Radar and its Effects on the Human Society

The Origin of Radar
The history of the radar (where the radar corresponds to RAdio Detection And Ranging) began with Heinrich Hertz’s experiments at the end of the 19th century, which showed that radio waves were reflected by metallic objects. This possibility has been suggested in James Clerk Maxwell’s precursor work on electromagnetism. However, it was only at the beginning of the 20th century that systems capable of relying on these principles became widely available, and it was the German inventor Christian Hülsmeyer who used them for the first time in the construction of a simple detection device collisions in the fog (Reichspatent Nr 165546). Many similar systems, providing directional information to objects over short distances, have been developed over the next two decades.

The development of systems capable of producing short pulses of radioelectric energy has been the main advance in the development of modern radar systems. By timing the pulses on an oscilloscope, the range can be determined and the direction of the antenna reveals the angular location of the targets. The two, combined, produced a “fix”, locating the target relative to the antenna. Between 1934 and 1939, eight countries independently developed, in the utmost secrecy, such systems: the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States, the USSR, Japan, the United States , Bas, France and Italy. In addition, Britain shared information with the United States and four Commonwealth countries: Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. These countries have also developed their own radar systems. During the war, Hungary was added to this list. The term RADAR was coined in 1939 by the United States Signal Corps while working on these systems for the navy.

Progress during the war was rapid and of great importance, probably one of the decisive factors for the victory of the Allies. The magnetron in the United Kingdom, which has enabled the creation of relatively small systems with a resolution of less than one meter, is a key development. By the end of hostilities, Great Britain, Germany, the US, the USSR, and Japan had a wide variety of terrestrial and maritime radars as well as small airborne systems. After the war, the use of radar was extended to many areas, including civil aviation, maritime navigation, radar guns for the police, meteorology and even medicine. Key post-war developments include traveling wave tube as a means of producing large quantities of coherent microwaves, the development of signal delay systems leading to multi-element radars and ever-higher resolutions of frequencies. The increase in signal processing capacity due to the introduction of semiconductor computers has also had a significant impact on the use of radar.

Its Applications in Daily Life
In automotive engineering, collision avoidance systems are found in almost all modern vehicles. This type of radar is a combination of UWB radars and common Doppler radars. They can be used to detect obstacles over a distance of about 30 meters and measure their speed. They are placed in bumpers or on the sides of a vehicle and warn of the risk of collision with objects or people. In addition, they can be used to facilitate the parking process. So far, they are only used passively, but they could be used in the future as well: i. e. they could actively trigger breaks in a vehicle. These systems are the next step in the development of
autonomous vehicles.
UWB systems are also used to monitor buildings or other closely spaced areas. They create a surveillance shield on a sensitive area requiring surveillance. These systems, not much bigger than a can, include a UWB mini-radar capable of covering an area
about 10 meters and a wireless system that can trigger an alarm when this zone is entered. In this case, daily use is building security and the surveillance of larger or smaller objects such as a train or paintings in a museum. This system can also be used as an anti-theft alarm for private buildings or to monitor public and private pools.
In geophysics, radars, called GPR systems, are used to analyze the soil to create soil profiles. These systems are also UWB radars. To analyze the soil, the system is moved to the soil surface and sends electromagnetic pulses into the soil. Echo analysis gives a very detailed soil profile. GPR systems are also used in civil engineering to create the profile of a search area. This is particularly useful for street and tunnel constructions, but can also be used for any other construction project to create soil or rock profiles underneath and to detect pipes or tubes, possibly to avoid them. . In climate and earthquake research, they can be used to create a profile of permafrost i. e. in the glacier areas.
As part of the fight against crime, military projects and civil protection systems of civil protection are used to recover hidden weapons, mines or imprisoned bodies. With the “UWB Through Wall Imaging” radars, it is also possible to see through walls or other obstacles. These systems are often used in military applications and in materials engineering. Among other use cases, these systems are used, for example, in security checks at airports. weapons made of non-metallic materials.
Another resulting technology is often used in construction and is therefore ideal for everyday applications. In this case, the radar is used to detect uprights, electrical cables or water supply lines in the walls. The utility of this benefit becomes immediately apparent to anyone who has ever tried to break a wall in an old building without knowing where the former resident or electrician had placed these power lines.
Systems for differentiating and identifying different materials are also applied in the craft industry. For example, they can be used on chain saws to stop the blade in case a finger or other body part enters the danger zone.
In medical technology, two applications immediately come to mind: surveillance systems and diagnostic imaging systems. Monitoring systems monitor the vital functions of the patient, such as breathing or heart rate. These systems are non-invasive and can, if placed in a corner of the ceiling of a room, monitor multiple patients at a time. In the event of apnea or cardiac arrest, these systems trigger an alarm. In addition, these systems benefit at-risk pregnancies because they allow the vital functions of the fetus to be monitored. UWB systems for imaging diagnostic procedures are used in clinical diagnostics and do not expose the patient to nuclear magnetic resonance or X-rays, which is beneficial to the patient when doing prevention or when examinations in case of illness.

Summary
The invention of radar is one of the most important and irreplaceable innovations in the human history. With the help of radar, mankind nowadays are enabled to perform difficult tasks that seem unlikely during the time when radar was not yet invented. On the other hand, radar is proved to possess great uses in military, for it is capable of detecting incoming hostile aircrafts or missles, which is indepensable for defensive purposes.