A radar antenna system and a signal processing method

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention provides a radar antenna system and a signal processing method. The radar antenna system includes: a bottom plate layer; a chip layer disposed on a first side of the bottom plate layer; a transmitting antenna disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer and electrically connected to the chip layer for transmitting a first signal from the chip layer; a multi-directional receiving antenna respectively disposed on the bottom plate layer and electrically connected to the chip layer for receiving a second signal and transmitting the received second signal to the chip layer. By means of the present invention, the problem that the structure of the radar antenna system in the related art is single, resulting in low signal detection accuracy, is solved, and further the effect of improving the structure of the radar antenna system, realizing two-way or multi-directional detection, and expanding the applicable range is achieved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present invention relate to the field of communications, and in particular, to a radar antenna system and a signal processing method. Background Art

[0002] With the development and progress of society and the improvement of people's living standards, the number of transportation vehicles is increasing, and the traffic conditions are becoming more and more complicated. Intelligent traffic detection has become the trend of future transportation. For example, radar is used for traffic detection, but the current radar detection can only perform one-way detection, resulting in low detection accuracy.

[0003] For example, millimeter-wave radar has become a new generation of intelligent traffic detection equipment, especially for road speed detection applications, because it can be used to measure distance, speed and angle simultaneously, and it has small size, easy installation, low cost, high resolution, and little impact from weather.

[0004] However, current millimeter-wave radars are limited by the structure of their radar sensors. Their transmitter and receiver circuits are separate, and the transmitting and receiving antennas of this type of radar are independent. As a result, this type of radar sensor is relatively large and costly, and can only receive signals in one direction. To detect signals in multiple directions, a new receiving antenna needs to be added, further increasing the size and cost of the radar and narrowing its application range. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The embodiments of the present invention provide a radar antenna system and a signal processing method to at least solve the problem in the related art that the radar antenna system has a single structure, which results in the inability to achieve bidirectional or multidirectional detection.

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a radar antenna system, comprising:

[0007] bottom plate layer;

[0008] a chip layer, the chip layer being arranged on the first side of the base plate layer;

[0009] a transmitting antenna, disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer and electrically connected to the chip layer, for transmitting a first signal from the chip layer;

[0010] The multi-directional receiving antennas are respectively arranged on the bottom plate layer and electrically connected to the chip layer, and are used for receiving a second signal and transmitting the received second signal to the chip layer.

[0011] In an exemplary embodiment, the multi-directional receiving antenna includes:

[0012] The first receiving antenna is disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer and is configured to receive a second signal arriving at the first side of the bottom plate layer;

[0013] The second receiving antenna is disposed on the second side of the bottom plate layer and is configured to receive a second signal arriving at the second side of the bottom plate layer, wherein the first side and the second side are oppositely disposed.

[0014] In an exemplary embodiment, the second signal includes a reflected signal obtained after the first signal is reflected.

[0015] In an exemplary embodiment, it further includes:

[0016] An isolation layer is disposed within the bottom plate layer and between the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna, and is configured to isolate the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna.

[0017] In an exemplary embodiment, a first through hole is formed in the bottom plate layer, the first through hole penetrates through the isolation layer, and an isolation ground avoidance hole is formed in the isolation layer. The second receiving antenna is connected to the chip layer through the first through hole and the isolation ground avoidance hole, and the diameter of the isolation ground avoidance hole is greater than or equal to the diameter of the first through hole.

[0018] In an exemplary embodiment, it further includes:

[0019] A switching switch, wherein the multi-directional receiving antenna is electrically connected to the chip layer through the switching switch. The switching switch is configured to switch the working state of the receiving antennas included in the multi-directional receiving antenna, and the switching period of the switching switch and the signal emission period of the first signal satisfy a predetermined relationship.

