate with the radar computer over a serial bus.

Computer

Low Power PRF I Digital sign;l Processor

Antenna

Transmitter

Weight . . . . . . . . . Power . . . . . . . . .3.6 kVA Cooling Air . . . . . .2.8 kW Volume . . . . . . . .3.63ft3

Figure 3. APG-66 Radar Elements

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The planar array, gimballed in two axes, provides high gain and low sidelobes over all scan angles. Its balanced electrical drive system makes it light weight, highly reliable and easily maintained. The low-power receiver unit contains the stable local oscillator, low noise amplifier (LNA), receiver, A/D converters and system clock. All necessary analog processing at RF and IF is performed in this unit. The transmitter contains an air-cooled traveling wave tube (TWT), a solid-state grid pulser, high voltage power supply and regulators and the protection and control circuitry. The entire transmitter is solid state with the exception of the TWT output tube. Clutter rejection, digital filtering and detection processing are performed in the DSF? The DSP uses standard integrated circu'its mounted in dual in-line packages; LSI devices are used wherever possible. The result is high circuitry density with attendant reductions in cost and weight. The radar computer configures the radar system for the various modes, directs the DSP to embed symbols in the video output, performs specialized mode processing, routes data to the outside world and controls all self-test and built-in test functions of the radar. The radar is equipped with 48K of programmable, readonly memory and provides throughputs in excess of 350 KOPS for representative instruction mixes. The APG-66 radar incorporates a number of air-to-air and air-tosurface modes as shown in figure 4. The key air-to-air features are the ability to detect and accurately track low flying targets in rain and high clutter environments and to rapidly acquire and track high-speed, highly maneuvering targets in close-in dogfight engagements. The high peak power, medium PRF waveform permits highly accurate range, angle and doppler tracking at all target asDects.

Volume Weight Frequency Reliahilitp Maintenance Electronic Parts Cooling Input Power Range Scales Elevation Coverage Antenna Azimuth Scan

3.6 ft3 (0.102 m3) 2% Ib (123.3 kg) X-Rand Pulse Doppler 97 Hour Demonstration MTBF 5 Minute Flightline MTTR 9500 Air Cooled at 12 Wmin 3580 VA, 400 H r , 245 Wdc 10,20,40,80 nmi 1.2, or 4 bar + 10, +30, 60 degrees
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Table 1. APG-66 Radar Parameten

The success of the APG-66 radar spawned a number of diverse applications, both military and commercial. Probably the most significant of these was the Division Air Defense (DIVAD) radar f& the SGT York air defense gun currently being produced for the U.S. Army (see figure 5).

Range, Angle and Velocity Track &to-Surface Real Beam Ground Map Expanded Map Doppler Beam Sharpened Map Air-to-Ground Ranging Sea Target Detection ~eacon Freeze
Figure 4. APG-66 Radar Modes

Figure 5. The DIVAD Radar

Worldwide, our armored and infantry units are increasingly threatened by enemy ground attack A/C and missiles. Of particular concern is the attack helicopter which can approach from any direction, popup from clutter, acquire a target and launch its airto-ground missiles in seconds. The SCT York Air Defense Radar, a direct outgrowth of the APG-66 radar, is a fully coherent, pulse doppler radar that can simultaneously detect and track armed pop-up or hovering helicopters and fixed wing aircraft at all aspects and altitudes. Operating at X-band this radar provides the SGT York DIVAD gun with a fully automatic, fast reaction capability in all weather, clutter, battlefield smoke and dust and ECM environments. Advanced digital technology and software provide a significant reduction in radar costs with ensuring high reliability. The radar has been extensively tested by the Army and is currently in production. The DIVAD radar consists of six LRU's. A block diagram of' the radar is shown in figure 6. The transmitter is a ruggedized copy of the APG-66 radar transmitter. The receiver/stalo, based on the APG-66 design, has been completely repackaged to achieve a new level of modularity in packaging. With the exception of the stalo and the low-noise amplifier (LNA), the unit consists of plug-in modules which allow easy access and removal. Improvements have been made to the stalo to achieve better stability and operation in the demanding battlefield environment. A second receiver channel was added to provide full monopulse tracking capability.
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The APG-66 radar also incorporates a wide variety of air-tosurface mapping and tracking modes. The noncoherent real-beam map, beacon and sea target detection modes provide the ability to acquire ground targets and perform all weather weapon delivery; the air-to-ground ranging mode, in combination with an optical sight, allows precise delivery of air-to-ground ordnance. The higher resolution doppler beam sharpened mode provides an 8:l improvement in resolution. The physical and operating parameters of the APG-66 radar are summarized in table 1. The radar is an X-band, pulse doppler system. Its weight is just under 300 Ibs. Demonstrated reliabilities of 97 hrs have been achieved. The total parts count is just under 9500. The design allows easy access to all LRU's for flight-line maintenance.

