Apparatus for settining antenna using phase of antenna and method thereof

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a technique for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna, and provides an antenna setting device and method comprising: generating a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna; calculating a phase difference between each antenna included in the plurality of antennas; calculating a reliability indicating the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference; removing at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas based on the reliability; and installing an extrapolated antenna within a preset second distance from the antenna among the plurality of antennas that was not removed.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technique for setting an antenna using the phase of the antenna. Background Technology

[0002] Radar detects various objects in a vehicle's driving environment through the transmission and reception of signals. The radar may include an antenna for transmitting and receiving signals, a radome which is a dome-shaped structure designed to protect the radar from strong winds, a waveguide through which the transmitted and received signals travel, a display that displays the radar's information and signal strength on a planar coordinate system, a transmitter, a receiver, etc., as a structure.

[0003] Radar can provide information such as the distance from the radar to the object, the angle of a specific part of the object, and the object's speed of movement by transmitting a signal and measuring the signal that returns after hitting an object.

[0004] Installing a large number of antennas can improve radar detection accuracy—in other words, the accuracy of the information obtained from the radar. However, improving radar performance solely by increasing the number of antennas presents the problem that installation costs are high and the radar's efficiency is low relative to the number of antennas installed. The problem to be solved

[0005] The present disclosure aims to provide a technique for setting an antenna using the phase of the antenna. means of solving the problem

[0006] In one aspect, the present embodiments provide an antenna setting device for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna, comprising: a virtual antenna generating unit that generates a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna; an antenna removal unit that calculates a phase difference between each antenna included in the plurality of antennas, calculates a reliability indicating the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference, and removes at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas based on the reliability; and an extrapolated antenna installation unit that installs an extrapolated antenna within a preset second distance from an antenna among the plurality of antennas that has not been removed.

[0007] In another aspect, the present embodiments provide an antenna setting method using the phase of an antenna, comprising: a virtual antenna generation step of generating a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna; an antenna removal step of calculating a phase difference between each antenna included in the plurality of antennas, calculating a reliability indicating the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference, and removing at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas based on the reliability; and an extrapolation antenna installation step of installing an extrapolation antenna within a preset second distance from an antenna among the plurality of antennas that was not removed. Effects of the invention

[0008] The present disclosure can provide a technique for setting an antenna using the phase of the antenna. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0009] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a device for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the process of setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 3 is an example drawing for explaining the arrangement of an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a virtual antenna created around an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 5 is an example diagram for explaining the reliability of a virtual antenna calculated based on the phase difference of an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 6 is another example diagram for explaining the reliability of a virtual antenna calculated based on the phase difference of an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 7 is an example drawing for explaining the criteria for excluding an antenna based on the reliability of a virtual antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 8 is another example drawing for explaining the criteria for excluding an antenna based on the reliability of a virtual antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 9 is a drawing for explaining an extrapolation antenna installed around an antenna according to one embodiment. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an extrapolation antenna being installed according to one embodiment. FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining a method of setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0010] Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the exemplary drawings. In assigning reference numerals to the components of each drawing, the same components may have the same reference numeral as much as possible, even if they are shown in different drawings. Furthermore, in describing the embodiments, if it is determined that a detailed description of related known components or functions may obscure the essence of the technical concept, such detailed description may be omitted. Where terms such as "comprising," "having," or "consisting of" are used in this specification, other parts may be added unless "only" is used. Where a component is expressed in the singular, it may include a plural unless otherwise specified.

[0011] Additionally, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc., may be used to describe the components of the present disclosure. These terms are used merely to distinguish the components from other components, and the nature, order, sequence, or number of the components are not limited by such terms.

[0012] In describing the positional relationship of components, where it is stated that two or more components are "connected," "combined," or "joined," it should be understood that while the two or more components may be directly "connected," "combined," or "joined," they may also be "connected," "combined," or "joined" with other components "intervened." Here, the other components may be included in one or more of the two or more components that are "connected," "combined," or "joined" with one another.

[0013] In describing the temporal flow relationship regarding components, methods of operation, or methods of production, for example, when the temporal or sequential relationship is described using "after," "following," "next," or "before," it may include cases where the relationship is not continuous unless "immediately" or "directly" is used.

[0014] Meanwhile, where numerical values ​​or corresponding information regarding a component (e.g., levels, etc.) are mentioned, even without separate explicit notation, the numerical values ​​or corresponding information may be interpreted as including a range of error that may occur due to various factors (e.g., process factors, internal or external shocks, noise, etc.).

[0015] The embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0017] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a device for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0018] Referring to FIG. 1, a device (100) for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna may include a virtual antenna generating unit (110) that generates a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna.

[0019] Phase may refer to the angle of the first starting point or the position at any given moment within one cycle of a repeating waveform. The unit of phase is radians or the general angle (°). In this disclosure, phase may also be referred to as the phase angle.

