Method for measuring the ground speed of a vehicle by means of radar using reflection of electromagnetic waves from the driving surface

• US 6,072,424 A
• Filed: 06/05/1998
• Issued: 06/06/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Cremona, Patrick, Kunert, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Sotomayor, John B.
• Application Number:
  US09/077,724
• Time in Patent Office: 732 Days
• Field of Search: 342/70, 342/71, 342/72, 342/104, 342/106, 342/107, 342/109, 342/110, 342/115, 342/117
• US Class Current: 342/109
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/345 using triangular modulation
• 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 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles

Abstract

A method for measuring the speed (V) of a vehicle (1) relative to the ground, of the type using the deviation in frequency associated with the Doppler effect between a transmitted wave (3) sent by radar (2) solidly connected to the vehicle and a reflected wave (4) reflected by the ground, characterized in that radar of the type allowing simultaneous measurement of the relative distance (D) and the relative speed (V) between the vehicle and the ground is used, and that the distance measurement is used to validate the speed measurement.

Claims

1. A method of measuring a speed of a vehicle relative to ground, which comprises:

providing a radar device rigidly connected on a vehicle, said radar device being adapted to simultaneously measure a relative distance (Dm) and a relative speed (Vm) between the radar device and a target;

measuring the relative distance between the radar device and a reflection point on the ground;

simultaneously measuring a relative speed between the radar device and the ground; and

validating the speed measurement with the measured distance between the radar device and the reflection point on the ground.

2. The method according to claim 1, which comprises eliminating the speed measurement whenever the associated distance measurement lies outside a given range of distances bracketing a fixed distance of the radar from the ground.

3. The method according to claim 2, which further comprises varying the given range of distances as a function of a preceding speed measurement.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the step of measuring the relative speed comprises calculating a Doppler effect frequency shift between a radar wave transmitted by the radar device and a reflected wave received by the radar device.