rad-lab

A Python radar module for simulating pulse-Doppler returns, generating range-Doppler maps (RDMs), and forming synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. Designed for radar engineers and students who want to build intuition for how RDMs and SAR images are formed, how waveforms affect resolution, and how DRFM electronic attack techniques appear in the RDMs.

Installation

Install from PyPI (library only)

pip install rad-lab

Clone for the full example apps

git clone https://github.com/JohnNehls/rad-lab
pip install -e ./rad-lab

A few exercises use LaTeX for plot labels — LaTeX must be installed for those to run.

Usage

RDM Generation

from rad_lab import rdm, Radar, Target, Return, barker_coded_waveform

radar = Radar(
    fcar=10e9,
    tx_power=1e3,
    tx_gain=10 ** (30 / 10),
    rx_gain=10 ** (30 / 10),
    op_temp=290,
    sample_rate=20e6,
    noise_factor=10 ** (8 / 10),
    total_losses=10 ** (8 / 10),
    prf=200e3,
    dwell_time=2e-3,
)

waveform = barker_coded_waveform(10e6, nchips=13)

return_list = [Return(target=Target(range=0.5e3, range_rate=1.0e3, rcs=1))]

rdm.gen(radar, waveform, return_list)

Other available waveforms: uncoded_waveform, random_coded_waveform, lfm_waveform. For additional RDM examples see apps/rdms, or the API docs.

SAR Image Generation

rad-lab also supports stripmap and spotlight SAR image formation from point-target scenes:

For more SAR examples see apps/sar.

Exercises

Many radar subsystems are demonstrated as standalone scripts in apps/exercises. Each file builds intuition for one concept and can be run directly. Topics covered include:

• Range equation
• Pulse-Doppler processing
• Waveforms and cross-correlation
• Ambiguity function
• Datacube processing and windowing
• Keystone formatting
• Detection theory
• Linear arrays and monopulse
• Stripmap and spotlight SAR

Modeling assumptions

The RDM and SAR simulators in rad_lab use a few standard simplifications. They are noted here so it is clear which physical effects the simulator deliberately omits.

• Stop-and-hop (start-stop) propagation. Within a single pulse the radar and target are treated as stationary; motion happens only between pulses. Round-trip delay and carrier phase are evaluated once per pulse, at the pulse-transmit instant, and the matched-filter template is a perfect replica of the transmitted pulse. This is the standard pulse-Doppler / SAR signal model (e.g. Richards, Fundamentals of Radar Signal Processing, §8). Consequences: no intra-pulse range walk and no Doppler time-scaling of the echo — all target motion appears as the pulse-to-pulse phase progression -4π f_c R(t_m)/c.
• Point scatterers. Targets are ideal points with a scalar RCS; no glint, no extended-target spread.
• No propagation medium effects. No atmospheric attenuation, no ionospheric dispersion, no multipath.
• Ideal receiver chain. Linear, time-invariant, with thermal noise modeled from the receiver noise figure and operating temperature.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome. Please fork the repository and submit a pull request.

To run the test suite:

python -m pytest tests/ -v
./apps/run_apps.sh  # smoke test: run all apps with a headless backend 

License

This project is licensed under the GPL-3.0 License - see LICENSE for details.