[0020] Antennas may have phases, and phase differences may occur between each antenna. Phase differences may also occur between antennas having the same period and amplitude. The antenna setting device (110) of the present disclosure proposes a method to improve radar performance using a small number of antennas by generating a virtual antenna using the phase of each antenna, removing at least one antenna with reduced performance using the phase difference of adjacent antennas, and installing an external antenna extended from the existing antenna based on the antenna that was not removed.

[0021] In this disclosure, the first antenna may be referred to as the central antenna.

[0022] For example, multiple antennas may be positioned at a distance of a third distance to the top, bottom, left, and right of the first antenna.

[0023] The plurality of antennas of the present disclosure can be arranged in various ways. Antenna arrangement methods include a Non-Uniform Linear Array (NLA) antenna arrangement method in which antennas are arranged at a predetermined ratio and a Uniform Linear Array (ULA) antenna arrangement method in which antennas are arranged at the same ratio.

[0024] More specifically, the NLA antenna arrangement method is a method in which N antennas (where N is an integer greater than or equal to 2) are arranged at various distances, and the ULA antenna arrangement method is a method in which N antennas are arranged at equal distances. In this disclosure, the NLA antenna arrangement method may be referred to as the NLA antenna, and the ULA antenna arrangement method may be referred to as the ULA antenna.

[0025] For example, four antennas can be arranged in a line in an NLA antenna, and the distance between each antenna can be arranged in a ratio of 2:3:4:1. Or, the distance between each antenna can be arranged such that it is 2λ, 3λ, 4λ, λ.

[0026] In addition, three antennas can be arranged in a line in the ULA antenna, and the distance between each antenna can be arranged in a ratio of 1:1:1. Or, the distance between each antenna can be λ, λ, λ.

[0027] In addition, NLA antennas and ULA antennas may be arranged in an intersecting manner. However, the aforementioned arrangement of multiple antennas is merely an example, and they may be arranged in various forms as needed.

[0028] As another example, a virtual antenna can be created at a location a fourth distance away from two antennas included in a plurality of antennas.

[0029] The virtual antenna of the present disclosure refers to an antenna temporarily created to remove the antenna with the lowest performance among a plurality of antennas installed around a central antenna.

[0030] The antenna setting device (110) of the present disclosure aims to create a radar with good performance by installing a small number of extrapolated antennas by generating a virtual antenna based on an existing installed antenna and calculating the reliability of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference between antennas.

[0031] A virtual antenna can be created at a midpoint between two adjacent antennas. A virtual antenna can be created at any one location that is equidistant from two adjacent antennas. Additionally, the antenna setting device (100) of the present disclosure may create a virtual antenna according to a Joint Interpolation method.

[0032] A device (100) for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna may include an antenna removal unit (120) that calculates a phase difference between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas, calculates a reliability indicating the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference, and removes at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas based on the reliability.

[0033] The antenna setting device (100) of the present disclosure calculates the phase difference between two antennas involved in generating a virtual antenna and calculates the reliability of each virtual antenna based on the phase difference. The reliability of the present disclosure may refer to a numerical value representing the performance of the generated virtual antenna or the performance of an existing installed antenna. Two antennas involved in generating a virtual antenna with low reliability are treated as the antennas with the lowest performance, and antennas with low performance may be removed so as not to be involved in generating an extrapolated antenna.

[0034] The reliability of the present disclosure can be considered higher as the phase difference between the two antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna becomes smaller. Conversely, the reliability can be considered lower as the phase difference becomes larger. Therefore, reliability can also be expressed as the reciprocal of the phase difference. However, this is merely one method of expression based on the fact that reliability is inversely proportional to the phase difference, and the method of calculating reliability is not limited to this and can be set in various ways as needed.

[0035] For example, the antenna removal unit (120) of the present disclosure can remove two antennas involved in the creation of the virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there is only one virtual antenna with the lowest reliability.

[0036] As another example, the antenna removal unit (120) of the present disclosure can remove an antenna that is commonly included among the antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there are two or more virtual antennas with the lowest reliability.

[0037] As another example, the antenna removal unit (120) of the present disclosure can select and remove one of the two antennas by comparing the phase of the antenna involved in generating the reliability of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there is only one virtual antenna with the lowest reliability.

[0038] As another example, the antenna removal unit (120) of the present disclosure can remove all antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there are two or more virtual antennas with the lowest reliability.

[0039] The number of low-reliability virtual antennas and the number of antennas to be removed are not limited to the above method and can be determined in various ways as needed.

[0040] The antenna removal unit (120) of the present disclosure can remove all virtual antennas after removing at least one antenna among a plurality of antennas.

[0041] A virtual antenna is a non-existent antenna intended to eliminate antennas that interfere with radar performance improvement; therefore, once antenna removal is complete, the virtual antenna is also removed.

[0042] As another example, reliability can be inversely proportional to the phase difference between two antennas.

[0043] A device (100) for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna may include an extrapolation antenna installation unit (130) for installing an extrapolation antenna within a preset second distance from an antenna that is not removed among the plurality of antennas.

