GIT SECURITY Industry Talk: An Overview of Radar Technologies

What does radar have in common with a microwave? Both produce electromagnetic waves, however, radar uses longer wavelengths and sends them much further out making their waves much longer. This is of great use for securing perimeters and large areas. GIT SECURITY not only gives you an overview of what is new on the radar market, but we also take a closer look at the history and the technology of radars.
In his ‘Theory of the Electromagnetic Field’ in 1865, James Clerk Maxwell presented a description of the electromagnetic waves and their propagation. His theory demonstrates that electric and magnetic fields travel through space in the form of waves and at the speed of light. Twenty-one years later, in 1886, Heinrich Rudolf Hertz discovered electromagnetic waves and proved Maxwell’s theory. This was the beginning of Radar Technology.
Sir Robert Alexander Watson-Watt is considered to be one of the inventors of radar technology. After years of research and testing, his first successful detection of an aircraft took place in 1935.The ability to find moving objects on water, land, and air was very interesting for the military and it is not surprising that the Second World War gave a strong development boost.

Radars Today
A lot has happened since then. Radar has found its way into everyday life. For example, weather radar scanners can tell us with short-term weather forecasts if rain is to be expected and in traffic, radar can be used to expose speeding cars. A very recent new development comes from scientists of Bochum University. A team of engineers works on 3D imaging with radars. The idea is to get a full 3D map of a room, a useful tool for firefighters to know what to expect in a building full of smoke. The radar sends out a signal and processes what comes back. If the signal takes longer to come back to the station, it means that the objects is further away. Thus, creating a whole ‘map’ of the surroundings. However, oncoming signals reveal even more: it gives clues about size, shape and even material of the object in the room depending on the quality of the signal. For example, some materials reflect stronger than others. Materials with a lot of air in them, like styrofoam, do not reflect back very well. Metal on the other hand relects radar waves strongly, which is why boats, airplanes and other vehicles from the military an be detected quite easily. [1]

Radar in Security
Radar solutions have also established themselves in the world of security. GIT SECURITY has put together a selection of radar systems in a market overview to show how they tie in with the available security systems.

Radar Systems Offer An Alternative
One example for radar as an alternative to classic security solutions comes from InnosenT. This mid-sized company from Germany optimally tuned their products’ characteristics for combination with security systems to improve surveillance efficiency and reliability. With their radar system, you can define hazardous areas and non-critical zones. Since the information undergoes further processing, objects can even be classified as humans, animals or vehicles. Additionally, the radar systems are not sensitive to weather or different lighting conditions. Thanks to these advantages, false alarms are reduced to a minimum during surveillance. Using filters and zones, both systems allow for targeted, anonymous area surveillance within a vast detection range.

Integrated Systems
Another good example for a solution that goes hand-in-hand with a security system comes from Magos. Magos radars can detect humans or vehicles up to 1000 meters away, alerting security forces long before they reach the boundary. Their wide coverage of 120-degrees in azimuth and 30-degrees in elevation, make it an ideal system for such perimeter applications, optimally covering areas despite changing topography. Integrating this technology with pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras enables slew-to-cue capabilities, allowing security personnel to have eyes on exactly what the radar is tracking for maximum situational awareness. As an installation example, less than 20 radars were installed in a high traffic Latin American port, replacing over 110 VMD cameras and covering about 8 km and saving enormous costs in short and long terms.
For the next intrusion detection system that includes radar technology, we explore the field of airport surveillance. Navtech Radar’s AdvanceGuard Perimeter Intrusion Detection System (PIDS) is ideal for improving airport security due to its distributed architecture, which allows sensors to be placed anywhere to ensure that even the most obscured areas on an airport are covered. Matching the range of the sensor to the available line of sight, it enables complete coverage that is cost effective and fault tolerant. A distributed architecture of sensors is the preferable solution as it delivers 100% coverage. AdvanceGuard provides the exact location of any intruders anywhere on your site, both inside and outside of the perimeter, at any time of day and in all weather conditions. By detecting both inside and beyond the perimeter, it can identify potential intruders before they can enter the site day or night. As a fully automatic system, operators are alerted with warnings or alarms when there is a potential, or actual perimeter breach.

