Methods for radar jamming mitigation

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method for radar interference mitigation. A method for mitigating radar interference between radar sensor devices (400a-400d) on different vehicles (100a-100d), the method comprising the following steps performed by a first radar sensor device (100a) on a first vehicle (100a): determining information about a driving scene in a surrounding environment of the vehicle (100a) based on information received from a plurality of sources; determining how to change at least one radar parameter of the first radar sensor device (100a) to avoid possible radar interference based on the determined information about the driving scene; and changing the at least one radar parameter based on the determination.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of radar interference mitigation for mitigating radar interference between radar sensor devices on a vehicle (e.g., an autonomous vehicle). Background Art

[0002] Radar or a radar sensor is a detection device that uses radio waves to determine information about an object, such as the object's range, angle, shape, size, and / or speed.

[0003] A radar system consists of a transmitter that generates electromagnetic waves (in other words, an electromagnetic signal) in the radio or microwave domain, a transmitting antenna, a receiving antenna (the same antenna can be used for both transmission and reception), a receiver, and a processor that determines the properties of an object. The radar signal from the transmitter (which can be pulsed or continuous) reflects off an object and returns to the receiver, providing information about the object.

[0004] Radars are used in vehicles to support drivers in driving safety, for example, in adaptive cruise control. Furthermore, radars are a key element of autonomous or self-driving vehicles. They map the environment and detect vehicles, obstacles, pedestrians, cyclists, and other objects for safe navigation. Autonomous vehicles require multiple radars to provide comprehensive coverage around the vehicle. Radars are capable of operating in a variety of conditions, including day and night, rain, fog, and snow.

[0005] Radar signals have different characteristics. For example, radar signals can be pulsed or continuous and use one of different modulation schemes, such as FMCW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave), PMCW (Phase Modulated Continuous Wave), OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing).

[0006] Today, in the automotive sector, many automotive long-range radars are based on frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) and operate in the 76 GHz-77 GHz band or the 24 GHz band.

[0007] In the future, the number of radars on the road is expected to increase significantly, particularly due to the increased deployment of autonomous vehicles and the increase in the number of radars per vehicle. This will lead to increasing concerns about radar interference. In other words, radar interference between onboard radar sensors is expected to become a major challenge.

[0008] As the number of vehicle-mounted radars on the road increases, the likelihood of more than two radars facing each other and having identical radar parameters becomes greater, causing at least one radar (called the victim radar) to be penetrated by the transmission signal of another radar (called the jammer radar), and causing the victim radar to be temporarily blinded. Radar blindness is a major safety issue hindering the deployment of autonomous vehicles.

[0009] In order to avoid or limit radar jamming phenomena, different techniques for radar jamming mitigation are known.

[0010] A first known technique is based on interference suppression or cancellation, for example, by using physical layer techniques. This approach requires additional processing resources and is inherently inefficient.

[0011] A second known technique involves randomly assigning new radar parameters (e.g., time offsets or frequency offsets) to interfering or victim radars as a countermeasure to avoid or limit radar jamming. This second technique is insufficient because, as the number of radars per vehicle and the number of vehicles equipped with radars increases, the random assignment scheme is likely to result in conflicting assignments.

[0012] A third technique, described in "RadarMAC: Mitigating Radar Interference in Self-Driving Cars," by J. Khoury, R. Ramanathan, D. McCloskey, R. Smith, and T. Campbell, 2016 13th Annual IEEE International Conference on Sensing, Communication, and Networking (SECON), London, 2016, pp. 1-9, addresses the problem of assigning conflict-free radar parameters to mitigate radar interference. The RadarMAC system includes a control center to which the fleet is connected via an LTE (Long Term Evolution) link.

[0013] The system works in a continuous loop with four steps:

[0014] (1) Each vehicle per ton pos Send location information to the control center in seconds;

[0015] (2) The control center collects location information from all cars within its jurisdiction and calculates the radar parameters of each radar on each car;

[0016] (3) The control center pushes down the radar parameters and timestamps of each car through the LTE link;

[0017] (4) The car activates the received radar parameters at the specified timestamp.

[0018] In the RadarMAC system, the control center unilaterally assigns radar parameters to each radar on each car. This technology lacks flexibility because the radar sensor devices are forced to change some radar parameters under the control of the control center.

