Millimeter-Wave Radar Interference Mitigation via Sensor Fusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Millimeter-wave radar systems face interference issues due to the movement of objects such as speakers or enclosures within their field of view, leading to false positive errors in object detection and tracking.
Innovation Solution
The use of sensors like microphones and accelerometers to sense the movement of these objects and generate compensated spectrograms by subtracting interference components from the radar signals, thereby reducing or eliminating false positives through signal processing techniques such as ARMA filtering.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If radar systems use multiple antennas and MIMO configuration to improve detection capability, then measurement precision and detection accuracy are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing stage that separates interference cancellation from the main radar signal processing chain. A dedicated interference cancellation module processes radar returns to remove clutter from stationary or slow-moving objects before the cleaned signals are passed to the main detection algorithms. This mediator approach allows the complex MIMO system to achieve high detection accuracy without requiring complete redesign of the entire signal processing architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the radar signal processing into distinct functional blocks: interference cancellation module, target detection module, and tracking module. Each module handles specific aspects of signal processing independently. The interference cancellation module specifically processes clutter removal using multiple antennas' signals, while other modules handle target detection and tracking. This segmentation allows optimization of each module independently, managing overall system complexity.
2Reliability
If radar systems process signals from multiple antennas to reduce false positives, then reliability is improved, but processing time and computational load increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary interference cancellation processing to radar returns before they enter the main detection and tracking pipelines. By removing clutter and stationary object signatures early in the processing chain, the system reduces the computational burden on subsequent modules. This preliminary action prevents false positives from propagating through the system, improving reliability without requiring excessive processing time in later stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms radar return signals into a different parameter space where interference patterns from stationary objects become distinguishable from actual targets. By changing the representation parameters of the signals (e.g., using specific signal transformations or feature extractions), the system can efficiently identify and remove false positives with reduced computational complexity compared to processing raw multi-antenna signals directly.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively mitigates interference caused by non-target objects, enhancing the accuracy of radar measurements and reducing false positives in millimeter-wave radar systems, even in the presence of non-linearities and manufacturing variations.
Implementation Method 1
a millimeter-wave radar that transmits radar signals and receives reflected radar signals
Implementation Method 2
A sensor is used to sense a signal indicative of the movement of the object
Data Source
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AI summary
In an embodiment, a method of interference mitigation in a device that includes a millimeter-wave radar, includes transmitting radar signals with the millimeter-wave radar; receiving reflected radar signals with the millimeter-wave radar, the reflected radar signals corresponding to the transmitted radar signals; generating a first spectrogram based on the reflected radar signals; generating a second spectrogram indicative of movement of a non-target object; generating a compensated radar spectrogram based on the first and second spectrograms to compensate for an influence of the movement of the non-target object in the first spectrogram; and detecting a target or a property of the target based on the compensated radar spectrogram.