Dynamic radar signal channel deactivation in a cascaded radar system for active temperature control

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11567169-B2
Application number	US-202016943365-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 30, 2020
Priority date	Jul 30, 2020
Publication date	Jan 31, 2023
Grant date	Jan 31, 2023

Abstract

A radar system is provided that includes a radar monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC). The radar MMIC includes a plurality of radar signal channels; and at least one sensor configured to measure a physical parameter related to a temperature of the radar MMIC, and to generate sensor data corresponding to measured values of the physical parameter; and a controller configured to receive the sensor data from the at least one sensor, and to determine a channel operation of the plurality of radar signal channels, including selectively disabling at least a first radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels and selectively enabling at least a second radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels based on the measured values.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A radar system, comprising:
a radar monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) comprising:
a plurality of radar signal channels; and
at least one sensor configured to measure a physical parameter related to a temperature of the radar MMIC, and to generate sensor data corresponding to measured values of the physical parameter; and

a controller configured to receive the sensor data from the at least one sensor, and to determine a channel operation of the plurality of radar signal channels, including selectively disabling at least a first radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels and selectively enabling at least a second radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels based on the measured values,
wherein the at least one sensor includes a plurality of sensors each associated with a different one of the plurality of radar signal channels for measuring the physical parameter corresponding thereto,
wherein the controller is configured to compare the measured values to a maximum threshold,
wherein on a first condition that a measured value of an associated radar signal channel exceeds the maximum threshold, the controller is configured to transmit a first disable signal to disable the associated radar signal channel,
wherein in response to disabling the associated radar signal channel, the controller is configured to receive a subsequent measured value of the associated radar signal and compare the subsequent measured value to a re-enable threshold, wherein the re-enable threshold is less than the maximum threshold, and
wherein on a second condition that the subsequent measured value of the associated radar signal channel is equal to or less than the re-enable threshold, the controller is configured to transmit a first enable signal to re-enable the associated radar signal channel.

2. The radar system of claim 1 , wherein:
the controller is configured to selectively enable and disable the plurality of radar signal channels in a round-robin manner such that selectively disabled and selectively enabled radar signal channels change in the round-robin manner.

3. The radar system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to synchronously sample the sensor data of the plurality of sensors at predetermined sampling times.

4. The radar system of claim 1 , wherein:
on a third condition that the measured values of the plurality of radar signal channels each exceed the maximum threshold, the controller is configured to transmit a second disable signal to disable the plurality of radar signal channels.

5. The radar system of claim 1 , wherein:
the controller is configured to compare the measured values of the plurality of radar signal channels to each other, including:
determine a minimum value of the measured values,
determine a maximum value of the measured values,
calculate a delta value between the minimum value and the maximum value,
compare the delta value to a maximum delta value, and
on a third condition that the delta value exceeds the maximum delta value, transmit a second disable signal to disable a radar signal channel associated with the maximum value.

6. The radar system of claim 5 , wherein:
in response to disabling the associated radar signal channel, the controller is configured transmit a second enable signal to re-enable the associated radar signal channel in response to detecting the subsequent measured value of the associated radar signal channel within a tolerance range of subsequent measured values of remaining transmit channels.

7. The radar system of claim 5 , wherein:
on the first condition that the delta value exceeds the maximum delta value, the controller is configured to transmit the second disable signal to disable the plurality of transmit channels in a round-robin manner.

8. The radar system of claim 1 , wherein:
the controller is configured to compare the measured values of the plurality of radar signal channels to each other, including:
determine an average value of the measured values,
calculate at least one delta value for each of the measured values that exceeds the average value, each of the at least one delta value corresponding to a difference between a different one of the measured values and the average value,
compare each of the at least one delta value to a maximum delta value, and
on a third condition that a delta value of the at least one delta value exceeds the maximum delta value, transmit a second disable signal to disable a radar signal channel associated with the delta value that exceeds the maximum delta value.

9. The radar system of claim 1 , wherein:
the radar MMIC comprises a digital processing circuit configured to process baseband data of radar signals to determine a direction of arrival, and
the radar MMIC is configured to reconfigure a processing of the baseband data to take into account at least the first radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels that is selectively disabled.

10. A method of monitoring a radar monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) comprising a plurality of radar signal channels, the method comprising:
measuring a physical parameter related to temperature of the radar MMIC;
generating sensor data corresponding to measured values of the physical parameter; and
determining a channel operation of the plurality of radar signal channels based on the measured values, including selectively disabling at least a first transmitter radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels and selectively enabling at least a second transmitter radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels, wherein receiver signal channels of the radar MMIC remain enabled and operable.

11. A radar system, comprising:
a plurality of a radar monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) comprising a plurality of radar signal channels and a plurality of sensors configured to measure a physical parameter related to a temperature of a corresponding radar MMIC and generate sensor data corresponding to measured values of the physical parameter; and
a controller configured to receive the sensor data from each sensor of the plurality of sensors, and determine a channel operation of the plurality of radar signal channels, including selectively disabling at least a first radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels and selectively enabling at least a second radar signal channel of the plurality of radar signal channels based on the measured values.

12. The radar system of claim 11 , wherein:
the plurality of radar MMICs comprise a plurality of transmitters,
each radar MMIC of the plurality of radar MMICs which comprises a transmitter comprises:
a portion of the plurality radar signal channels that are used by the transmitter; and
a sensor of the plurality of sensors,

the controller is configured to determine the channel operation of the plurality of radar signal channels by selectively disabling at least a first transmitter of the plurality of transmitters and selectively enabling at least a second transmitter of the plurality of transmitters based on the measured values.

13. The radar system of claim 12 , wherein:
the controller is configured to compare the measured values of the plurality of transmitters to each other, including:
determine a minimum value of the measured values,
determine a maximum value of the measured values,
calculate a delta value between the minimum value and the maximum value,
compare the delta value to a maximum delta value, and
on a first condition that the delta value exceeds the maximum delta value, transm

Assignees

• Infineon Technologies Ag

Inventors

• Lombardo Francesco
• Efthivoulidis George
• Findenig Rainer
• Melzer Alexander

Classifications

• G01S7/40 Primary

  Means for monitoring or calibrating · CPC title

• G01K3/005 Primary

  Circuits arrangements for indicating a predetermined temperature (fire detection G08B17/00) · CPC title

• G01S7/4021

  of receivers · CPC title

• G01S7/352

  Receivers · CPC title

• G01S7/4004

  of parts of a radar system · CPC title