[0019] Therefore, a more flexible approach for automotive radar interference mitigation is needed. Summary of the Invention

[0020] The present disclosure relates to a method for mitigating radar interference between radar sensor devices on different vehicles, the method comprising the following steps performed by a first radar sensor device on a first vehicle:

[0021] determining information about a driving scene in the vehicle's surroundings based on information received from a plurality of sources,

[0022] Based on the determined information about the driving scenario, a determination is made as to how to change at least one radar parameter of the first radar sensor device to avoid possible radar interference, and the at least one radar parameter is changed according to the determination.

[0023] Based on the information received from multiple sources or systems, the radar sensor device of the vehicle can independently determine the driving scene occurring in the surrounding environment of the vehicle, and based on the information about the driving scene, change its own radar parameters in a flexible, efficient and relevant manner to avoid possible radar interference.

[0024] The multiple sources of information may be of different types.

[0025] In an embodiment, the step of receiving information from a plurality of sources may include receiving radar parameter information of a second radar sensor device on at least one second vehicle from the second vehicle via vehicle-to-vehicle communication.

[0026] In an embodiment, the step of receiving information from a plurality of sources may include receiving information from at least one device of the communication network via vehicle-to-network communication.

[0027] In an embodiment, the step of receiving information from a plurality of sources may include the steps of receiving radar signals from a second radar sensor device on at least one second vehicle and determining radar parameter information of the second radar sensor device by analyzing the received radar signals.

[0028] In an embodiment, the step of receiving information from a plurality of sources may comprise receiving a list of radar sensor devices located on vehicles in the area from a broadcast centre.

[0029] In an embodiment, the step of receiving information from a plurality of sources may include receiving one or more decentralized environment notification messages DENM, the DENM including information related to one or more detected events.

[0030] Advantageously, the step of determining how to change at least one radar parameter of the first radar sensor device to avoid possible radar interference may comprise selecting a rule from a set of predefined cooperation rules for radar interference mitigation shared by a plurality of radar sensor devices based on the information about the environment, and the step of changing the at least one radar parameter based on the determination may comprise activating new radar operating parameters in the first radar sensor device based on the selected rule.

[0031] The radar sensor devices can mitigate radar interference based on shared cooperation rules among a group of radar sensor devices. Each radar sensor device first identifies the current driving scenario that the vehicle must handle and, based on the identified driving scenario, selects appropriate cooperation rules to determine new radar parameters to activate, thereby mitigating potential radar interference. Cooperation among the radar sensor devices is based on the shared cooperation rules followed by all radar sensor devices, enabling more efficient and collaborative radar interference mitigation.

[0032] The step of changing at least one radar parameter may comprise changing at least one of the parameters of the group consisting of modulation bandwidth, frequency offset, time offset, transmit power level, duty cycle, polarization, modulation type.

[0033] The present disclosure also relates to a radar sensor device comprising a transmitter part for transmitting radar wave signals, a receiver part for receiving radar wave signals, a memory storing a set of predefined cooperation rules for radar interference mitigation shared by a plurality of radar sensor devices, and means for performing the steps of the previously defined method.

[0034] The present disclosure also relates to a computer program comprising instructions causing the radar sensor device defined above to perform the steps of the previously defined method.

[0035] The present disclosure also relates to a computer-readable medium storing the computer program.

[0036] The present disclosure also relates to a vehicle comprising at least one radar sensor device as previously defined.

[0037] The present disclosure also relates to a system comprising a plurality of vehicles as defined above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] Other features, objects and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent upon reading the detailed description of non-limiting embodiments made with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0039] Figure 1A distributed system for mitigating radar interference between radar sensor devices on vehicles in a region is shown, according to an embodiment.

[0040] Figure 2 is a flow chart of a method for radar interference mitigation performed by a radar sensor device on a vehicle according to an embodiment.

[0041] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram of a radar sensor device according to an embodiment.

[0042] Figure 4 1 and 2 represent radar signals transmitted by a radar sensor device and echo radar signals received by the radar sensor device according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] Figure 1 A distributed system for radar interference mitigation is shown, comprising a plurality of vehicles 100. Each vehicle 100 is equipped with one or more radar sensor devices 400.

[0044] exist Figure 1 In the illustrative and non-limiting example of FIG, four vehicles 100a, 100b, 100c and 100d are shown, and for clarity, only one radar sensor 400a, 400b, 400c, 400d is shown on each vehicle 100a, 100b, 100c, 100d. However, each vehicle may have more than one radar sensor device. Figure 1 In the example shown, four vehicles 100a-100d are located close to each other on the same road.

