Low-Cost Drone-mounted Frequency-Modulated Continuous Wave Ground Penetrating Radar

This paper presents the development and testing of a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) system mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The system is engineered to enable efficient low-depth subsurface exploration and mapping in inaccessible or hazardous terrains. In order to achieve minimum implementation costs, the GPR implements Frequency-Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) operation, which is known to drastically reduce the complexity of the radar system comparatively to classical impulse technology. The radio-frequency section of the radar uses a commercially available radar sensor module operating at 24 GHz. The choice for this approach is motivated by the compactness and reduced cost of the module. The only drawback results from the high operation frequency which limits the penetration depth to a maximum of approximately 10 cm in dry soil. However, the proposed system is useful for detecting objects hidden just below the surface like anti-personnel landmines.