Fast Digital Beamforming for Conformal Array

The conventional digital beam forming (DBF) for conformal array needs to scan a series of look angles with small angular separation to obtain a high-resolution pattern. Inspired by the fast back projection algorithm (FBP)[3] for SAR imaging, a fast DBF algorithm for the conformal array is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the conformal array is divided into several subarrays, and the pattern of each subarray is formed in a coarse resolution. Then, the pattern of each subarray is interpolated to a high resolution one by FFT. Finally, all subarrays' high-resolution pattern is added together to form the pattern of the whole array. The simulation results have proved the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed algorithm.