[0045] There are two types of radar sensor devices 400:

[0046] a connected radar sensor device capable of bidirectional communication with other systems or information sources external to the vehicle 100 housing the radar sensor device 400, such as another vehicle, a radar sensor device on another vehicle, a component of the road infrastructure and / or an element of a mobile communication network,

[0047] A non-connected radar sensor device that cannot communicate with other systems external to vehicle 100 .

[0048] In a first embodiment, connected radar sensor device 400 communicates with systems or sources external to vehicle 100 via a communication interface of vehicle 100's onboard network. In this case, radar sensor device 400 includes an internal communication interface for interfacing with vehicle 100's onboard network and uses the connected vehicle 100's communication interface to communicate with other systems external to vehicle 100. In a second embodiment, connected radar sensor device 400 can establish direct wireless communication with external systems. In this case, connected radar sensor device 400 includes an internal communication module for wirelessly communicating with other systems external to (and / or internal to) vehicle 100.

[0049] For example, three vehicles 100a-100c are connected vehicles accommodating connected radar sensor devices 400a-400c, and vehicle 100d is a non-connected vehicle accommodating non-connected radar sensor device 400d.

[0050] In the following description, the operation of connected radar sensor device 400a will now be described. The other connected radar sensor devices 400b, 400c of the system operate in a similar manner.

[0051] Radar sensor device 400a can communicate with systems or sources external to vehicle 100a via various types of communication, including, without limitation, V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle) communication, V2I (vehicle-to-infrastructure) communication, V2N (vehicle-to-network) communication, and more generally, V2X (vehicle-to-everything) communication. Thus, radar sensor device 400a can communicate with other vehicles (e.g., vehicles 100b, 100c), radar sensor devices on other vehicles (e.g., radar sensor devices 400b, 400c), components 201, 202 of road infrastructure 200 (e.g., lane markings, road signs, traffic lights, roadside units 202, or any other communicating elements of road infrastructure 200), and / or systems of cellular communication network 300 (e.g., base station 301 or a network server).

[0052] Radar sensor device 400 operates under certain operating radar parameters. The radar parameters define the characteristics of the radar signals transmitted and received by radar sensor device 400. In some embodiments, the radar parameters include a modulation parameter that defines the modulation characteristics of the radar signal, a duty cycle, and a transmit power level. The duty cycle is defined as the ratio of the observation time (corresponding to the time period during which the radar signal is transmitted and the return radar signal is received) to the total duration of a measurement period.

[0053] For example, the radar sensor device 400a is an FMCW radar (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave Radar). An FMCW radar radiates continuous transmit power and changes its operating frequency during a measurement period (in other words, the transmit signal is periodically modulated in frequency). For example, Figure 4 As shown, the FMCW radar sensor device 400a linearly changes its operating frequency over time according to a positive ramp in each cycle. In the case of an FMCW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) radar, the radar parameters may include relative to a reference frequency (corresponding to Figure 4 The following table includes the frequency offset f0 (the origin of the graph in FIG), the time offset t0 defining the time slot at the beginning of each measurement cycle, the bandwidth ΔF within radar frequency band B (e.g., the ramp bandwidth), the duty cycle d, and the transmit power level. As an illustrative and non-limiting example, radar frequency band B is the frequency range between 76 GHz and 77 GHz. Radar sensor device 400a may be any other type of radar, such as a PMCW radar (Phase Modulated Continuous Wave) radar or an OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) radar.

[0054] The operation of the radar sensor apparatus 400 a according to the embodiment will now be described.

[0055] In operation, to map its environment, radar sensor device 400a may perform measurement cycles in a continuous loop, such as Figure 4 As an illustrative and non-limiting example, the duration of each measurement cycle is 60 milliseconds.

[0056] The radar sensor device 400a also performs a radar interference mitigation process in a continuous loop, such as Figure 2 The process includes the following steps S0 to S8. Steps S0 to S8 may be performed during a measurement cycle of the radar sensor device 400a. Steps S0 to S8 may be repeated periodically, for example, in each measurement cycle.

[0057] At step S0, a new cycle begins.

[0058] In a first step S1 , the radar sensor device 400a determines information about a driving scene in the surroundings of the vehicle 100a based on information received from a plurality of sources.