[0020] In an exemplary embodiment, the transmitting antenna includes a first series-fed microstrip antenna array, wherein the first series-fed microstrip antenna array includes a first number of series-fed microstrip antennas;

[0021] Each receiving antenna included in the multi-directional receiving antenna includes a second series-fed microstrip antenna array, wherein the number of series-fed microstrip antennas included in the second series-fed microstrip antenna arrays included in different receiving antennas is the same or different.

[0022] In an exemplary embodiment, the transmitting antenna and the multi-directional receiving antenna have the same operating frequency.

[0023] According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a signal processing method applied to any of the foregoing radar antenna systems, including:

[0024] Generating the first signal by using the chip layer;

[0025] Transmit the first signal through the transmitting antenna;

[0026] Receive a second signal through the multi-directional receiving antenna and transmit the second signal to the chip layer;

[0027] Use the chip layer to analyze and process the second signal based on the first signal to obtain a processing result.

[0028] In an exemplary embodiment, the second signal includes a reflected signal obtained after the first signal is reflected.

[0029] Through the present invention, since both the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna of the radar antenna system are integrated on the same chip layer, the volume of the radar antenna system is reduced, and the applicable range of the radar antenna system is expanded; at the same time, since the multi-directional antenna can receive signals from multiple directions, the problem of low detection accuracy caused by only receiving unidirectional signals can be avoided. Therefore, the problems in the related art that the structure of the radar antenna system is single, resulting in low detection accuracy, inability to achieve bidirectional or multi-directional detection, and small usage range can be solved, achieving the effects of improving the structure of the radar antenna system, increasing the detection accuracy, achieving bidirectional or multi-directional detection, and expanding the applicable range. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a radar antenna system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 2 is a side view of the structure of a radar antenna system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 3 is a flowchart of a signal processing method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 4 is a schematic partial structure diagram of a radar antenna system according to a specific embodiment of the present invention Figure 1 ;

[0034] Figure 5 is a schematic partial structure diagram of a radar antenna system according to a specific embodiment of the present invention Figure 2 ;

[0035] Figure 6 is a schematic partial structure diagram of a radar antenna system according to a specific embodiment of the present invention Figure 3 ;

[0036] Figure 7 is a schematic partial structure diagram of a radar antenna system according to a specific embodiment of the present invention Figure 4 ;

[0037] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of a partial structure of a radar antenna system according to a specific embodiment of the present invention Figure 5 ;

[0038] Figure 9 It is a schematic diagram of a partial structure of a radar antenna system according to a specific embodiment of the present invention Figure 6 。

[0039] In the figure, 1 is the bottom plate layer; 11 is the first through hole; 2 is the chip layer; 3 is the transmitting antenna; 41 is the first receiving antenna; 42 is the second receiving antenna; 43 is the changeover switch; 44 is the isolation layer; 441 is the isolation ground avoidance hole. Specific embodiments

[0040] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings and in conjunction with the embodiments.

[0041] It should be noted that the terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present invention and the above drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and do not necessarily need to describe a specific order or sequence.

[0042] Such as Figure 1 And Figure 2 As shown, the present application provides a radar antenna system, including:

[0043] The bottom plate layer 1;

[0044] The chip layer 2, and the chip layer 2 is disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer 1;

[0045] The transmitting antenna 3, the transmitting antenna 3 is disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer 1 and is electrically connected to the chip layer 2 for transmitting the first signal from the chip layer 2;

[0046] The multi-directional receiving antenna, which is respectively disposed on the bottom plate layer 1 and is electrically connected to the chip layer 2 for receiving the second signal and transmitting the received second signal to the chip layer 2.

[0047] In this embodiment, the bottom plate layer 1 can be set as a dielectric filling layer made of a non-metallic material, or can be other structures or devices for bottom plate support; the chip layer 2 can be set as a 1T1R commercial millimeter-wave radar chip, and the transmitting antenna 3 and the multi-directional antenna can be an antenna array composed of multiple groups of series-fed microstrip antennas, and there can be multiple setting positions for the multi-directional receiving antenna, for example, it can be set on opposite sides, adjacent sides of the bottom plate layer 1, or both opposite sides and adjacent sides are provided with multi-directional receiving antennas.