[0044] For example, the extrapolation antenna can be installed within a preset second distance from the antenna that has not been removed.

[0045] The distance between the unremoved antenna and the extrapolated antenna can be the same as the distance between the center antenna and the unremoved antenna. By installing the extrapolated antenna at a certain distance from the unremoved antenna, the radar can detect a wider range and detect more precisely.

[0046] As another example, the structure formed by the plurality of antennas including the extrapolated antenna may include at least one of a ULA antenna structure and an NLA antenna structure.

[0047] Multiple antennas including extrapolated antennas may be a ULA antenna structure in which antennas at various distances are arranged in a line, or an NLA antenna structure in which antennas at the same distances are arranged in a line. Additionally, they may be a cross-shaped antenna structure in which these ULA and NLA antennas are arranged together. However, the antenna arrangement is not necessarily limited to being arranged in a line or in a cross shape; various structures may be taken as long as the radar performance can be improved by generating a virtual antenna according to the conditions described above, calculating reliability based on the phase difference between antennas, removing some antennas, and generating an extrapolated antenna.

[0048] The antenna setting device (100) of the present disclosure has the advantage of being able to have performance including improved angular resolution compared to other radars having the same number of antennas, and can also improve the performance of a radar including antennas with poor performance through the method of the present disclosure by creating a virtual antenna between adjacent antennas, removing an antenna with poor performance according to the reliability of the virtual antenna, and installing an extrapolated antenna based on the remaining antenna that was not removed.

[0049] In Figure 2 and below, we will specifically examine the process of setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0051] FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the process of setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0052] Referring to FIG. 2, the process of setting an antenna using phase in the antenna setting device of the present disclosure can be performed as follows.

[0053] Specifically, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure creates virtual antennas around a central antenna (S200).

[0054] The central antenna may refer to the antenna positioned in the exact center among multiple antennas. However, the central antenna may be configured in various ways depending on the arrangement of the multiple antennas.

[0055] For example, the phases of antennas X2 and X3, located within a first distance set from the central antenna antenna X1, are respectively Φ X2 wa Φ X3 In this case, a virtual antenna can be generated based on the phase difference between antenna X2 and antenna X3 centered on antenna X1.

[0056] The phase difference between antenna X2 and antenna X3 can be calculated using the method of Equation 1.

[0057]

[0058] ( is the phase difference between antenna X2 and antenna X3, is the phase of antenna X2, represents the phase of antenna X3)

[0059] The antenna setting device of the present disclosure can create a virtual antenna between two adjacent antennas.

[0060] The virtual antenna created between antenna X2 and antenna X3 may be an antenna located at the same distance as antenna X2 and antenna X3. The present disclosure may refer to antenna X2 and antenna X3 as the antennas involved in the creation of the virtual antenna.

[0061] When a virtual antenna is generated, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure calculates the reliability of all virtual antennas based on the phase difference of the antenna according to Equation 1 (S210).

[0062] A virtual antenna is intended to remove the antenna with the lowest performance among the installed antennas, and the antenna setting device of the present disclosure calculates the reliability of the antenna performance for all virtual antennas.

[0063] Although the reliability calculation method can be set in various ways, the reliability of the present disclosure is proposed to be calculated as the inverse of the phase difference between two antennas involved in the generation of a virtual antenna. For example, if the phase difference between antenna X2 and antenna X3 is 10, the reliability of the virtual antenna generated between antenna X2 and antenna X3 is 1 / 10.

[0064] When the reliability of all virtual antennas is calculated, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure removes at least one antenna based on the reliability (S220).

[0065] When the reliability of all virtual antennas is calculated, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure selects a virtual antenna with low reliability and removes at least one antenna involved in the creation of the virtual antenna. Removal of an antenna does not mean physically removing the antenna, but rather turning off the power to the antenna or not being involved in the installation of additional extrapolated antennas.

[0066] The number of virtual antennas with low reliability and the number of antennas to be removed are not limited to one, but can be determined in various ways as needed.

[0067] For example, if the number of virtual antennas with low reliability is set to 1, one or two antennas may be removed, and if the number of virtual antennas with low reliability is set to 2, one to four antennas may be removed. The criteria for selecting the antennas to be removed may be based on removing the antenna with the largest phase, or based on antennas that are duplicated among the antennas involved in creating the virtual antenna, or the criteria may be set to remove all antennas involved in creating the virtual antenna that are selected as having low reliability.

[0068] When at least one antenna is removed based on reliability, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure removes all virtual antennas (S230).

[0069] As mentioned above, since the virtual antenna is a virtual object created to remove the low-performance antenna, the virtual antenna is also removed when the antenna removal is completed.

[0070] When all virtual antennas are removed, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure installs an extrapolated antenna around the antennas that were not removed (S240).

