Radar Sensor With Unsynchronized Chips for Virtual Antenna Arrays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current radar sensors with high angular resolution require complex and costly radio frequency synchronization between multiple radar transceiver chips, leading to increased hardware and electronics effort, especially at high frequencies, which complicates the development and manufacturing of such systems.
Innovation Solution
The use of multiple radar transceiver semiconductor chips, each with its own transmission and reception antennas, without synchronizing carrier frequencies, allows for coherent signal processing and the creation of virtual antennas, reducing the need for complex radio frequency design and synchronization lines, thereby simplifying the system and lowering manufacturing costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If radio frequency synchronization lines are implemented between radar transceiver chips, then carrier frequency synchronization is achieved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the synchronization function from the radio frequency domain and relocates it to the baseband domain. By removing the need for RF synchronization lines between chips and implementing synchronization through digital signal processing at baseband, the complex RF hardware is eliminated while maintaining the essential synchronization function.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the physical RF synchronization line (electromagnetic transmission medium) with a digital synchronization method using baseband signal processing. This substitution transforms a hardware-dependent synchronization mechanism into a software/digital signal processing-based mechanism, reducing hardware complexity.
2Measurement precision
If multiple radar transceiver chips are used to increase antenna count, then angular resolution improves, but hardware effort and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the radar system into multiple independent transceiver chips, each with its own antennas and baseband processing capabilities. This segmentation allows the system to achieve high angular resolution through virtual antenna arrays formed by combining signals from multiple chips, while each chip remains a manageable, standardized unit that reduces overall hardware complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the output signals from multiple independent transceiver chips to form a virtual antenna array. By combining the baseband signals from N chips with M antennas each, the system creates an equivalent of an N×M antenna array, achieving high angular resolution without the hardware complexity of physically connecting all antennas to a single receiver.
3Reliability
If RF synchronization lines are implemented, then signal coherence between chips is maintained, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the synchronization function from the expensive RF domain and implements it in the lower-cost baseband domain. This eliminates the need for precision RF synchronization lines, which are costly to manufacture and install, while maintaining signal coherence through digital processing techniques.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses inexpensive baseband synchronization methods instead of expensive RF synchronization infrastructure. The synchronization is achieved through digital signal processing algorithms that are computationally inexpensive and do not require specialized high-frequency hardware, thereby reducing manufacturing costs.
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 enables a high angular resolution radar sensor with reduced development effort and manufacturing costs, while maintaining scalability and achieving equivalent performance to traditional phased arrays through the combination of multiple semiconductor chips.
Implementation Method 1
electromagnetic signals are transmitted by the radar sensor and their reflections at objects, that is echoes, are received again
Implementation Method 2
the phasing of the received echo signal at the spatially distributed antennas is compared to thus draw a conclusion on the angle
Implementation Method 3
A radial speed can also be measured
Data Source
AI summary
A radar sensor has at least one first radar transceiver semiconductor chip and at least one second radar transceiver semiconductor chip. The first radar transceiver semiconductor chip and the second radar transceiver semiconductor chip each have at least two transmission antennas and at least two receiver antennas and a carrier frequency. The first radar transceiver semiconductor chip and the second radar transceiver semiconductor chip have a common control and evaluation unit, with the control and evaluation unit being configured to control and evaluate the respective transmission antennas and receiver antennas of the first and second radar transceiver semiconductor chips, with the carrier frequencies between the radar transceiver semiconductor chips not being synchronized. The first radar transceiver semiconductor chip and the second radar transceiver semiconductor chip do not have any common radio frequency basis.