Resource Allocation for Sensing and Communications in a Distributed Radar Network

We propose joint radar and communications bandwidth and carrier frequency optimization and allocation (BWCFOA), and radar waveform optimization algorithm for a distributed radar network. The objective is to maximize harmonicmean of the channel capacity while ensuring that the signal-to-clutter-and-interference-plus noise ratio (SCINR) at each radar node remains above a certain threshold and the minimum range resolution requirement is attained. This optimization is nonconvex and intertwined with the problems of optimizing: a) radar waveforms, b) both radar and communications bandwidths and carrier frequencies, and c) their allocations to the nodes. The radar waveforms are optimized locally at each node utilizing manifold optimization, and the resulting outcome is utilized by the central coordinator to solve the BWCFOA problem under a framework of alternating optimization. For a given allocation, the bandwidth and carrier frequency optimization (BWCFO) subproblem is formulated as a geometric programming problem, and for the given bandwidths and carrier frequencies, the allocation sub-problem is formulated as a mixed integer (binary) convex programming problem (MICP) utilizing McCormick relaxation technique. The two sub-problems are iteratively solved until some desired convergence accuracy is achieved. Computer simulations show that the proposed waveform optimization and BWCFOA (WO+BWCFAO) outperforms random waveform with BWCFAO (RW+BWCFOA) and waveform optimization with equal bandwidth allocation (WO+EBWA) algorithms.