[0071] The antenna setting device of the present disclosure installs an extrapolated antenna around each antenna based on an antenna that has not been removed. The installation of an extrapolated antenna may mean that an antenna is physically installed, but is not limited thereto and may also mean that a virtual antenna is installed as needed.

[0072] The distance between the unremoved antenna and the extrapolated antenna may be equal to the distance between the center antenna and the unremoved antenna.

[0073] For example, if the distance between the center antenna and the unremoved antenna is λ, the distance between the unremoved antenna and the extrapolated antenna can also be set to λ. However, this is just one example, and the distance between the unremoved antenna and the extrapolated antenna can be set to various values ​​such as 2λ, 3λ, etc., depending on the application of the radar.

[0075] FIG. 3 is an example drawing for explaining the arrangement of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0076] Referring to FIG. 3, a plurality of antennas of the present disclosure can be arranged in various ways. As described above, antenna arrangement methods include an NLA antenna arrangement method in which the distance between antennas is arranged according to a predetermined ratio, and a ULA antenna arrangement method in which the distance between antennas is equal.

[0077] For example, multiple antennas can be arranged such that four ULA antennas are orthogonal to each other.

[0078] According to FIG. 3, a single ULA antenna may include a central antenna (300). An antenna R is positioned at a distance d1 from the central antenna R0 (300) in the positive direction of the x-axis with respect to the central antenna R0 (300). X1 (310) and antenna R X1 Nth antenna R from (310) XN A total of N antennas can be placed at a distance of each d1 up to (320) (N is an integer greater than or equal to 2).

[0079] Additionally, another ULA antenna is an antenna R positioned at a distance d1 from the center antenna R0 (300) in the positive direction of the y-axis with respect to the center antenna R0 (300). y1 (330) and antenna R y1 Nth antenna R from (330) yN A total of N antennas can be placed at a distance of d1 each up to (340).

[0080] Similarly, a total of four ULA antennas can be arranged in a cross shape, with one in the negative direction of the x-axis and one in the negative direction of the y-axis.

[0081] The arrangement of multiple antennas is not limited to this and can be configured in various ways as needed. ULA antennas may be arranged together, NLA antennas may be arranged together, or ULA and NLA antennas may be mixed. Additionally, antennas may be arranged in various forms other than a cross shape.

[0082] The antenna setting device of the present disclosure can improve radar performance by creating a virtual antenna between a plurality of antennas arranged as described above and installing an extrapolated antenna on at least one antenna based on the reliability of the created virtual antenna.

[0084] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a virtual antenna created around an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0085] Referring to FIG. 4, in a structure where antennas RX1, RX2, RX3, and RX5 are each positioned at a distance of 0.5λ from antenna RX3 (400) relative to the central antenna RX3 (400), virtual antennas VX1, VX2, VX3, and VX4 can be created between each antenna.

[0086] For convenience of explanation, the present disclosure is configured with one central antenna and four antennas arranged in a cross shape around it, but this is merely an example and the number and arrangement of antennas can be varied as needed.

[0087] For example, virtual antenna VX2 (420) can be generated based on the phase difference between antenna RX1 (410) and antenna RX3 (400) with respect to antenna RX4 (430). Alternatively, virtual antenna VX2 (420) may be expressed as being generated based on the phase difference between antenna RX3 (400) and antenna RX4 (430) with respect to antenna RX1 (410).

[0088] To calculate reliability, the phase of the virtual antenna is calculated based on the phase difference between the reference satellite involved in generating the virtual antenna and the two satellites. Based on the example described above, it can be expressed as Equation 2.

[0089]

[0090] ( represents the phase of the virtual antenna VX2 (420), and represents the phase of RX1 (410), and represents the phase difference between RX3 and RX4.)

[0091] If I write this out... It can also be expressed as.

[0092] As another example, the virtual antenna VX3 (440) can be generated based on the phase difference between RX3 (400) and RX5 (450) relative to RX4 (430). Alternatively, it may be expressed that VX3 (440) is generated based on the phase difference between RX3 (400) and RX4 (430) relative to RX5 (450).

[0093] As another example, the virtual antenna VX2 (420) of the present disclosure may be located at the same distance as antenna RX1 (410) and antenna RX4 (430), and the line connecting the virtual antenna VX2 (420) and antenna RX1 (410) may form a perpendicular to the line connecting RX1 (410) and antenna RX3 (400). Additionally, the line connecting the virtual antenna VX2 (420) and antenna RX4 (430) may form a perpendicular to the line connecting RX4 (430) and antenna RX3 (400).

[0095] FIG. 5 is an example diagram for explaining the reliability of a virtual antenna calculated based on the phase difference of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0096] Referring to Fig. 5, when a virtual antenna is created between each antenna as in Fig. 4, the reliability of the virtual antenna can be calculated based on the phase difference between the two antennas involved in creating the virtual antenna.

[0097] Specifically, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure can calculate the reliability of a virtual antenna as the reciprocal of the phase difference. If there are two phase differences between the two antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna, it can also be calculated as the reciprocal of the average of the two phase differences.

