Radar based IVC system

In the near future, production cars are expected to be equipped with multiple short distance sensors to allow an all-around sensing of the vehicle's environment for occupant and pedestrian protection. Another way to improve traffic safety is to establish inter-vehicle communication (IVC) systems that are able to inform the following traffic about possible hazards. This paper proposes an innovative device approach called the communication radar. A basic concept for a short distance radar (SDR)-based communication system for IVC is described. The system is based on a 24 GHz pulse SDR sensor and is designed to allow simultaneous sensing over a range of 20 m and communication at 1 Mbit/s up to 200 m range. In order to minimize the disturbances between communication and sensing as well as disturbances from other systems of the same type, appropriate signal processing schemes were developed. Separated channels for data exchange, protocol handling, and emergency notification allow maximum flexibility for IVC needs. Since SDR systems radiate in limited angular ranges, a selective communication direction is easily established. This system allows directed communication to cooperating partners, and since communication and sensing are implemented in a single apparatus, a fusion of the information obtained from either functionality can be easily provided without significant time delays.