[0048] It should be noted that the chip layer 2 can (but is not limited to) be electrically connected to the transmitting antenna 3 and the multi-directional receiving antenna respectively through 50-ohm impedance RF lines, and the line width of the 50-ohm impedance RF lines can be adjusted according to the widths of the chip layer 2, the transmitting antenna 3, and the multi-directional receiving antenna.

[0049] Among them, to adapt to various usage scenarios, in an optional embodiment, the transmitting antenna includes a first series-fed microstrip antenna array, where the first series-fed microstrip antenna array includes a first number of series-fed microstrip antennas;

[0050] Each receiving antenna included in the multi-directional receiving antenna includes a second series-fed microstrip antenna array, where the number of series-fed microstrip antennas included in the second series-fed microstrip antenna arrays included in different receiving antennas can be the same or different.

[0051] In this embodiment, the first number and the number of series-fed microstrip antennas included in the second series-fed microstrip antenna array can be the same or different, that is, the series-fed microstrip antennas included in the transmitting antenna and the series-fed microstrip antennas included in the multi-directional receiving antenna can be the same or both different, so as to adapt to different usage scenarios.

[0052] In an optional embodiment, to ensure the rapid identification of signals and reduce the computational amount of the chip layer, the operating frequencies of the transmitting antenna and the multi-directional receiving antenna are the same, thereby reducing the energy loss caused by different operating frequencies of the chips.

[0053] In an optional embodiment, the multi-directional receiving antenna includes:

[0054] The first receiving antenna 41, disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer 1, is used to receive the second signal reaching the first side of the bottom plate layer 1;

[0055] The second receiving antenna 42, disposed on the second side of the bottom plate layer 1, is used to receive the second signal reaching the second side of the bottom plate layer 1, where the first side and the second side are oppositely disposed.

[0056] In this embodiment, the multi-directional receiving antenna is set as the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42 located on the opposite sides of the bottom plate layer 1 to receive the second signal from the opposite sides of the bottom plate layer 1 for detecting the things on both sides of the bottom plate layer 1.

[0057] Among them, both the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42 are provided with series-fed microstrip antennas, and the number of series-fed microstrip antennas of the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42 can be the same or different; and the second signal includes the reflected signal obtained after the first signal is reflected.

[0058] For example, when the radar antenna system is used for road vehicle detection, the transmitting antenna 3 transmits a first signal to a vehicle located on the first side of the bottom plate layer 1. Subsequently, the first receiving antenna 41 receives the second signal reflected by the vehicle and transmits the second signal to the chip layer 2. When the vehicle moves from the first side to the second side of the bottom plate layer 1, the transmitting antenna 3 transmits a first signal to the second side of the bottom plate layer 1. Subsequently, the second receiving antenna 42 receives the second signal reflected by the vehicle and transmits the second signal to the chip layer, realizing the detection of the vehicle.

[0059] It should be noted that the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42 can (but are not limited to) be in the receiving state simultaneously, or can be in the receiving state in sequence one by one, so as to adapt to different usage scenarios.

[0060] To reduce the interference of the second signals in other directions on the multi-directional receiving antennas located on one side of the bottom plate layer 1, in an optional embodiment, the radar antenna system further includes:

[0061] An isolation layer 44, which is arranged in the bottom plate layer 1 and located between the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42, for isolating the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42.

[0062] In this embodiment, the isolation layer 44 is set as a metal plate layer, which can (but is not limited to) be a ground copper foil, or can be other metal plate layers. For example, when the first receiving antenna 41 receives the second signal, the isolation layer 44 can prevent the second signal from passing through the bottom plate layer 1 and being received by the second receiving antenna 42, or when the second receiving antenna 42 receives the second signal, the isolation layer 44 can prevent the second signal from passing through the bottom plate layer 1 and being received by the first receiving antenna 41, thereby reducing the interference of signals in different directions on the detection process.