[0098] As mentioned above, since phase difference and reliability are inversely proportional, a large calculated phase difference implies that the reliability of the virtual antenna is low. Low reliability of the virtual antenna means that there is a low-performance antenna among the antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna.

[0099] According to Fig. 5, the x-axis of the graph represents the phases of the antennas involved in the generation of the virtual antennas VX1, VX2, VX3, and VX4 of Fig. 4, respectively, and the y-axis represents the phases of the antennas.

[0100] For example, virtual antennas VX1 and VX2 have the same black and gray values ​​on the y-axis of the graph, and VX3 and VX4 have the same black and gray values ​​on the y-axis, indicating that the phase difference involved in the generation of virtual antennas VX1 to VX4 is the same. This means that the reliability of VX1 to VX4 is the same.

[0101] In such cases, it means that there is no low-performance antenna, and the antenna setting device of the present disclosure can install an extrapolated antenna for all antennas without excluding a specific antenna.

[0103] FIG. 6 is another example diagram for explaining the reliability of a virtual antenna calculated based on the phase difference of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0104] Referring to Fig. 6, the x-axis of the graph represents the phases of the antennas involved in the generation of the virtual antennas VX1, VX2, VX3, and VX4 of Fig. 4, respectively, and the y-axis represents the phases of the antennas.

[0105] For example, virtual antennas VX1 and VX4 have the same black and gray values ​​on the y-axis of the graph, but virtual antennas VX2 and VX3 have different black and gray values ​​on the y-axis, which means that the reliability of virtual antennas VX1 and VX4 is higher than that of VX2 and VX3.

[0106] In such cases, the common antenna among the antennas involved in creating virtual antennas VX2 and VX3 may be deleted. According to Figure 4, the antenna commonly involved in creating virtual antennas VX2 and VX3 is RX4. Therefore, an extrapolated antenna may be installed based on the antenna excluding RX4.

[0108] FIG. 7 is an example drawing for explaining the criteria for excluding an antenna based on the reliability of a virtual antenna according to one embodiment.

[0109] Referring to FIG. 7, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure calculates reliability based on the phase difference between antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna, and can remove an antenna that is commonly included in the creation of two virtual antennas with low reliability.

[0110] Removal of the antenna does not mean physically removing the antenna, but rather turning off the power to the antenna or excluding the antenna from the installation of the extrapolated antenna.

[0111] Specifically, according to FIG. 7, when the virtual antennas with low reliability are VX2 (720) and VX3 (740), RX4 (730), which is commonly involved in the formation of the virtual antennas excluding the center antenna (700), can be removed. The antenna setting device of the present disclosure may consider RX4 (730) as a low-performance antenna and exclude it from being involved in the antenna where the extrapolated antenna is installed.

[0112] Additionally, virtual antennas VX2 (720) and VX3 (740), which were calculated to have low reliability, may be removed simultaneously when antenna RX4 (730) is removed. However, the time of removal of the virtual antennas may be the same as the time of removal of the antennas involved in generating the low-reliability virtual antennas, or they may be removed together with the remaining virtual antennas after the antennas involved in generating the low-reliability virtual antennas have been removed.

[0114] FIG. 8 is another example drawing for explaining the criteria for excluding an antenna based on the reliability of a virtual antenna according to one embodiment.

[0115] Referring to FIG. 8, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure calculates reliability based on the phase difference between antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna, and if there is one virtual antenna with low reliability, removes the antenna involved in the creation of one virtual antenna.

[0116] For example, if the virtual antenna with low reliability is VX2 (820), RX1 (810) and RX4 (830), which are involved in the formation of the virtual antenna excluding the center antenna (800), may be removed. The antenna setting device of the present disclosure may consider RX1 (810) and RX4 (830) as low-performance antennas and exclude them from being involved in the antenna where the extrapolated antenna is installed.

[0117] Additionally, the virtual antenna VX2 (820), which was calculated to have low reliability, may also be removed at the time when RX1 (810) and RX4 (830) are removed. However, the time of removal of the virtual antenna may be the same as the time of removal of the antenna involved in generating the low-reliability virtual antenna, or it may be removed along with the remaining virtual antennas after the antenna involved in generating the low-reliability virtual antenna has been removed.

[0118] As another example, if the virtual antenna with low reliability is VX3 (840), RX4 (830) and RX5 (850), which are involved in the formation of the virtual antenna excluding the center antenna (800), may be removed. The antenna setting device of the present disclosure may consider RX4 (830) and RX5 (850) as low-performance antennas and exclude them from being involved in the antenna where the extrapolated antenna is installed.

[0119] Additionally, the virtual antenna VX3 (840), which was calculated to have low reliability, may also be removed at the time when RX4 (830) and RX5 (850) are removed. As described above, the time of removal of the virtual antenna may be the same as the time of removal of the antenna involved in generating the low-reliability virtual antenna, or it may be removed together with the remaining virtual antennas after the antenna involved in generating the low-reliability virtual antenna has been removed.

