Vehicle with millimeter-wave radar

• US 6,052,079 A
• Filed: 07/30/1998
• Issued: 04/18/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Yamasaki, Kunihiro, Kitahara, Yasuo, Murakami, Taku
• Primary Examiner(s): Sotomayor, John B.
• Application Number:
  US09/117,522
• Time in Patent Office: 628 Days
• Field of Search: 342/70, 342/71, 342/72
• US Class Current: 342/70
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/34 using transmission of continuous, frequency-modulated waves while heterodyning the received signal, or a signal derived therefrom, with a locally-generated signal related to the contemporaneously transmitted signal
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9316 combined with communication equipment with other vehicles or with base stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9318 Controlling the steering
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93185 Controlling the brakes
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93272 in the back of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93274 on the side of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9329 cooperating with reflectors or transponders
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/414 Discriminating targets with respect to background clutter

Abstract

The present invention relates to a vehicle with a millimeter-wave radar capable of accurately detecting stationary objects around the vehicle while positively accepting ground clutter. Accordingly, the vehicle is provided with a millimeter-wave transmitting/receiving antenna (2F) fixed thereto with the center (C) of an antenna beam directed to a road surface (5), and a discrimination element (6) for classifying detected objects (4) by discriminating between objects (4a) the distance (L) to which varies with a movement of the vehicle and objects (4b) the distance (L) to which does not vary with a movement of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A vehicle with a radar for detecting a distance between the vehicle and an object, comprising:

a radar fixed to the vehicle, said radar including a transmitting/receiving antenna;

a discrimination element for classifying objects detected by the radar between first and second types of objects, said first type of objects being objects whose distance from the vehicle varies with a movement of the vehicle, said second type of objects being objects whose distance from the vehicle does not vary with a movement of the vehicle;

a storage element for storing course data of the vehicle, said course data including object information; and

a first identification element for receiving information on a object of the first type detected by the radar and for comparing the received information with the stored course data;

said first identification element discriminating whether the received information corresponds to the object information included in said course data, said first identification element identifying said object of the first type detected by the radar in the case where it is discriminated that the received information does correspond to the object information included in said course data.

2. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 1, wherein said radar is a millimeter wave radar.

3. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 2, wherein said radar is equipped with a plurality of transmitting/receiving antennas.

4. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 3, wherein at least one of said plurality of transmitting/receiving antennas is mounted on each of a front, a rear, a left, and a right portion of said vehicle.

5. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 1, wherein said radar fixed to the vehicle is directed to a road surface.

6. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 5, wherein a center of an antenna beam is inclined at an angle between 0 and -6 degrees in relation to a horizontal direction of the vehicle.

7. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 5, wherein said object information included in said course data corresponds to at least one of a hopper, a cliff, a shoulder of a road, a corner, an intersection, an uphill slope, and a downhill slope.

8. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 1, wherein said second type of objects include ground clutter detected by said radar.

9. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a control element which controls at least one of an engine, a governor, a brake, and a steering of the vehicle in accordance with a stored program.

10. A vehicle with a radar for detecting a distance between the vehicle and objects comprising:

a radar fixed to said vehicle for detecting objects as said vehicle moves;

a discrimination element for classifying objects detected by said radar, said discrimination element discriminating between first and second types of objects, said first type of objects being objects whose distance from the vehicle varies with a movement of the vehicle, said second type of objects being objects whose distance from the vehicle does not vary with a movement of the vehicle; and

an extraction element for receiving information from said discrimination element associated with detected objects of the second type to detect a change in said received information.

11. A vehicle equipped with a radar in accordance with claim 10, further comprising:

a storage element for storing course data for said vehicle, said course data including object information; and

a second identification element for receiving information on said detected change from said extraction element and for comparing said information on said detected change against the course data to identify objects which correspond to said detected change.

12. A vehicle equipped with a radar in accordance with claim 10, wherein said radar is a millimeter-wave radar.

13. A vehicle equipped with a radar in accordance with claim 12, wherein a center of an antenna beam of the millimeter-wave transmitting/receiving antenna directed to a road surface.

14. A vehicle with a radar for detecting a distance between the vehicle and an object, comprising:

a radar fixed to the vehicle, said radar including a transmitting/receiving antenna;

a discrimination element for classifying objects detected by the radar between first and second types of objects, said first type of objects being objects whose distance from the vehicle varies with a movement of the vehicle, said second type of objects being objects whose distance from the vehicle does not vary with a movement of the vehicle;

a storage element for storing course data of the vehicle, said course data including object information;

a first identification element for receiving information on a object of the first type detected by the radar and for comparing the received information with the stored course data;

said first identification element discriminating whether the received information corresponds to the object information included in said course data, said first identification element identifying said object of the first type detected by the radar in the case where it is discriminated that the received information does correspond to the object information included in said course data;

an extraction element for receiving information from said discrimination element associated with detected objects of the second type to detect a change in said received information;

a second identification element for receiving information on said detected change from said extraction element and for comparing said information on said detected change against the course data to identify objects which correspond to said detected change.

15. A vehicle equipped with a radar in accordance with claim 14, wherein a center of an antenna beam is inclined at an angle between 0 and -6 degrees in relation to a horizontal direction of the vehicle.

16. A vehicle equipped with a radar in accordance with claim 14, said radar is equipped with a plurality of transmitting/receiving antennas.

17. A vehicle with a radar for detecting a distance between said vehicle and objects comprising:

a radar, fixed to said vehicle, for detecting objects as said vehicle moves, said radar positioned for a center of a beam of said radar to be directed to a road surface; and

a discrimination element for classifying said objects detected by said radar, said discrimination element discriminating between first and second types of objects, said first type of objects being stationary objects whose distance from said vehicle varies with a movement of said vehicle, said second type of objects being ground clutter objects whose distance from said vehicle does not vary with a movement of said vehicle.

18. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 17, wherein said radar is a millimeter-wave radar.

19. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 17, wherein said vehicle is equipped with a plurality of radar antennas.

20. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 19, wherein at least one of said plurality of transmitting/receiving antennas is mounted on each of a front, a rear, a left, and a right portion of said vehicle.

21. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 17, wherein said center of said beam is inclined at an angle between approximately 0 and approximately -6 degrees in relation to a horizontal direction of said vehicle.

22. A vehicle with a radar in accordance with claim 17, further comprising a control element that controls at least one of an engine, a governor, a brake, and a steering of said vehicle in accordance with a stored program.