A Photonics-Assisted Multi-Band MIMO Radar Network for the Port of the Future

The Internet-of-Things paradigm is pushing the current fully-automated industry to Industry 4.0, laying on a high degree of end-to-end digitization of all physical assets and their integration into data-based services. A significant contribution to recent advances of digital technologies comes from microwave photonics, whose benefits for RF systems in terms of performance and flexibility have been largely demonstrated. In the radar domain, the high degree of coherence granted by photonics makes possible multiple input-multiple output systems, enabling an enhancement of surveillance and monitoring capabilities, thanks to the possibility of performing centralized processing and raw-data fusion. The advantages offered by photonics for surveillance converge with the Industry 4.0 revolution, helping in the actualization of the 'Port of the Future' paradigm, to monitor the freight traffic inside ports, increasing goods distribution efficiency, at the same time reducing carbon footprint. Here, we present the first photonics-based widely distributed multiple input-multiple output dual-band radar network, designed to operate in a real port, showing the achieved enhanced potential detection and imaging capabilities. The integration of the targets radar tracks within the monitoring and control platform of the port is reported, enabling the fusion with other data managed by the multiservice monitoring platform.