[0121] FIG. 9 is a drawing for explaining an extrapolation antenna installed around an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0122] Referring to FIG. 9, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure can remove an antenna involved in the creation of a virtual antenna with low reliability based on the reliability of the virtual antenna, and install an extrapolated antenna based on the antenna that was not removed.

[0123] Specifically, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure can, when the reliability of a virtual antenna is calculated, remove at least one antenna involved in the creation of a virtual antenna with low reliability, and after removing all virtual antennas, install an extrapolated antenna based on the antenna that was not removed.

[0124] The antenna setting device of the present disclosure can remove RX4, which is commonly involved in the formation of low-reliability antennas VX2 and VX3. RX4 can be treated as a low-performance antenna.

[0125] The antenna configuration device of the present disclosure can remove all virtual antennas VX1, VX2, VX3, and VX4 by removing the low-performance antenna RX4. Once all virtual antennas are removed, extrapolated antennas can be installed around the unremoved antennas RX1, RX2, and RX5. As described above, since the extrapolated antennas are intended to improve radar performance based on the distance extended from the existing antenna arrangement, it is proposed that they be installed facing outward from the existing antennas, centered on the central antenna.

[0126] Additionally, the distance between the antenna that is not removed and the extrapolated antenna may be equal to the distance between the center antenna and the antenna that is not removed. For example, the extrapolated antenna EVX1 (920), installed relative to antenna RX1 (910), may be installed at a distance of 0.5λ, which is the same distance as between antenna RX1 (910), the center antenna RX3 (900), and antenna RX1 (910). In this way, the size of the antenna aperture is increased through antenna extrapolation, and the performance, including the angular resolution of the radar, is increased by excluding the antenna with low performance.

[0127] However, since this is just one example, the distance between the unremoved antenna and the extrapolated antenna can be set differently as needed.

[0128] The extrapolation antenna installed also has a phase. For example, for an extrapolation antenna EVX1 (920) installed at a position symmetrical to RX3 (900) with respect to RX1 (910), the phase of the extrapolation antenna EVX1 (920) can be expressed as Equation 3.

[0129]

[0130] ( is the phase of the extrapolated antenna EVX1, is the phase of antenna RX1, represents the phase difference between antennas RX1 and RX3.)

[0132] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an extrapolation antenna being installed according to one embodiment.

[0133] Referring to FIG. 10, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure may install an extrapolated antenna around some antennas based on the reliability of a virtual antenna.

[0134] Specifically, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure checks whether the antenna associated with the radar receives a signal reflected from a target (S1000). This is a process for checking whether the antenna is an active antenna.

[0135] When it is confirmed that a signal reflected from a target is received, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure checks whether a target is detected for all channels (S1010).

[0136] Each antenna can perform 2D-FFT on all channels and detect targets through calculations using the CA-CFAR method. Accordingly, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure can check whether each antenna detects a target.

[0137] When it is confirmed whether a target has been detected for all channels, the antenna setting device of the present disclosure creates a virtual antenna between each antenna (S1020). Although the arrangement method of multiple antennas can be set in various ways, the present disclosure may include a 10-shaped arrangement composed of at least one ULA antenna or at least one NLA antenna. In the 10-shaped arrangement, the present disclosure may refer to a part of the antenna as the X-axis and another part of the antenna as the Y-axis.

[0138] A virtual antenna is created between two adjacent antennas, and the virtual antenna can be located at the same distance as the two antennas involved in the creation.

[0139] When a virtual antenna is generated, the antenna generation device of the present disclosure calculates the reliability of the virtual antenna (S1030). The reliability is intended to select the antenna with the lowest performance among the antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna, and can be calculated as the inverse of the satellite difference between the antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna.

[0140] When the reliability of the virtual antenna is calculated, the antenna generation device of the present disclosure excludes at least one antenna among the antennas involved in virtual antenna generation based on the virtual antenna with low reliability from the antennas involved in extrapolation antenna installation (S1040).

[0141] When the exclusion of antennas is completed, the antenna generation device of the present disclosure removes the virtual antenna and installs an extrapolated antenna based on the remaining antennas that were not deleted (S1050).

[0143] FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining a method of setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna according to one embodiment.

[0144] Referring to FIG. 11, a method for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna may include a virtual antenna generation step of creating a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna (S1100).

[0145] Antennas can have phases, and phase differences may occur between each antenna. Phase differences may also occur between antennas having the same period and amplitude. The antenna setting device of the present disclosure proposes a method to improve radar performance using a small number of antennas by setting a virtual antenna using the phase of each antenna, removing at least one antenna with reduced performance using the phase difference of adjacent antennas, and installing an external antenna extended from the existing antenna based on the antenna that was not removed.

[0146] In this disclosure, the first antenna may be referred to as the central antenna.

[0147] For example, multiple antennas may be positioned at a distance of a third distance to the top, bottom, left, and right of the first antenna.

