A New Antenna Array and Signal Processing Concept for an Automotive 4D Radar

On the way to Highly Automated Driving (HAD), new conditions for sensors used in vehicles arise. To achieve a highly accurate environmental perception the resolution of radar sensors has to be increased. Only with fine grained sensor information, it is possible to maneuver safely and highly automated at all road conditions in urban and rural surroundings. A prototypical implementation of such a sensor, which fulfills all these requirements, is presented in the following as automotive 4D radar. The relevant parts of the baseband signal processing are explained in combination with the used modulation waveform. A new antenna array arrangement is introduced which provides the ability to measure angles in both azimuth and elevation. To estimate the two angles of arrival a method which performs this in combination is exemplified. First measurements with a cyclist are recorded and show a radial speed enhanced 3D radar image. The first results are extremely promising. For validation of the measured data, also a simulation of the same scenario with identical system parameters is performed and shown.