[0063] To facilitate the installation of the multi-directional receiving antennas, in an optional embodiment, a first through hole 11 is formed on the bottom plate layer 1. The first through hole 11 penetrates through the isolation layer 44, and an isolation ground avoidance hole 441 is formed on the isolation layer 44. The first through hole 11 and the isolation ground avoidance hole 441 are communicated. The second receiving antenna 42 is connected to the chip layer 2 through the first through hole 11 and the isolation ground avoidance hole 441, and the diameter of the isolation ground avoidance hole 441 is larger than the diameter of the first through hole 11.

[0064] In this embodiment, the diameter of the isolation ground avoidance hole 441 can (but is not limited to) be 2 times the diameter of the first through hole 11. The diameter of the isolation ground avoidance hole 441 being larger than the diameter of the first through hole 11 can facilitate the 50-ohm impedance RF line of the second receiving antenna 42 to pass through the isolation layer, thus facilitating the installation.

[0065] It should be noted that the diameter of the isolation ground avoidance hole 441 must be greater than the diameter of the first through hole 11; otherwise, the signal will short-circuit with the isolation ground during transmission, resulting in the system failing to achieve the desired effect.

[0066] To adapt to the usage scenario where the first receiving antenna 41 and the second receiving antenna 42 are successively in the receiving state in sequence, in an optional embodiment, the radar antenna system further includes:

[0067] A switching switch 43, wherein the multi-directional receiving antenna is electrically connected to the chip layer 2 through the switching switch 43. The switching switch 43 is used to switch the working states of the receiving antennas included in the multi-directional receiving antenna, and the switching period of the switching switch satisfies a predetermined relationship with the signal transmission period of the first signal.

[0068] In this embodiment, the switching period of the switching switch 43 is 4 times the rising edge of the signal transmission signal of the first signal, so that both the first signal and the second signal can be collected.

[0069] Among them, the switching switch 43 can be a radio frequency switch or other forms of switches.

[0070] With the above structure, since both the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna of the radar antenna system are integrated on the same chip layer, the volume of the radar antenna system is reduced, and the applicable range of the radar antenna system is expanded. At the same time, since the multi-directional antenna can receive signals from multiple directions, the problem of low detection accuracy caused by only receiving unidirectional signals can be avoided, solving the problems of single structure of the radar antenna system in the related art, resulting in low detection accuracy and small usage range, improving the structure of the radar antenna system, increasing the detection accuracy, realizing two-way or multi-directional detection, and expanding the applicable range of the radar antenna system.

[0071] In this embodiment, a signal processing method is provided. This method is applied to any of the aforementioned radar antenna systems. Figure 3 It is a flowchart of a signal processing method according to an embodiment of the present invention. As Figure 3 shown, this process includes the following steps:

[0072] Step S302, generating a first signal by using the chip layer 2;

[0073] In this embodiment, the manner in which the chip layer 2 generates the first signal can be generated according to a pre-stored algorithm or generated according to a periodically received generation instruction. The first signal can be a pulse signal, a trapezoidal signal with a trapezoidal waveform, a sine signal, or a triangular wave signal, or a digital signal.

[0074] Step S304, transmitting the first signal through the transmitting antenna 3;

[0075] In this embodiment, the first signal can be (but is not limited to) transmitted from the chip layer 2 to the transmitting antenna 3 through an anti-radio-frequency wire, or can be transmitted by other means.

[0076] Step S306: Receive the second signal through the multi-directional receiving antenna and transmit the second signal to the chip layer 2;

[0077] Step S308: Use the chip layer 2 to analyze and process the second signal based on the first signal to obtain a processing result.

[0078] In this embodiment, the chip layer 2 analyzes and processes the second signal based on the first signal by detecting signal information such as the frequency, energy, and amplitude of the reflected first signal contained in the second signal based on the first signal, so as to determine information such as the position and volume of the object reflecting the first signal.

