Ground penetrating radar with audible output

• US 20020196177A1
• Filed: 06/14/2001
• Published: 12/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mal GeoScience AB
• Original Assignee: Mal GeoScience AB
• Inventors: Johansson, Bernth A. T., Bergstrom, A. B. Marlene, Friborg, Johan Gustaf
• Granted Patent: US 6,617,996 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/22
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/12 operating with electromagnetic waves operating with millimetre waves G01V8/005

Abstract

A ground penetrating radar system including a processor for generating audible output signals having discrete frequency components representative of the depth of buried targets. The amplitude of the audible frequency components is representative of the size or mass of the target.

Claims

1. A processing system for use in a ground penetrating radar system of the type providing radar signals including information representative of buried targets, wherein the processing system generates audio signals representative of buried targets.

2. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system generates audio signals having frequencies representative of buried targets.

3. The invention of claim 2, wherein the processing system generates audio signals having frequencies representative of the depth of buried targets.

4. The invention of claim 3, wherein the processing system generates audio signals having amplitudes representative of the strength of the radar signal.

5. The invention of claim 3, wherein the processing system generates audio signals having amplitudes representative of the size of the buried targets.

6. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system generates audio signals having amplitudes representative of the strength of the radar signal.

7. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system generates audio signals having amplitudes representative of the size of the buried targets.

8. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system i s responsive to a radar signal including information representative of the orientation of buried targets, and generates audio signals representative of the orientation of buried targets.

9. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system generates a first audio signal representative of a first target orientation, and a second audio signal representative of a second target orientation.

10. The invention of claim 9, wherein the first and second target orientations are separated by about 90°

.

11. The invention of claim 9, and further including a first transducer connected to receive the first audio signal, and a second transducer connected to receive the second audio signal.

12. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system includes an attribute recalculator.

13. The invention of claim 12, wherein the attribute recalculator includes a time-domain band pass filter.

14. The invention of claim 12, wherein the attribute recalculator includes a frequency-domain band pass filter.

15. The invention of claim 12, wherein the attribute recalculator includes an attenuation compensation filter.

16. The invention of claim 12, wherein the attribute recalculator includes a waveform envelope generator.

17. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system includes a range gate for selecting the p ort i on of the radar signal to be processed.

18. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system includes a threshold comparator for thresholding the output signal.

19. The invention of claim 1, wherein the processing system generates visual signals representative of the buried targets.

20. A ground penetrating radar system, including:

an input for receiving a first radar signal representative of buried targets at a first orientation, and a second radar signal representative of buried targets at a second orientation which is spaced about 90°

from the first orientation; and

a processing system for converting the first radar signal into first audio signals having discrete frequencies representative of the depth of buried targets and amplitudes representative of the strength of the first radar signals, and second audio signals having discrete frequencies representative of the depth of buried targets and amplitudes representative of the strength of the second radar signals.

21. The invention of claim 20, wherein the processing system includes a range gate for selecting the portions of the first and second radar signals to be processed.

22. The invention of claim 21, wherein the processing system includes a threshold comparator for comparing the first and second audio signals to a threshold level, and for outputting only the portions of the first and second audio signals that exceed the threshold level.

23. The invention of claim 20, and further including a first transducer connected to receive the first audio signals, and a second transducer connected to receive the second audio signals.

25. The method of claim 24, comprising the further steps:

radiating a second signal into the medium from a first position;

receiving a second return signal;

processing the second return signal to produce a second audio signal having a signal characteristic representative of a depth of the object within the medium from the first position.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the signal characteristic is to assign different audio frequencies dependent upon the depth.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the second signal is radiated into the medium along an axis that is approximately 90°

rotated from an axis of radiation of the first signal.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the signal characteristic for both the first and second audio signals is different frequencies dependent upon the depth.

24. A method of radar imaging objects encased within a medium, comprising the steps of:

radiating a first signal into the medium from a first position;

receiving a first return signal;

processing the first return signal to produce a first audio signal having a signal characteristic representative of a distance of the object within the medium from the first position.