Multibrand radar detector having plural local oscillators

• US 4,952,936 A
• Filed: 09/12/1988
• Issued: 08/28/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1987
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: B.E.L-Tronics Ltd. (Canada) (Cedar Electronics Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: B.E.L-Tronics Ltd. (Canada) (Cedar Electronics Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Martinson, Glen
• Primary Examiner(s): Barron, Jr., Gilberto
• Application Number:
  US07/242,533
• Time in Patent Office: 715 Days
• Field of Search: 342/20, 342/175, 455/168, 455/188, 455/189, 455/318, 455/319, 455/323, 455/325, 455/327, 455/330, 455/331, 455/226-229, 340/600, 324/77 B, 324/77 C, 324/77 CS
• US Class Current: 342/20
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/022 Road traffic radar detectors

Abstract

The invention concerns radar detection devices sensitive to signals from various different frequency bands. A broad band antenna is provided, together with a mixer and a plurality of local oscillators. Signals from the local oscillators are mixed one at a time with signals from the antenna, there being one local oscillator signal for each radar frequency or pair of frequencies of interest which may be received by the antenna. Each local oscillator signal is chosen so that when it is mixed with the respective radar frequency signal, an intermediate signal is produced which is the same for all mixtures. This intermediate signal is further down converted and fed to signal processing circuitry to produce an alarm when radar frequencies of interest are detected.

Claims

1. A Multi-Band Radar detector comprising:

a broad band antenna;

a plurality of dielectric resonator local oscillators, each having an output at a respective first predetermined frequency;

a mixer having a radar signal input port, a local oscillator signal input port, and an intermediate frequency signal output port;

means to feed a signal from the antenna to the radar signal input port;

means to feed signals sequentially from said dielectric resonator local oscillators directly to said local oscillators signal input port of said mixer for mixing, each in its turn, with the signal from said antenna;

and means to feed an intermediate frequency signal from said intermediate frequency signal output port of said mixer to signal processing circuitry for actuating an alarm in response to detected radar;

wherein said means to feed signal sequentially from said dielectric resonator local oscillators directly to said local oscillator signal input port of said mixer comprises a feedline for said signals from said dielectric resonator local oscillators together with means to effect electromagnetic coupling between said dielectric resonator local oscillators and said feedline;

and wherein the shortest distance, measured between a tangent to each respective dielectric resonator and said feedline, is selected for each dielectric resonator, so that the electromagnetic coupling coefficient between each respective dielectric resonator and feedline is optimized for mixing a radar frequency signal within a band of interest with the local oscillator signal from a respective dielectric resonator local oscillator.

3. A multiband radar detector device as claimed in claim 1, in which the antenna is a horn antenna.

4. A multiband radar detector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the number of dielectric resonator local oscillators is chosen to accommodate the expected number of radar frequency bands to be monitored, and the fundamental or twice the fundamental frequency of each respective dielectric resonator local oscillator is chosen to produce beats with a radar signal in a respective radar frequency band.

5. A multiband radar detector as claimed in claim 1, and wherein each dielectric resonator is positioned at a distance that is measured from the centre of the respective resonator to an end of said feedline, which distance is equal to an odd number of quarter wave lengths of the frequency of each respective dielectric resonator.

2. A Multi-Band Radar detector comprising:

a broad band antenna;

a plurality of dielectric resonator local oscillators, each having an output at a respective first predetermined frequency;

a mixer having a radar signal input port, a local oscillator signal input port, and an intermediate frequency signal output port;

means to feed a signal from the antenna to the radar signal input port;

means to feed signals sequentially from said dielectric resonator local oscillators directly to said local oscillator signal input port of said mixer for mixing, each in its turn, with the signal from said antenna;

and means to feed an intermediate frequency signal from said intermediate frequency signal output port of said mixer to signal processing circuitry for actuating an alarm in response to detected radar;

wherein said means to feed signal sequentially from said dielectric resonator local oscillators directly to said local oscillator signal input port of said mixer comprises a feedline for said signals from said dielectric resonator local oscillators together with means to effect electromagnetic coupling between said dielectric resonator local oscillators and said feedline;

wherein said means for effecting electromagnetic coupling of said dielectric resonator local oscillators with said feedline is achieved by positioned each said dielectric resonator a distance from said feedline so as to effect electromagnetic coupling between each said dielectric resonator and said mixer;

and wherein each dielectric resonator is positioned at a distance that is measured from the centre of the respective resonator to an end of said feedline, which distance is equal to an odd number of quarter wave lengths of the frequency of each respective dielectric resonator.

6. A multiband radar detector device as claimed in claim 2, in which the antenna is a horn antenna.

7. A multiband radar detector as claimed in claim 2, wherein the number of dielectric resonator local oscillators is chosen to accommodate the expected number of radar frequency bands to be monitored, and the fundamental frequency or twice the fundamental frequency of each respective dielectric resonator local oscillator is chosen to produce beats with a radar signal in a respective radar frequency band.