[0079] Through the above steps, since the multi-directional antenna can receive signals from multiple directions, the problem of low detection accuracy caused by only receiving unidirectional signals can be avoided, solving the problem of the single structure of the radar antenna system in the related art, resulting in low detection accuracy and small application range, improving the detection accuracy, and expanding the application range of the radar antenna system.

[0080] Among them, the execution subject of the above steps can be a base station, a terminal, etc., but is not limited thereto.

[0081] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the method according to the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software plus a necessary general hardware platform. Of course, it can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases, the former is a better implementation method. Based on such an understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM / RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk), and includes several instructions for causing a terminal device (which can be a mobile phone, a computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in various embodiments of the present invention.

[0082] The present invention will be described below with reference to specific embodiments.

[0083] As Figures 3 - 5 shown, when the millimeter-wave radar IC is ready to transmit a signal, it is transmitted to the transmitting antenna TX1 through the transmission line L1. The antenna TX1 realizes omnidirectional transmission into the detection space. When it encounters surrounding objects, electromagnetic wave reflection will occur. The reflected millimeter wave will be received by the forward receiving antenna RX1, reach the transmission line L2, pass through the radio frequency switch SW and reach the transmission line L3, and enter the millimeter-wave radar IC for processing (as Figure 2as shown); at this time, the reflected millimeter wave will be received by the rear receiving antenna RX2, reach the transmission line L5, pass through the via VIA1 to reach the transmission line L4, then to the switch SW to reach the transmission line L3, and enter the millimeter wave radar IC for processing (such as Figure 3 as shown).

[0084] Preferably, the transmitting antenna TX1, the receiving antenna RX1, and the receiving antenna RX2 operate at the same frequency, such as 24G, 60G, 77G, etc.;

[0085] Preferably, the transmission lines L1, L2, L3, L4, and L5 are 50-ohm impedance RF lines, and the width is adjusted according to the board material;

[0086] Preferably, there is a ground copper foil for isolation between the receiving antenna RX1 and the receiving antenna RX2 (as Figure 4 shown);

[0087] Preferably, there is a copper via hole VIA2 where the RF via VIA1 passes through the isolated ground copper foil, and the diameter of the copper via hole VIA2 is twice that of the RF via VIA1 (as Figure 2 and Figure 4 shown);

[0088] Preferably, the diameter of the RF via VIA1 is adjusted according to the board stack;

[0089] Preferably, to ensure the overall detection effect, the switching period of the RF switch SW is 4 times the rise time of the RF switch SW;

[0090] Furthermore, any group of the described radar antennas includes different numbers of series-fed microstrip antenna arrays. In the current patent, 1X4 is taken as an example, and theoretically the number can be from 1 to infinity.

[0091] As Figures 6 - 9 shown, in another specific embodiment, to enable the receiving antennas RX1 and RX2 to work simultaneously, the conversion switch can be not set, and when the millimeter wave radar IC is ready to transmit a signal, it is transmitted to the transmitting antenna TX1 through the transmission line L1, and the antenna TX1 realizes omnidirectional transmission into space. When encountering surrounding objects, electromagnetic wave reflection will occur, and the transmitted-back millimeter wave will be received by the forward receiving antenna RX1, reach the transmission line L7, and enter the millimeter wave radar IC for processing (as Figure 6 shown); at this time, the millimeter wave will be received by the rear receiving antenna RX2, reach the transmission line L5, pass through the via VIA1 to reach the transmission line L6, and enter the millimeter wave radar IC for processing (as Figure 7 shown).