[0059] A driving scenario describes the temporal progression of multiple scenarios within a sequence of scenarios, spanning a certain amount of time. Each scenario corresponds to a snapshot of the environment, including the scenery and dynamic elements, as well as the self-representations of all actors and observers, and the relationships between these entities. The terms "scenario" and "scene" are defined in the reference S. Ulbrich, T. Menzel, A. Reschka, F. Schuldt and M. Maurer. "Defining and Substantiating the Terms Scene, Situation and Scenario for Automated Driving." In: 2015 IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITSC). Angenommen. 2015.

[0060] The driving scene information includes information about situations and things or events that are currently occurring and in the environment of the vehicle 100 a .

[0061] To obtain driving scene information, the radar sensor device 400a communicates with other systems or sources external to the vehicle 100a (such as other vehicles and / or other radar sensor devices and / or road infrastructure components and / or cellular network devices) to obtain information about the driving scene that must be processed. Figure 1 As shown, radar sensor device 400a communicates with radar sensor devices 400b, 400c and / or vehicles 100b, 100c, road infrastructure element 201, roadside unit 202 and base station 301 of cellular network 300.

[0062] In an embodiment, the communication interface of the radar sensor device 400a and / or vehicle 100a can receive a Decentralized Environment Notification Message (DENM) from one or more sources acting as ITS-Ss (Intelligent Transport System Stations). The DENM includes information related to the detected event. Decentralized Environment Notification Messages are defined in the standard document ETSI EN 302 637-3 v1.2.2 (2014-11). DENMs are exchanged between ITS-Ss using the DENM protocol. After detecting an event, the initiating ITS-S sends a DENM to disseminate information about the event to other ITS-Ss located within the relevant area. Detected events can include various types of events, such as traffic conditions, accidents, road works, weather conditions, surface conditions, obstacles on the road, animals on the road, the presence of people on the road, incorrect driving style, ongoing rescue or recovery efforts, slow vehicles, dangerous queue ends, vehicle breakdowns, post-collision situations, stationary vehicles, approaching emergency vehicles, dangerous curves, collision risks, signal violations, hazardous situations, and the like.

[0063] The driving scene information obtained by the radar sensor device 400a through communication with other systems or sources external to the vehicle 100a may include different types of data or information, such as:

[0064] - one or more radar sensor devices on other vehicles in the traffic environment of vehicle 100a (e.g. Figure 1 Information of the radar sensor devices 400b, 400c);

[0065] - Information about vehicles in the environment of vehicle 100a (e.g., the number of vehicles, the location, speed, acceleration, and / or direction of the vehicles)

[0066] - Information about road traffic (e.g., traffic congestion or smooth traffic);

[0067] - information about road signs and road signalling equipment (such as speed signs and traffic lights),

[0068] - Information about platooning (in other words: a group of vehicles travelling closely together and following a lead vehicle by wirelessly receiving acceleration and steering information, thus forming an electronically connected “road train”);

[0069] - Information on national radio quiet zones providing protection for the radio astronomy service.

[0070] The above examples are non-limiting, and any other information items about the driving scene may be obtained via communication with other systems or sources.

[0071] The information about the radar sensor device may include radar parameter information indicating current radar operating parameters used by the radar sensor device.

[0072] Information about a radar sensor device on another vehicle can be received through vehicle-to-vehicle communication. For example, radar sensor device 400a receives information about radar sensor device 400b through a first V2V communication between vehicles 100a and 100b, and receives information about radar sensor device 400c through a second V2V communication between vehicles 100a and 100c.

[0073] The information obtained by radar sensor device 400a about other radar sensor devices may also include, in a non-limiting manner:

[0074] - Position and / or movement information indicating the position, velocity, acceleration, orientation of other radar sensor devices and / or the vehicle housing it;

[0075] - Information indicating that radar interference between the radar sensor device 400a and other radar sensor devices has been detected or that radar interference has not been detected;

[0076] - Information indicating whether the other radar sensor devices are cooperative radar sensor devices (ie, radar sensor devices operating according to cooperation rules, described later) or non-cooperative radar sensor devices.

[0077] It may also happen that radar sensor device 400a does not obtain any information about another radar sensor device detected in its environment. In this case, radar sensor device 400a determines that cooperation between the two radar sensor devices to mitigate radar interference is not possible.