Figure 6. DIVAD Radar Simplified Block Diagram

The DSP and radar computer are housed in a single unit. The DSP is very similar to that in the APG-66 radar; additional p ~ s t processing capability provides an extra level of programmability and, hence, flexibility. The radar computer is a dual CPU unit with 64K of EPROM and 26K of RAN memory. The processor uses standard integrated circuits mounted in dual in-line packages. The radar computer is programmed in higher order language (JOVIAL J73-I) providing easier software maintenance. The fire control computer (FCC) is a self-contained, high-speed computer built by Westinghouse and programmed by the SGT York prime contractor, Ford Aerospace. The FCC computes the FCC solution, and controls the gun based on radar, laser, and other sensor inputs. The unit is functionally identical to the radar computer, the only difference being the packaging.

The antenna LRU's are unique to DIVAD. Separate stowable search and track antennas are provided. The- search antenna uses three, end-fed, slotted, low sidelobe waveguide feeds for low, mid and high beams, providing hemispherical coverage. The antenna structure is armored to protect it against shell fragments and small arms fire. The radar uses a monopulse track antenna which is time-shared with the search antenna, Special processing features are incorporated to sense and compensate for multipath.

By using innovative time-sharing methods with two independently controlled antennas, simultaneous search-while-track capabjlity is achieved (see figure 7). Such simultaneous search-while-track operation is imperative to maintain quick reaction time and effective battlefield management. While accurate track is maintained on one target, the radar search function continues to detect, clauify and display other threats for immediate follow-on engagement.
Other features of the radar include detection and resolution of multipath effects, excellent clutter rejection capability, missile detection, helicopter classification and track, and excellent ECCM features.

A U communications within the radar are via a high-speed serial

Automatic I Search
LowlMid Beam Scan LowlHigh Beam Scan Simuftaneous Search-While-Track

I Track

Sector Search

Multipath Resolution

Figure 7.DlVAD Radar Modes

An example of a nonmilitary application of the APG-66 radar is in its use for drug traffic monitoring for the U.S. Customs Service. Housed in a Citation 11, high performance A/C (see figure 8) and integrated with other sensors and displays and controls, the APG-66 radar provides a highly effective tool for detecting low flying A/C in all weather and clutter environments. The initial radar achieved a total of > 300 operational hrs without a single radar failure.
A significant step in the evolution of the APG-66 radar occurred with the recognition by the Air Force that the F-16 C/D aircraft required a radar with increased performance and flexibility to deal with the increasing sophistication and numbers of the enemy threat. With the advent of the newer and more advanced air-to-air missiles, the need for a longer range radar with multitarget tracking capabilities was recognized. This resulted in an improved radar with three major changes (see figure 9). First and foremost was the substitution of a single, highly programmable signal processor for the current, separate fixed-program DSP and radar computer.

Finally, the modular low PRF used in the DIVAD radar was adapted to the F-16 to provide improved stability, ease of maintenance and improved ECCM features. Production deliveries of this improved APG-66 radar, now designated as the APG-68 began in early 1984. Since the new radar is designed to occupy the same space as the existing APG-66 radar, retrofit is easily achievable. The APG-68 is functionally configured like the APG-66 radar. l l digital The major change is the incorporation into one box of a processing. The key to the flexibility and increased performance of this new radar is the PSP shown in figure 10. The processing capabilities reside in 31 board pairs (modules) of flatpack construction. Tkenty-one of these modules are dedicated to array (signal) processing while the remaining 10 are dedicated to the radar computer. 384K of nonvolatile block-oriented random access memory provides bulk storage for the program instructions. The unit weighs = 100 Ibs, occupies = 1.0 cu. ft. and dissipates close to 3000 watts. Eight spare slots are available for future proc-

