The UK company behind a radar system which promises to help air traffic controllers distinguish between approaching aircraft and rotating wind turbine blades has secured £6.75 million ($10 million) in new funding to enter into full-scale commercial operation.
Aveillant's 3D Holographic Radar, a patch or overlay for standard ATM radar, has undergone long-term testing at its local Cambridge airport, and will soon be installed for demonstrations at Prestwick and Glasgow airports.
The system promises to reliably distinguish between wind farm Doppler returns and aircraft of all sizes and speeds by replacing the familiar radar sweep with a flat-panel phased array that effectively stares in all directions continuously.
The result - made possible by computing power that 20 years ago could only have been achieved using a Cray supercomputer - is a 3D image that characterises targets and gives range, direction and altitude, says Aveillant chief executive David Crisp.
The system is one of a number of solutions to the growing problem of radar interference from wind farms, a concern which has delayed or prevented exploitation of wind energy near airports.
Existing investors Cambridge Consultants, which created Aveillant as a spin-off to commercialise the concept, and DFJ Esprit have been joined in the new funding round by the Aviation Investment Fund and the €200 million ($260 million) cleantech fund, ESB Novusmodus.
Source: Flight International
