Seeing Beneath the Surface: Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) from Ground-Based Systems to UAV Integration

A public lecture by Professor Marlene Harter, Institute for Unmanned Aerial Systems, Offenburg University.

This talk introduces the basic principles of GPR and explores selected applications based on recent research activities. Particular attention will be given to Step-Frequency Continuous-Wave (SFCW) radar, illustrating how measurements over a wide frequency range can be used to obtain depth-resolved information. Building on ground-based GPR applications, the presentation will explore the next step of taking GPR into the air using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Current research on the design and integration of GPR antennas for UAV platforms will be presented, highlighting the potential of combining optimized antenna concepts, radar sensing, and autonomous aerial platforms for future subsurface exploration.

Marlene Harter (S’10–M’18–SM’23) received the Dipl.-Ing. (M.S.E.E.) degree in electrical engineering from the Universität Karlsruhe (TH) in 2008, and the Dr.-Ing. (Ph.D.) degree from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in 2014, in cooperation with Siemens AG, Corporate Technology, Munich, Germany.

In 2014, she joined Robert Bosch GmbH, Leonberg, Germany. During this time, she managed several customer radar projects and was project manager of the hardware development of the 5th generation side radar for cars and trucks.

In October 2018, she became a Professor at the Offenburg University, Germany and was appointed Director of the Institute of Unmanned Aerial Systems in 2022.

Her main research interests include radar system architectures, radar signal processing, antenna design and material characterization.

Professor Harter is a Gledden Visiting Fellow at the UWA Institute of Advanced Studies, where her current research focuses on ground-penetrating radar for subsurface sensing, with particular emphasis on antenna design and integration into UAV platforms.

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