Westinghouse is the Sensor Subsystem tntegrator for the US Customs Service Citation II, High Performance Aircraft

Avioni

Infrared Sensor
Figure 8. P16 Radar for U.S. Customs
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Programmable Signal Processor (PSP)

Modular LPRF

Dual Mode Transmitter (DMT)

Figure 9. APG-68 Radar

Less apparent, but equally important was the introduction of a new dual-mode transmitter that could operate efficiently with a low duty cycle, high peak power waveform or a high duty cycle, low peak power waveform, the choice being tailored to the radar's operating mode at that moment. This combination of low, medium and high PRF operation is achievable without resorting to pulse compressed waveforms.

essing growth. A combination of MSI and LSI technology are incorporated in this unit. This LRU is divided into three functiona radar computer and ally distinct subunits: an array P~ocessor, Powm supply. The array Processor (shown in figure 11) provides the high-speed, digital processing necessary to perform clutter cancellation, digital

filtering, detection processing and post detection processing such as range and doppler correlation. The array processor (AP) can perform 192 million operations per second. The AP consists of eight identical signal processing modules which act on incoming data in parallel. The incoming data is stored in a 128K program bulk memory. All operations are under the control of a dual-CPU array controller with 16K of RAM memory. Processed data is stored in the output buffer for access by the radar computer or other AP subunits.

Aircraft interface Bus

4
I
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I"P'"""P"~ Processor

Muxbus Digibus PSP Bus (To Array Processor)

7-

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nonvolatile Program Memory

Figure 12. Radar Computer Elements

Figure 10. Programmable Signal Processor

Memory
Fromnn

The APG-68 radar has over twenty-two A/A and A/G modes with the capability to accommodate future tactical fighter needs. Figure 13 depicts the additional air-to-air features incorporated in the APG-68. The most significant capability added is a trackwhile-scan mode which provides the multiple target tracking and situation awareness capability required to handle the growing and more sophisticated enemy threat. To complement this mode, longrange identification and raid cluster resolution cauabilities have also-been added. Finally the new dual mode transmitter allows incorporation of a long-range velocity search mode to detect incoming targets. Similarly the APG-68 provides a number of new air-to-ground modes as shown in figure 14. This includes ground moving target identification and track modes, a fixed target tracking mode and an improved doppler beam sharpening mode providing a 64: 1 improvement in resolution. In addition improvements have been made to the air-to-ground ranging mode thus providing even better air-to-ground weapon delivery accuracies. The hardware is designed such that automative terrain follow/terrain avoidance (TF/ TA) and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) modes can be easily added in the future. Just as the APG-66 radar found additional applications, so too has its successor, the APG-68 radar. A prime example of this was its serving as the foundation for the multimode radar on the B-1B airplane. Under full-scale development for the past 2-1/2 yrs, the first radars designated as the APG-l&I were delivered early this year. The APQ-164 (shown in figure 15) was built upon the foundation of existing hardware. The APG-68 provided the transmitter, LPRF, and PSP designs while the two-axis electronically scanned antenna was a direct result of the Electronically Agile Radar (EAR) radar developed and flight tested by Westinghouse for the Air Force Avionics Lab. The two principal modes, TF/TA and SAR, were demonstrated as part of the EAR flight test on the B-52 A/C.

Radar Comptrlsr

and MLPRF

. . . . . .

output
Butler

. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .

Figure 11. Array Processor Architecture

The radar computer (shown in figure 12) is a dual-CPU, 1750A computer with 48K of high-speed memory allocated to each CPU. Memory can be shared by each CPU under the control of a separate direct memory access controller. AU program instructions are stored in a 384K word, nonvolatile, block-oriented random access memory (BORAM). Each CPU provides an effective instruction rate in excess of 1 Megops. The radar computer, as well as the AP, are programmed in higher order language (JOVIAL-J73), providing the ease of software maintenance that comes with higher order language programming.

