Radar for ground speed measurement

• US 20060267831A1
• Filed: 02/08/2006
• Published: 11/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vansco Electronics LP (Parker-Hannifin Corporation), Tecarmar, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Vansco Electronics LP (Parker-Hannifin Corporation)
• Inventors: Yung, Nelson, Sokol, David George, Rodrigues, Paulo, Jonca, Tomasz, Tevs, Nikolai
• Granted Patent: US 7,498,973 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/104
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/60 wherein the transmitter and receiver are mounted on the moving object, e.g. for determining ground speed, drift angle, ground track G01S13/64 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/03 Details of HF subsystems specially adapted therefor, e.g. common to transmitter and receiver
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/35 Details of non-pulse systems

Abstract

A radar transducer has a planar array antenna mounted on a plate portion of a housing with the microwave transceiver mounted on the opposite side of the plate and carrying a PCB defining the processing section for supplying an output to a cable. The plate portion slides into a plastic receptacle defining the radome for the antenna with a potting compound sealing the open face of the receptacle. The electrical processing section is shielded from extraneous electromagnetic waves without additional metallic shielding elements. The processor is programmable in response to signals received through the output cable so as to re-configure the program thereof so as to change the output to the output cable for different end use controllers and for compatibility with communications protocols. The processor is programmed to carry out a test of the operation of the transceiver and to provide a failure output signal to the cable in the event that the operation is found to be outside predetermined parameters.

Claims

1. A radar transducer comprising:

an antenna for transmitting electromagnetic waves at a predetermined frequency and for receiving reflected waves at a second frequency Doppler shifted from the predetermined frequency;

a microwave transceiver for supplying to and receiving from the antenna the electromagnetic waves and detecting a Doppler frequency;

an output cable;

an electrical processing section mounted on a circuit board for processing the Doppler frequency and for communicating with the output cable;

and a housing for containing the antenna, the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section and for receiving and locating an inner end of the output cable;

wherein the microwave transceiver is shielded by a metallic shield surrounding the microwave transceiver leaving the electrical processing section exposed outside the metallic shield;

and wherein the electrical processing section is substantially without metallic shielding elements.

2. The transducer according to claim 1 wherein the metallic shield includes at least a portion which has perforations therein and wherein the housing contains a potting material which extends through the perforations into a hollow interior of the metallic shield to locate and support the microwave transceiver from vibration.

3. The transducer according to claim 1 wherein the housing comprises a mounting element providing mountings thereon for the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable, a receptacle element having an open end face, into which the mounting element carrying the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable are inserted as a common assembly, and a potting compound closing the open end face and enclosing the mounting element, the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable within the receptacle.

4. The transducer according to claim 3 wherein the mounting element includes a plate portion on which the antenna is mounted as a planar array.

5. The transducer according to claim 4 wherein the plate portion has a part of the metallic shield attached thereto forming one side of the metallic shield and wherein a further part of the metallic shield is separate from the plate portion and is attached thereto.

6. The transducer according to claim 4 wherein one open side of the metallic shield is attached to the circuit board carrying the electrical processing section which extends at right angles to the plate portion.

7. The transducer according to claim 4 wherein the plate portion on which the antenna is mounted as a planar array has a peripheral sealing member for engaging a sealing surface of the receptacle element so prevent the entry of the potting compound into the area between the plate portion and the sealing surface and wherein the sealing surface is arranged substantially at right angles to the open mouth such that the plate portion slides into the receptacle element in a direction substantially parallel to the plate portion and to the sealing surface.

8. The transducer according to claim 4 wherein the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section are mounted on a rear of the plate portion opposite to the antenna array.

9. The transducer according to claim 1 wherein the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section are arranged to have a high immunity to extraneous electromagnetic waves by arranging the power supply such that a 5V voltage regulator powers the analogue section directly and the processor through a pi-RC filter.

10. The transducer according to claim 1 wherein the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section are arranged to have a high immunity to extraneous electromagnetic waves by providing a power supply conductor and a ground return conductor as parallel plates on a printed circuit board on which the electrical processing section is mounted.

27. The transducer according to claim 8 wherein the processor is arranged to be programmable in response to signals received through the output cable so as to re-configure the program thereof so as to change the output to the output cable so as to be compatible with a bus communication protocol.