[0078] In step S1, the radar sensor device 400a may also receive data from road infrastructure elements via vehicle-to-infrastructure communication and / or receive data (e.g., traffic data from a road traffic monitoring server) from a server via vehicle-to-network communication through the cellular network 300. For example, the radar sensor device 400a may receive information about speed limits on a road from speed traffic signs via vehicle-to-infrastructure communication and / or receive traffic information from a server that provides traffic and navigation services to drivers via vehicle-to-network communication.

[0079] In an embodiment, the radar sensor device 400a receives a list L of radar sensor devices located in the area A where the vehicle 100a is located. i To receive information about one or more radar sensor devices on other vehicles. List L iThe list L may be broadcast by a broadcast center 302 in area A, for example, via the mobile communication network 300 and / or via the roadside unit 202 (or any other road infrastructure transmitter) in area A. The broadcast center 302 is responsible for collecting radar parameters of the radar sensor devices 400 on the vehicles 100 in area A, keeping the radar parameters up to date, and periodically broadcasting the list L to the radar sensor devices in area A. i The broadcast center 302 stores a list L of radar sensor devices 400 in the area that are valid during a time period i. i , and periodically updates the list by receiving information from radar sensor devices in area A. List L i The list L includes identifiers of the radar sensor devices 400 of the vehicles 100 located in the area during the time period i and collected by the broadcast center 302 from the radar sensor devices 400 in the area A. In addition, for each radar sensor device 400, the list L i This may include navigation information including position information and movement information, and radar parameter information including current radar operating parameters of the radar sensor device.

[0080] In an embodiment, at step S2, radar sensor device 400a transmits radar parameter information indicating its own operating radar parameters to other connected radar sensor devices 400a, 400b, for example, via V2V communication.Step S2 may be performed after and during step S1.

[0081] In optional step S3 , radar sensor device 400a may also obtain information about the driving scene in the surroundings of vehicle 100a from the radar measurements performed by first radar sensor device 400a .

[0082] In step S4 (optional), radar sensor device 400a may also obtain radar parameter information of another radar sensor device 400d by receiving a radar signal from another radar sensor device (e.g., 400d) that does not have communication capabilities and analyzing the received radar signal to obtain radar parameter information. This allows radar sensor device 400a to obtain radar parameter information of a nearby radar sensor device (e.g., 400d) that does not have communication capabilities.

[0083] Optionally, the process also includes the following step S5: receiving information from one or more other sensors in the vehicle 100a (such as a camera, lidar, tachometer or any other vehicle sensor) at the radar sensor device 400a to obtain information about the driving scene in the surrounding environment of the vehicle 100a.

[0084] The determined information about the driving scene in the surroundings of the vehicle 100a may be stored by the radar sensor device 400a. The information about the driving scene may be stored in the form of a map, a chart, a list of items, or any other type of representation of the driving scene.

[0085] In step S6 , radar sensor device 400 a determines how to change at least one radar parameter to avoid possible radar interference based on the driving scenario.

[0086] In an embodiment, the radar sensor device 400a may select one or more cooperation rules from the database 406 of cooperation rules for radar interference mitigation, depending on the information about the driving scene in the surroundings of the vehicle 100a obtained in steps S1, S3, S4 and / or S5.

[0087] The collaboration rule database 406 contains a set of collaboration rules for radar interference mitigation. A collaboration rule is a predefined rule shared by multiple radar sensor devices 400 or a group of radar sensor devices 400 and applied by all radar sensor devices. The collaboration rule allows multiple radar sensor devices to collaboratively set radar parameters for radar interference mitigation. The collaboration rule defines how radar operating parameters should be set in the radar sensor devices to mitigate radar interference based on their current conditions. Each collaboration rule can be defined as a pair of a driving scenario and a radar interference mitigation measure to be taken in that driving scenario:

[0088] Rule = {driving scenario, measure}

[0089] A given driving scenario can be combined with different measures in different cooperation rules.

[0090] The database of cooperation rules may be stored locally in the memory 406 of the radar sensor device 400a and / or in the vehicle network of the vehicle 100a. Alternatively or additionally, the cooperation rules may be stored remotely (e.g., in a database in a cloud infrastructure or on a server) and accessed by the radar sensor device 400a via the external network 300.