Figure 14. AN/APG611 Air-to-Surface Capabilities

Electmnically Agile Radar Provides

Improved APG.66 Provides

- New Mode Technology

- Demonstrated Performance
Accurate Navigation Low Altitude Flight Tested on 8-52 1979

- New Hardware Programmable Processor - Outgrowth of EAR - High Speed Modularity Can Add and Delete Functions

Figure 15. APQ-164 Radar

The modes of operation for the APQ-164 are shown in figure 16. The two principal modes of operation are TF/TA and SAR. In addition the APQ-164 radar provides noncoherent mapping modes, ground moving target indication and ground moving target track, precision position update, precision velocity update, and beacon weather modes. The key feature of the APQ-164 radar is its use of a two-axis electronically phased array antenna. The chief benefits are shown in figure 17. Better performance arises because of the rapid beam switching times permitting interleaving of the various air-to-ground modes with TF/TA. The MTBF of the antenna is estimated to be in excess of 10,000 hrs, a number demonstrated on the EAR and High Energy Laser Radar Acquisition and Tracking (HELRATS) programs. More importantly the design permits graceful degradation in performance in the event of an antenna module failure.

What will the future evolution of the APG-66/APG-68 radars be? I foresee two major developments. The first is the widespread insertion of VHSlC technology into the processing elements of the radar. The second is the probable introduction of beam agility into fighter A/C. In the near term this will take the form of passive arrays similar to the antenna on the APQ-164; in the 1990's we will see the widespread use of active aperture radars such as the Ultra Reliable Radar (URR); Ultimately we should see the use of broad band active arrays radarr integrated with the ECM and ESM systems to make a formulable fighting machine. The benefits of VHSIC technology are not difficult to foresee: reduced acquisition and support costs, higher reliability, better supportability in the field, and improved performance. Figure 19 by replacing the shows the improvements that could be reali~ed PSP currently in the APG-68 with a PSP using a combination of high density configurable gated arrays and memories available now from the VHSIC program. The results are quite dramatic: four-fold increase in reliability; a factor of seven reduction in power dissipation; a greater than 2:l reduction in size and weight; and a better than 2:1 increase in speed. With the advent of the full VHSlC technology including the introduction of Ada the results should be even more dramatic.
Current PSP Board Assemblies Weight (lb) Volume (It3) Prime Power (W) MTBF (Hr) AP Mcops RC Mips Maintenance Plan
31 98 1.45 2948 280 16

VHSlC PSP
13 40 0.7 400 1200 40 6.8

Figure 16. APG-64 Modes

of Operation

3.2 &Level

2.Level or 3.Level

Figure 19. PSP Statistics Compsrison

The benefits afforded by beam agility are not quite as evident. Although costs for the passive agile radar are reasonable, the cost of active aperture arrays is still high. But the future portends lower costs, greatly improved reliability and much improved performance. Figure 20 summarizes the benefits of beam agility as afforded by a passive agile array sized for a fighter application. Improved reliability and ease of maintenance have already been demonstrated. Less evident is the dramatic improvement in multitarget tracking capability afforded by beam agility through the decoupling of the search and track functions. Further, true interleaved radar operation is only possible with beam agility.

Figure 17. Benefits of phased Array The heart of the electronically scanned array are the phase control modules shown in figure 18. The phase control module consists of a ferrite phase shifter and driver; phase shift commands are stored in the integral driver chip. The individual phase control modules plug directly into the array. Beam steering commands are provided by a separate beam steering controller housed on the back of the antenna.
Basic Features of Phased Array 60 Scanning Beam Switching in 200 ps Variable Beam Shapes - C S C ~Fan , Beam, Up to 5 x Beam Width Polarization Diversit .Linear and Circu Wide Bandwidth

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Air-to-air - lncreased Tracking Accuracy on Multiple Targets Due to High Update Rates Independent Search and Track Coverage of Target - lncreased Situation Awareness and Prioritization - lncreased Tracking Range Air-to-Ground - Instantaneous Mode Interleaving for High-speed, Including Terrain Clearance and Associated Weapons Delivery Modes Electronic RoH Stabilization Overall - lndependent Positioning for Ail Modes - Improved Reliability Through Graceful Degradation

Figure 20. Benefits of Beam Agiiity The APG-66 radar furnishes an excellent example of how a radar can grow and evolve to not only expand its capabilities but also take on new and diverse applications. The key to this flexibility lies in the efficient and widespread usage of digital technology and processing and the modular design of the hardware. This concept has been evident in the design of the APG-66 radar from the start; the primary payoff is reduced cost to the military and civilian users without sacrifice in performance.

Figure 18. Electronically Agile Antenna