11. A radar transducer comprising:

an antenna for transmitting electromagnetic waves at a predetermined frequency and for receiving reflected waves at a second frequency Doppler shifted from the predetermined frequency;

a microwave transceiver for supplying to and receiving from the antenna the electromagnetic waves and detecting a Doppler frequency;

an output cable;

an electrical processing section mounted on a circuit board for processing the Doppler frequency and for communicating with the output cable;

and a housing for containing the antenna, the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section and for receiving and locating an inner end of the output cable;

wherein the microwave transceiver is shielded by a metallic shield surrounding the microwave transceiver;

wherein the metallic shield includes at least a portion which has perforations therein;

and wherein the housing contains a potting material which extends through the perforations into a hollow interior of the metallic shield to locate and support the microwave transceiver from vibration.

12. The transducer according to claim 11 wherein the housing comprises a mounting element providing as a common assembly mountings thereon for the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable as a common assembly, a receptacle element having an open end face, into which the mounting element carrying the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable are inserted as a common assembly, and a potting compound closing the open end face and enclosing the mounting element, the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable within the receptacle.

13. The transducer according to claim 12 wherein the mounting element includes a plate portion on which the antenna is mounted as a planar array, wherein the plate portion has a part of the metallic shield attached thereto forming one side of the metallic shield and wherein a further part of the metallic shield is separate from the plate portion and is attached thereto.

14. The transducer according to claim 13 wherein one side of the further part of the metallic shield is defined by the circuit board carrying the electrical processing section which extends at right angles to the plate portion.

15. A radar transducer comprising:

an antenna for transmitting electromagnetic waves at a predetermined frequency and for receiving reflected waves at a second frequency Doppler shifted from the predetermined frequency;

a microwave transceiver for supplying to and receiving from the antenna the electromagnetic waves and detecting a Doppler frequency;

an output cable;

an electrical processing section for processing the Doppler frequency and for communicating with the output cable;

and a housing for containing the antenna, the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section and for receiving and locating an inner end of the output cable;

wherein the housing comprises

a mounting element providing mountings thereon for the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable as a common assembly;

a receptacle element having an open end face into which the mounting element carrying the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable is inserted as a common assembly;

and a potting compound closing the open end face and enclosing the mounting element, the antenna, the microwave transceiver, the electrical processing section and an inner end of the cable within the receptacle.

16. The transducer according to claim 15 wherein the mounting element includes a plate portion on which the antenna is mounted as a planar array.

17. The transducer according to claim 15 wherein the receptacle element is substantially wholly formed from a plastic material.

18. The transducer according to claim 15 wherein the receptacle element defines a radome for the antenna.

19. The transducer according to claim 16 wherein the plate portion on which the antenna is mounted as a planar array has a peripheral sealing member for engaging a sealing surface of the receptacle element so as to prevent the entry of the potting compound into the area between the plate portion and the sealing surface.

20. The transducer according to claim 19 wherein the sealing surface is arranged substantially at right angles to the open mouth such that the plate portion slides into the receptacle element in a direction substantially parallel to the plate portion and to the sealing surface.

21. The transducer according to claim 19 wherein the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section are mounted on a rear of the plate portion opposite to the antenna array.

22. The transducer according to claim 16 wherein the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section are mounted on a single printed circuit board.

23. The transducer according to claim 22 wherein the single printed circuit board extends substantially at right angles to the plate portion.

24. The transducer according to claim 23 wherein the single printed circuit board is attached to and carried by the microwave transceiver.

25. A radar transducer comprising:

an antenna for transmitting electromagnetic waves at a predetermined frequency and for receiving reflected waves at a second frequency Doppler shifted from the predetermined frequency;

a microwave transceiver for supplying to and receiving from the antenna the electromagnetic waves and detecting a Doppler frequency;

an output cable providing four separate leads arranged for connection of the first lead to power, the second lead to a signal output, the third lead to a radar present signal and the fourth lead to ground;

an electrical processing section for processing the Doppler frequency and for communicating with the second and third leads of the output cable;

and a housing for containing the antenna, the microwave transceiver and the electrical processing section and for receiving and locating an inner end of the output cable;

wherein the processor is arranged to be programmable in response to signals received through the second lead of the output cable so as to re-configure the program thereof so as to change the output to the second lead of the output cable which is generated in response to specific reflected waves.

26. The transducer according to claim 25 wherein the output to the output cable comprises a series of pulses at a frequency which is related to the Doppler frequency from the microwave transceiver and wherein the processor is arranged to be programmable in response to signals received through the output cable so as to re-configure the program thereof so as to change one or more of:

an offset value of the output signals;

a scaling factor of the output signals;

a polarity of the of the output signals;

and a transducer response time by changing acquisition and processing time for the Doppler signals.