[0148] The plurality of antennas of the present disclosure can be arranged in various ways. Antenna arrangement methods include a Non-Uniform Linear Array (NLA) antenna arrangement method in which antennas are arranged at a predetermined ratio and a Uniform Linear Array (ULA) antenna arrangement method in which antennas are arranged at the same ratio.

[0149] More specifically, the NLA antenna arrangement method is a method in which N antennas (where N is an integer greater than or equal to 2) are arranged at various distances, and the ULA antenna arrangement method is a method in which N antennas are arranged at equal distances. In this disclosure, the NLA antenna arrangement method may be referred to as the NLA antenna, and the ULA antenna arrangement method may be referred to as the ULA antenna.

[0150] For example, four antennas can be arranged in a line in an NLA antenna, and the distance between each antenna can be arranged in a ratio of 2:3:4:1. Or, the distance between each antenna can be arranged such that it is 2λ, 3λ, 4λ, λ.

[0151] In addition, three antennas can be arranged in a line in the ULA antenna, and the distance between each antenna can be arranged in a ratio of 1:1:1. Or, the distance between each antenna can be λ, λ, λ.

[0152] In addition, NLA antennas and ULA antennas may be arranged in an intersecting manner. However, the aforementioned arrangement of multiple antennas is merely an example, and they may be arranged in various forms as needed.

[0153] As another example, a virtual antenna can be created at a location a fourth distance away from two antennas included in a plurality of antennas.

[0154] The virtual antenna of the present disclosure refers to an antenna temporarily created to remove the antenna with the lowest performance among a plurality of antennas installed around a central antenna.

[0155] The antenna setting device of the present disclosure aims to create a radar with good performance by installing a small number of extrapolated antennas by generating a virtual antenna based on an existing installed antenna and calculating the reliability of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference between antennas.

[0156] A virtual antenna may be created at a midpoint between two adjacent antennas. In this disclosure, two adjacent antennas may refer to two antennas located within a set first distance. A virtual antenna may be created at any one location at the same distance from the two adjacent antennas.

[0157] A method for setting an antenna using the phase of an antenna may include an antenna removal step of calculating a phase difference between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas, calculating a reliability representing the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference, and removing at least one of the plurality of antennas based on the reliability.

[0158] The antenna setting device of the present disclosure calculates the phase difference between two antennas involved in generating a virtual antenna and calculates the reliability of each virtual antenna based on the phase difference. The reliability of the present disclosure may refer to a numerical value representing the performance of the generated virtual antenna or the performance of an existing installed antenna. Two antennas involved in generating a virtual antenna with low reliability are treated as the antennas with the lowest performance, and antennas with low performance may be removed so as not to be involved in generating an extrapolated antenna.

[0159] The reliability of the present disclosure can be considered higher as the phase difference between the two antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna becomes smaller. Conversely, the reliability can be considered lower as the phase difference becomes larger. Therefore, reliability can also be expressed as the reciprocal of the phase difference. However, this is merely one method of expression based on the fact that reliability is inversely proportional to the phase difference, and the method of calculating reliability is not limited to this and can be set in various ways as needed.

[0160] For example, the antenna removal step of the present disclosure can remove two antennas involved in the creation of the virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there is only one virtual antenna with the lowest reliability.

[0161] As another example, the antenna removal step of the present disclosure may remove an antenna that is commonly included among the antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there are two or more virtual antennas with the lowest reliability.

[0162] As another example, the antenna removal step of the present disclosure may, in the case where there is only one virtual antenna with the lowest reliability, compare the phases of the antennas involved in generating the reliability of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability and select and remove one of the two antennas.

[0163] As another example, the antenna removal step of the present disclosure can remove all antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there are two or more virtual antennas with the lowest reliability.

[0164] The number of low-reliability virtual antennas and the number of antennas to be removed are not limited to the above method and can be determined in various ways as needed.

[0165] The antenna removal step of the present disclosure may remove all virtual antennas after removing at least one antenna among a plurality of antennas.

[0166] A virtual antenna is a non-existent antenna intended to eliminate antennas that interfere with radar performance improvement; therefore, once antenna removal is complete, the virtual antenna is also removed.

[0167] As another example, reliability can be inversely proportional to the phase difference between two antennas.

[0168] A method for setting an antenna using the phase of the antenna may include an extrapolation antenna installation step of installing an extrapolation antenna within a preset second distance from an antenna that is not removed among the plurality of antennas (S1120).

[0169] For example, the extrapolation antenna can be installed within a preset second distance from the antenna that has not been removed.

[0170] The distance between the unremoved antenna and the extrapolated antenna can be the same as the distance between the center antenna and the unremoved antenna. By installing the extrapolated antenna at a certain distance from the unremoved antenna, the radar can detect a wider range and detect more precisely.

[0171] As another example, the structure formed by the plurality of antennas including the extrapolated antenna may include at least one of a uniform linear array (ULA) antenna structure and a non-uniform linear array (NLA) antenna structure.