[0091] The following are illustrative and non-limiting cooperation rules based on different situations and / or driving scenarios:

[0092] Driving Scenario 1: Radar sensor device 400a cannot cooperate with other radar sensor devices

[0093] In driving scenario 1, radar sensor device 400a uses information about radar signals collected from other radar sensor devices to correct radar interference through signal processing and does not change its radar parameters.

[0094] Driving Scenario 2: Vehicle 100a is in a traffic jam and radar sensor device 400a is interfered with by another radar sensor device

[0095] In driving scenario 2 , the radar sensor device 400 a may apply a cooperation rule that reduces the transmission power level and / or bandwidth ΔF and / or the observation time in a measurement period.

[0096] Driving Scenario 3: Detecting a speed traffic sign indicating a speed limit

[0097] In driving scenario 3 , radar sensor device 400 a may apply a cooperation rule that reduces bandwidth ΔF and / or observation time in a measurement cycle.

[0098] Driving Scenario 4: Radar sensor device 400a discovers a non-cooperative radar sensor device in its environment and identifies its radar modulation parameters

[0099] In driving scenario 4, radar sensor device 400a may apply one of the following cooperation rules:

[0100] 1) Set the frequency ramp slope sign opposite to the interference signal sign;

[0101] 2) Setting a polarization that is orthogonal to the polarization of the interference signal;

[0102] 3) changing the starting frequency (in other words, time offset f0) in order to avoid interference;

[0103] 4) Based on the estimated duty cycle of the interferer, the signal is synchronized with the interferer so that the radar signal is transmitted in the available time slot.

[0104] Driving Scenario 5: Radar sensor device 400a discovers a non-cooperative radar sensor device in its environment and does not recognize its radar modulation parameters

[0105] In driving scenario 5, radar sensor device 400a may apply one of the following cooperation rules:

[0106] 1) Randomly setting the frequency ramp slope sign and / or starting frequency (in other words, time offset f0) of the radar sensor device 400a;

[0107] 2) Detect the jamming signal and do not transmit any radar signal at the same time as the jammer radar sensor device is transmitting.

[0108] Driving Scenario 6: Traffic is smooth, and radar interference is detected with a radar sensor device on another vehicle driving in the opposite direction (opposite to the driving direction of the vehicle 100a)

[0109] In driving scenario 6, radar sensor device 400a uses a vehicle direction-based interference mitigation strategy, for example, selecting polarization or frequency ramp slope sign according to the direction of vehicle 100a.

[0110] Driving Scenario 7: Vehicle 100a has entered the national radio quiet zone protecting the radio astronomy service

[0111] In driving scenario 7 , radar sensor device 400 a may apply a coordination rule that reduces the transmission power level and / or bandwidth ΔF and / or the observation time in a measurement cycle.

[0112] Driving Scenario 8: Vehicle 100a has joined a convoy (a group of vehicles driving together)

[0113] In driving scenario 8 , radar sensor device 400 a may apply a coordination rule that reduces the transmission power level and / or bandwidth ΔF and / or the observation time in a measurement cycle.

[0114] Radar sensor device 400a determines information about the driving scene in the surrounding environment of vehicle 100a in step S1 and / or possibly in step S4, and then, in step S6, it can select a cooperation rule that specifies the radar interference mitigation measures to be taken by radar sensor device 400a based on the determined information about the driving scene. When different cooperation rules are possible in the current driving scene of radar sensor device 400a, radar sensor device 400a (e.g., randomly) selects one of the different cooperation rules.

[0115] In step S7, radar sensor device 400a changes at least one radar parameter based on the determination made in step S6. In embodiments, the cooperation rules selected by radar sensor device 400a may be applied in step S7. This means that the radar interference mitigation measures specified by the cooperation rules are activated in radar sensor device 400a. Typically, in step S7, new radar operating parameters are activated in radar sensor device 400a based on the selected rules.

[0116] At step S8, the loop ends.

[0117] The loop including steps S0 to S8 may be executed in each measurement cycle of the radar sensor device 400 a , or may be executed periodically every N measurement cycles, where N≧2.

[0118] Alternatively, steps S1 to S7 may be performed continuously and in real time.

[0119] Figure 3 Schematically illustrates a functional block diagram of a radar sensor device 400 a with communication capabilities according to an embodiment.