Radar-Based Motion Detection
Axis has also an option in combination with radar. The Axis D2050-VE Network Radar Detector is Axis first available radar-based motion detector. It can serve as an affordable complement to security cameras in medium-risk installations, improving detection in challenging conditions and minimizing false alarms. Owing to its advanced tracking algorithm and the positioning information it provides, the detector can also add new features and value to a surveillance system. One radar detector unit provides accurate detection within a range up to 50 m (164 ft), within an angle of approximately 120 degrees. For coverage of a larger area, it is possible to use multiple detectors. Typical mounting height should be 3–4 m (9–13 ft). In order to facilitate a visual interpretation of the scene, the radar image as it is seen in the user interface can be easily integrated and calibrated with an uploaded reference map.

Perimeter Protection
Another solution is the Mirad high definition Radar security system from Zaun. They provide a comprehensive range of perimeter security radars which is ideal for applications such as airports, CNI and commercial installations. The perimeter security radar detects beyond the perimeter and identifies intruders before they can enter the site. When a Radar detects a target moving in a zone Zaun’s controller system will automatically send the best available Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) camera to track the detection. The system can be configured to track the targets for a set period of time if new detections appear or continue tracking objects considered to be at a higher threat level (for example fastest or closest to a certain location). The high definition radars provide clarity between objects, allowing the differentiation between two targets that are close together. This is important to determine whether a target is an animal, person or a vehicle and to identify if the target is moving close to a fixed object. Mirad radars are able to separate objects that are just 40 cm apart. A lower definition security radar may struggle to distinguish between objects many metres apart.
Radar technology, such as those used in aviation or in modern cars, are now also used in commercial security technology. Fixed radars allow the monitoring of wide, open areas at distances reaching well over one kilometre. In some radars, built-in analytics will be able to categorise objects such as people, vehicles or even drones. The integration of outdoor sensors in video and wider management systems help further improve the reliability and performance of security systems in a wide variety of applications. Using a combination of sensing technologies ensures the deployment of multi-layered protection – from the outer perimeter to the building itself. Optex sensors for example enables users to also include sensing technology into their existing system. With the Redscan RLS-3060 series, four detection areas can now be independently adjusted on an analogue connection; and up to eight areas can be adjusted on an IP connection. The shape of the detection area can also be customised to the layout of the site. An Area Allocation or Masking function will enable users to precisely define a number of independent detection zones.

Precise Intrusion Detection
What might be a surprise to some is the fact that Hikvision only recently launched a security radar for ultra-accurate intrusion detection. The solution accurately pinpoints the location and motion trail of up to 32 potential intruders per radar, even in the harshest weather conditions, optimally used in locations such as ports, airports and large open industrial areas. The Radar is ideal for monitoring large, exposed spaces with harsh weather, and where the perimeter environment is too complex for deployment of only video surveillance cameras. Traditional cameras or motion detectors such as Active Infrared and Video Motion Detection have limitations in pinpointing the exact location of a potential intruder related to their detection area. The Hikvision Security Radar, however, promises to offer accurate detection over a wide angle of 100°, and up to a distance of 60 m. For an integration into a security system the Hikvision Security Radar offers a link with as many as four Hikvision PTZ dome cameras at once. This configuration will not only trigger an alarm when an intruder is detected – it will also trigger video recording, to help with visual verification of the intruder. Furthermore, the cameras and the radar can be installed in different locations. This Hikvision-patented video linking solution is unique, and enables users to view, accurately track and record multiple images of targets simultaneously, all while identifying their precise movements such as running, walking, crouching and crawling. The Hikvision Security Radar has multiple scene modes, making it suitable for a variety of applications. Shrub Mode, for instance, is best suited to areas surrounded by dense forest, as it will filter out false alarms such as shaking trees or heavy rain. Open-Area Mode is ideal for large, open, sensitive locations such as ports. And the Custom Mode enables users to fine-tune settings to suit their particular needs.

[1] Rubin Wissenschaftsmagazin, 2/17