[0172] Multiple antennas including extrapolated antennas may be a ULA antenna structure in which antennas at various distances are arranged in a line, or an NLA antenna structure in which antennas at the same distances are arranged in a line. Additionally, they may be a cross-shaped antenna structure in which these ULA and NLA antennas are arranged together. However, the antenna arrangement is not necessarily limited to being arranged in a line or in a cross shape; various structures may be taken as long as the radar performance can be improved by generating a virtual antenna according to the conditions described above, calculating reliability based on the phase difference between antennas, removing some antennas, and generating an extrapolated antenna.

[0174] Through the operation of the aforementioned steps, the detection performance of the radar can be enhanced by constructing a radar with improved performance using a relatively small number of antennas.

[0175] The foregoing description is merely an illustrative explanation of the technical concept of the present disclosure, and those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains may make various modifications and variations within the scope of the essential characteristics of the technical concept. Furthermore, since these embodiments are intended to explain, not limit, the scope of the technical concept is not limited by these embodiments. The scope of protection of the present disclosure shall be interpreted by the claims below, and all technical concepts within an equivalent scope shall be interpreted as being included within the scope of rights of the present disclosure.

Claims

Claim 1 An antenna setting device comprising: a virtual antenna generating unit that generates a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna; an antenna removal unit that calculates a phase difference between each antenna included in the plurality of antennas, calculates a reliability indicating the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference, and removes at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas based on the reliability; and an extrapolation antenna installation unit that installs an extrapolation antenna within a preset second distance from an antenna among the plurality of antennas that was not removed by the antenna removal unit. Claim 2 An antenna setting device according to claim 1, characterized in that the plurality of antennas are positioned at a distance of a third distance from the first antenna in the upper, lower, left, and right directions of the first antenna. Claim 3 An antenna setting device according to claim 2, characterized in that the virtual antenna is generated at a location separated by a fourth distance from two antennas included in the plurality of antennas. Claim 4 An antenna setting device according to claim 3, wherein the antenna removal unit removes two antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there is only one virtual antenna with the lowest reliability. Claim 5 An antenna setting device according to claim 4, wherein the antenna removal unit removes an antenna commonly included among the antennas involved in the creation of each virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there are two or more virtual antennas with the lowest reliability. Claim 6 An antenna setting device according to claim 1, wherein the antenna removal unit removes all virtual antennas after removing at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas. Claim 7 An antenna setting device according to claim 1, characterized in that the reliability is inversely proportional to the phase difference. Claim 8 An antenna setting device according to claim 1, characterized in that the distance between the antenna not removed among the plurality of antennas and the extrapolated antenna is the same as the distance from the first antenna to the antenna not removed. Claim 9 An antenna setting device according to claim 1, wherein the structure formed by the plurality of antennas including the extrapolated antenna comprises at least one of a uniform linear array (ULA) antenna structure and a non-uniform linear array (NLA) antenna structure. Claim 10 An antenna setting method comprising: a virtual antenna generation step of generating a virtual antenna between each antenna included in a plurality of antennas located within a preset first distance from a first antenna; an antenna removal step of calculating a phase difference between each antenna included in the plurality of antennas, calculating a reliability indicating the performance of the virtual antenna based on the phase difference, and removing at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas based on the reliability; and an extrapolation antenna installation step of installing an extrapolation antenna within a preset second distance from an antenna among the plurality of antennas that was not removed in the antenna removal step. Claim 11 An antenna setting method according to claim 10, wherein the plurality of antennas are positioned at a third distance from the first antenna in the upper, lower, left, and right directions of the first antenna, centered on the first antenna. Claim 12 An antenna setting method according to claim 11, characterized in that the virtual antenna is generated at a fourth distance from two antennas included in the plurality of antennas. Claim 13 An antenna setting method according to claim 12, wherein the antenna removal step is characterized by removing two antennas involved in the creation of the virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there is only one virtual antenna with the lowest reliability. Claim 14 An antenna setting method according to claim 13, wherein the antenna removal step is characterized by removing an antenna that is commonly included among the antennas involved in generating the virtual antenna with the lowest reliability when there are two or more virtual antennas with the lowest reliability. Claim 15 An antenna setting method according to claim 10, wherein the antenna removal step is characterized by removing all virtual antennas after removing at least one antenna among the plurality of antennas. Claim 16 An antenna setting method according to claim 10, wherein the reliability is inversely proportional to the phase difference. Claim 17 An antenna setting method according to claim 10, characterized in that the distance between the antenna not removed among the plurality of antennas and the extrapolated antenna is the same as the distance from the first antenna to the antenna not removed. Claim 18 An antenna setting method according to claim 10, wherein the structure formed by the plurality of antennas including the extrapolated antenna comprises at least one of a uniform linear array (ULA) antenna structure and a non-uniform linear array (NLA) antenna structure.

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