[0120] Radar sensor device 400a has a transmitter 401 that generates electromagnetic waves in the radio or microwave domain (in other words: electromagnetic signals), a transmitting antenna 402, a receiving antenna 403, a receiver 404 and a processor 405 for determining object properties based on the transmitted radar signal and the received radar signal.

[0121] Furthermore, in an embodiment, the radar sensor device 400 a may have a memory 406 storing a cooperation rule set for radar interference mitigation, a communication interface 407 for communicating with an external system, and a component 408 for radar interference mitigation.

[0122] In an embodiment, the communication interface 407 is an internal communication interface that interfaces with an onboard network in the vehicle 100 (in the case where the radar sensor device 400a communicates with an external system via a wireless communication channel of the vehicle 100 as a connected vehicle). In another embodiment, the communication interface 406 allows direct communication with another system external to the vehicle 100 via a wireless communication channel.

[0123] In an embodiment, component 408 is a software component (in other words, a computer program) that causes radar sensor device 400a to perform the steps of the previously defined method for radar interference mitigation (i.e., steps S0 to S8 performed by radar sensor device 400a). Software component 408 runs on processor 405 of radar sensor device 400a. Software component (or computer program) 408 can be stored in a storage module such as a volatile memory (e.g., ROM, RAM, etc.) and / or a non-volatile memory (e.g., flash memory, NAND, etc.) (i.e., permanently or removably integrated into the radar sensor device) and can be executed by a processor, computer, or calculator.

[0124] This disclosure also relates to:

[0125] - a computer readable medium storing a computer program or software component 408;

[0126] - a vehicle 100a comprising at least one radar sensor device, such as radar sensor device 400a;

[0127] - A system comprising a plurality of vehicles as defined above.

Claims

1. A method for mitigating radar interference between radar sensor devices (400a-400d) on different vehicles (100a-100d), the radar sensor devices comprising a connected radar sensor device capable of bidirectional communication with other systems or information sources external to the vehicle housing the connected radar sensor device, and an unconnected radar sensor device without communication capability, the method comprising the following steps performed by a connected first radar sensor device (400a) on a first vehicle (100a): determining information about a driving scene in the surroundings of the first vehicle (100a) based on information received from a plurality of sources, determining how to change at least one radar parameter of the first radar sensor device (400a) to avoid possible radar interference based on the determined information about the driving scene, and changing the at least one radar parameter based on the determination, in, The step of receiving information from a plurality of sources includes the steps of receiving radar signals from the unconnected radar sensor device on at least one second vehicle and determining radar parameter information of the unconnected radar sensor device by analyzing the received radar signals (S4).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The multiple sources of information are of different types.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The step of receiving information from a plurality of sources includes receiving radar parameter information of a second radar sensor device on at least one second vehicle from the second vehicle via vehicle-to-vehicle communication.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein The step of receiving information from a plurality of sources includes receiving information from at least one component of the road infrastructure via vehicle-to-infrastructure communication.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein The step of receiving information from a plurality of sources includes receiving information from at least one device of the communication network via vehicle-to-network communication.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein The step of receiving information from a plurality of sources includes receiving, from a broadcast center, a list of radar sensor devices located on vehicles in the area.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein The step of receiving information from a plurality of sources comprises receiving one or more decentralized environment notification messages DENM, said DENM comprising information related to one or more detected events.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein The step of determining how to change at least one radar parameter of said first radar sensor device (400a) to avoid possible radar interference comprises: selecting (S6) a rule from a set of predefined cooperation rules for radar interference mitigation shared by a plurality of radar sensor devices based on said information about said environment, and The step of changing the at least one radar parameter in dependence on the determination comprises activating (S7) a new radar operating parameter in accordance with the selected rule in the first radar sensor device (400a).

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein The step of changing at least one radar parameter comprises changing at least one of the parameters of the group consisting of modulation bandwidth, frequency offset, time offset, transmit power level, duty cycle, polarization, modulation type.

10. A radar sensor device (400a), comprising a transmitter portion (401, 402) for transmitting radar wave signals, a receiver portion (403, 404) for receiving radar wave signals, and means (405, 408) for performing the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. A computer program product comprising instructions for causing the radar sensor device (400a) according to claim 10 to perform the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

12. A computer-readable medium storing the computer program product according to claim 11.

13. A vehicle (100a) comprising at least one radar sensor device (400a) according to claim 10.

14. A system comprising a plurality of vehicles (100a-100c) according to claim 13.

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