An ultrashort pulse radar sensor for vehicular precollision obstacle detection

An ultrashort pulse radar sensor was designed, developed, and fabricated for an automotive hazard evaluation program. Tests verified that this unique system, which had a pulse duration of approximately 1 ns, did meet its design goals. Reflectivity characteristics of several road surfaces and RF scattering cross sections of selected highway objects were measured. Experiments verified the capability of the system to identify one object from another, even for a multiple object environment. An analytical model was developed that describes the Fresnel region scattering characteristics of simple objects.