Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios

In addressing the issue of weak target detection at sea, most existing feature detection methods are designed for scenarios with low sea states and small grazing angles. Under high sea states and large grazing angles, variations in scattering mechanisms lead to changes in feature characteristics, re...

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Main Authors: Yunlong Dong, Xiao Luo, Hao Ding, Ningbo Liu, Zheng Cao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Remote Sensing
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/1/129
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author Yunlong Dong
Xiao Luo
Hao Ding
Ningbo Liu
Zheng Cao
author_facet Yunlong Dong
Xiao Luo
Hao Ding
Ningbo Liu
Zheng Cao
author_sort Yunlong Dong
collection DOAJ
description In addressing the issue of weak target detection at sea, most existing feature detection methods are designed for scenarios with low sea states and small grazing angles. Under high sea states and large grazing angles, variations in scattering mechanisms lead to changes in feature characteristics, resulting in performance degradation when these methods are applied directly due to scene mismatch. To address this, this paper employs four quantitative metrics—mean feature value, coefficient of variation, Bhattacharyya distance, and Spearman correlation coefficient—to analyze the centrality, variability, separability, and correlations of nine features in the time, frequency, and time-frequency domains under varying sea states and grazing angles. The study reveals that, with increasing sea state and changing grazing angles, the separability of time-frequency features, especially the time-frequency ridge accumulation, declines more gradually than other features, and feature correlations generally weaken. These findings provide a reference for joint feature detection in complex scenarios. To optimize feature application, the Spearman correlation coefficient matrix was transformed into a generalized distance matrix, and spectral clustering was used to group features with strong correlations. Feature selection was then performed from the clusters based on mean feature value, coefficient of variation, and Bhattacharyya distance, yielding an optimal feature set for the current scenario. Validation on the SDRDSP dataset under sea states 4–5 showed that the proposed method achieved an average detection probability 10.64% higher than existing methods. Further validation on the Yantai angle airborne test dataset, with grazing angles ranging from 62° to 82°, showed an average detection probability increase of 10.07% over existing methods.
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publishDate 2025-01-01
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spelling doaj-art-a1f5f5e5acd74ab6974073522016a6582025-01-10T13:20:19ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922025-01-0117112910.3390/rs17010129Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging ScenariosYunlong Dong0Xiao Luo1Hao Ding2Ningbo Liu3Zheng Cao4Institute of Information Fusion, Naval Aviation University, Yantai 264001, ChinaInstitute of Information Fusion, Naval Aviation University, Yantai 264001, ChinaInstitute of Information Fusion, Naval Aviation University, Yantai 264001, ChinaInstitute of Information Fusion, Naval Aviation University, Yantai 264001, ChinaInstitute of Information Fusion, Naval Aviation University, Yantai 264001, ChinaIn addressing the issue of weak target detection at sea, most existing feature detection methods are designed for scenarios with low sea states and small grazing angles. Under high sea states and large grazing angles, variations in scattering mechanisms lead to changes in feature characteristics, resulting in performance degradation when these methods are applied directly due to scene mismatch. To address this, this paper employs four quantitative metrics—mean feature value, coefficient of variation, Bhattacharyya distance, and Spearman correlation coefficient—to analyze the centrality, variability, separability, and correlations of nine features in the time, frequency, and time-frequency domains under varying sea states and grazing angles. The study reveals that, with increasing sea state and changing grazing angles, the separability of time-frequency features, especially the time-frequency ridge accumulation, declines more gradually than other features, and feature correlations generally weaken. These findings provide a reference for joint feature detection in complex scenarios. To optimize feature application, the Spearman correlation coefficient matrix was transformed into a generalized distance matrix, and spectral clustering was used to group features with strong correlations. Feature selection was then performed from the clusters based on mean feature value, coefficient of variation, and Bhattacharyya distance, yielding an optimal feature set for the current scenario. Validation on the SDRDSP dataset under sea states 4–5 showed that the proposed method achieved an average detection probability 10.64% higher than existing methods. Further validation on the Yantai angle airborne test dataset, with grazing angles ranging from 62° to 82°, showed an average detection probability increase of 10.07% over existing methods.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/1/129high-difficulty scenariosanalysis of feature characteristicsfeature selectiontarget detection
spellingShingle Yunlong Dong
Xiao Luo
Hao Ding
Ningbo Liu
Zheng Cao
Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios
Remote Sensing
high-difficulty scenarios
analysis of feature characteristics
feature selection
target detection
title Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios
title_full Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios
title_fullStr Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios
title_full_unstemmed Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios
title_short Analysis and Selection Method for Radar Echo Features in Challenging Scenarios
title_sort analysis and selection method for radar echo features in challenging scenarios
topic high-difficulty scenarios
analysis of feature characteristics
feature selection
target detection
url https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/1/129
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AT haoding analysisandselectionmethodforradarechofeaturesinchallengingscenarios
AT ningboliu analysisandselectionmethodforradarechofeaturesinchallengingscenarios
AT zhengcao analysisandselectionmethodforradarechofeaturesinchallengingscenarios