[0092] Preferably, the transmitting antenna TX1, the receiving antenna RX1, and the receiving antenna RX2 operate at the same frequency, such as 24G, 60G, 77G, etc.;

[0093] Preferably, the transmission lines L1, L5, L6, and L7 are 50-ohm impedance RF lines, and the width is adjusted according to the board material;

[0094] Preferably, a ground copper foil is provided in the middle of the receiving antenna RX1 and the receiving antenna RX2 for isolation (as Figure 9 shown);

[0095] Preferably, there is a copper via hole VIA2 at the place where the RF via hole VIA1 passes through the isolated ground copper foil, and the diameter of the copper via hole VIA2 is twice that of the RF via hole VIA1 (as Figure 6 and Figure 8 shown);

[0096] Preferably, the diameter of the RF via hole VIA1 is adjusted according to the board stack;

[0097] Furthermore, any group of the radar antennas includes series-fed microstrip antenna arrays with different numbers. In the present patent, 1X4 is taken as an example, and theoretically the number can be from 1 to infinity.

[0098] The above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not used to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the present invention can have various changes and modifications. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the principle of the present invention shall be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A radar antenna system, characterized in that, Comprising: A bottom plate layer; A chip layer, disposed on a first side of the bottom plate layer; A transmitting antenna, disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer and electrically connected to the chip layer, for transmitting a first signal from the chip layer; Multi-directional receiving antennas, respectively disposed on two sides of the bottom plate layer and electrically connected to the chip layer, for receiving a second signal and transmitting the received second signal to the chip layer; Wherein, the system further includes: a changeover switch, wherein the multi-directional receiving antennas are electrically connected to the chip layer through the changeover switch, and the changeover switch is used to switch the operating states of the receiving antennas included in the multi-directional receiving antennas, and the switching period of the changeover switch and the signal transmission period of the first signal satisfy a predetermined relationship to enable the chip layer to collect the first signal and the second signal, and the multi-directional receiving antennas include a first receiving antenna and a second receiving antenna; An isolation layer, disposed within the bottom plate layer and located between the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna, for isolating the first receiving antenna and the second receiving antenna; A first through hole is formed in the bottom plate layer, the first through hole penetrates through the isolation layer, and an isolation ground avoidance hole is formed in the isolation layer, and the second receiving antenna is connected to the chip layer through the first through hole and the isolation ground avoidance hole, and the diameter of the isolation ground avoidance hole is greater than the diameter of the first through hole; The chip layer is configured to analyze and process the second signal received by the multi-directional receiving antennas disposed on two opposite sides of the bottom plate layer based on the first signal to obtain a processing result.

2. The radar antenna system according to claim 1, wherein The first receiving antenna, disposed on the first side of the bottom plate layer, for receiving the second signal reaching the first side of the bottom plate layer; The second receiving antenna, disposed on a second side of the bottom plate layer, for receiving the second signal reaching the second side of the bottom plate layer, wherein the first side and the second side are oppositely disposed.

3. The radar antenna system according to claim 2, wherein, The second signal includes a reflected signal obtained after the first signal is reflected.

4. The radar antenna system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The transmitting antenna includes a first series-fed microstrip antenna array, wherein the first series-fed microstrip antenna array includes a first number of series-fed microstrip antennas; Each receiving antenna included in the multi-directional receiving antennas includes a second series-fed microstrip antenna array, and the number of series-fed microstrip antennas included in the second series-fed microstrip antenna arrays included in different receiving antennas is the same or different.

5. The radar antenna system according to claim 1, wherein The transmitting antenna and the multi-directional receiving antennas have the same operating frequency.

6. A signal processing method, characterized in that, Applied to the radar antenna system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, including: Generating the first signal by using the chip layer; Transmitting the first signal through the transmitting antenna; Receiving a second signal through the multi-directional receiving antennas and transmitting the second signal to the chip layer; Switching the operating states of the receiving antennas included in the multi-directional receiving antennas according to the switching period through the changeover switch; Analyzing and processing the second signal based on the first signal by using the chip layer to obtain the processing result.

7. The signal processing method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The second signal includes a reflected signal obtained after reflection of the first signal.

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