Most commercially available ground-penetrating radars are impulse-based. Recently, more advanced Stepped-Frequency Continuous Wave (SFCW) radars have emerged on the market. At Widmo, we are taking a step further by providing the first professional GPR based on Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) technology. This innovative approach offers enhanced performance and resolution, setting a new standard in the industry.
Why FMCW?
FMCW is a type of radar that emits a continuous signal modulated over a wide frequency range. The transmitted and reflected signals, after mixing, are characterized by an optimal signal-to-noise ratio, which directly determines the potential depth of penetration.
Compared to impulse or step frequency-based radars, the signal-to-noise ratio of FMCW radar can be up to 30 dB better, corresponding to a significant increase in penetration depth.
This advantage results from the wide bandwidth of FMCW radar, which operates with very low transmitted power (in our case, even below 1W). The low-power signal is less susceptible to noise and interference.
Our unique solution for wideband modulation is achieved through state-of-the-art electronics, allowing us to transmit and receive radar signals in the form of a continuously modulated wave from 35 MHz to 1200 MHz. This wideband modulation not only significantly improves the signal-to-noise ratio but also opens up opportunities for new methods of signal processing.
Unique data
With our technology, we can perform various analyses that traditional impulse or even advanced step-frequency radars cannot provide. These include signal deconvolution in both the time and spectral domains, advanced eigen-filtering, and spectral colouring, among others. All these advanced analyses make echograms easier to interpret.
Particularly interesting are the analyses that utilize wideband signals. Analyzing different parts of the signal spectrum individually and categorizing reflections into different parts of the spectrum by colours can provide an intuitive way to visualize changes in reflections corresponding to different materials or geological phenomena.
FMCW vs other radars
FMCW allows for much more sophisticated data acquisition, collecting precise information across the entire spectrum.
