Kuala lumpur: Universiti Malaysia Perlis: Researchers at Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP) are spearheading a project aimed at developing an AI-based smart radar system tailored for national defence needs. This initiative is funded by an RM800,000 Long-Term Research Grant Scheme (LRGS) from the Ministry of Higher Education’s Research Fund for 2025.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, UniMAP’s vice-chancellor, Datuk Prof Ts Dr Zaliman Sauli, highlighted that the project is a part of the broader LRGS programme and is led by Assoc Prof Ir Ts Dr Muzammil Jusoh from UniMAP’s Faculty of Electronic Engineering and Technology. Collaborating on this significant venture are Assoc Prof Ts Dr Huda A Majid from Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) and Assoc Prof Ts Dr Zaid Omar from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM).
Zaliman explained that the grant was awarded for the impactful “Conceptual Framework for Short-Range AESA Radar in Malaysian Operational Environment: Antenna Arrays, Propagation Dynamics and Intelligent Target Processing” project. This initiative focuses on creating a short-range, AI-driven Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system for national defence, encompassing the development of an AESA antenna design, radar wave propagation modelling in a tropical environment, and AI-based target recognition.
The grant was presented during the 2025 Academia Day and Academia Month celebration, officiated by the Minister of Higher Education, Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir, at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM) in Negeri Sembilan recently.
In the same statement, Muzammil elaborated on the research framework, which comprises three main projects. The first focuses on development techniques for a short-range AESA antenna design, the second involves the empirical modelling of radar propagation in tropical maritime conditions, and the third is dedicated to AI-based detection and classification of objects using AESA radar.
These projects aim to produce six high-indexed publications (WOS/ISI and Scopus), train six postgraduate students, and generate six intellectual property rights through advancements in antenna design, radar simulation, and AI algorithms. The project is supported by the Royal Malaysian Navy and the Science and Technology Research Institute for Defence (STRIDE), in collaboration with Mindmatics Sdn Bhd, ensuring the research is highly applicable to national radar development and the local defence industry.