Year
1992
Abstract
In the 1980s, Sandia National Laboratories, with United States Air Force (USAF) and other agency funding, developed a state-of-the-art, short pulse bi-static doppler radar security system for aircraft protection. Several engineering models were fabricated and extensively tested. These models demonstrated vastly improved ease of application, terrain following capabilities, resistance to nuisance alarms, and the failsafe performance required for class A safeguards weapons protection security. Racon, Inc. is commercializing a \"Racon Model 21000 - Series 21100.\" This Federal Communications Commission (FCC) certified short-pulse bi-static radar system uses 1992 state-of-the-art components and technology. The Portable, Reconfigurable Line Sensor (PRLS) features simple installation, no alignment or sensitivity adjustments, a range up to 100 meters per detection zone with high tolerance to terrain variations, and detection zone absolute range cut-off. Because of rapidly changing geopolitical issues throughout the world, protecting military aircraft and other mobile assets against surreptitious access is a growing concern. The PRLS was developed by Sandia National Laboratories and commercialized by Racon through an Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRDA) with the United States Air Force. This sensor advances the art of outdoor security to meet the challenge of the 1990s. This paper describes the history of PRLS development and testing, the technology transfer process, and the design modernization which resulted in Racon's commercialized product offering.