Design and development of novel direction finding concepts

Abstract

Direction finding (DF) is the technique of estimating the direction of arriving signals. In this final year project report, two DF methods are introduced. MUltiple SIgnal Classification (MUSIC) is a well-known traditional technique. Its background information, concept and mathematical derivation are covered for a better understanding of Direction of Arrival (DOA) estimation. Realistic Ormia Inspired DOA method is a novel DF concept, which is inspired by the eardrum structure of Ormia Ochracea, a small yellow fly. It is developed based on the theory of MUSIC and aims to overcome the performance limitation of traditional DF method using extra small aperture antenna array. The concept, simulation and design of the tests for these two methods are presented in detail. The simulation result shows that the novel DF technique can perform well when small size antenna array is used. During the project, MATLAB and National Instrument MIMO Test System are used to build, simulate and test the DF models.