Date of Award
2022
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Engineering (MSE)
Department
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Committee Chair
Aubrey Beal
Committee Member
Laurie Joiner
Committee Member
Adam Panagos
Subject(s)
Radar--Design and construction
Abstract
Radar hardware has historically been dominated by large and expensive systems with few exceptions. Importantly, the popular MIT coffee can radar project democratized education and experimentation related to small range radar systems using open courseware and inexpensive components. However, many components and methods presented in the original course are obsolete or non-standard by the lens of the modern open-source community. In this work, an adaptation of the MIT coffee can radar that seeks to increase the democratization of radar technology for a new cohort of students is presented. Further, this work offers an improved frequency controlling system that allows for software controlled waveforms to be programmed. Obsolete or discontinued parts were replaced to allow for ease of access, while preserving valuable hands-on hardware learning experiences. The results presented here demonstrate speed measurement of a pendulum target within 0.04 m/s and range measurements of stationary targets within 30%.
Recommended Citation
Watson, William, "Future-proofing the MIT coffee can radar" (2022). Theses. 373.
https://louis.uah.edu/uah-theses/373