Advance Path Measurement for Automotive Radar Applications

Millimeter-wave automotive radars are currently being used for adaptive cruise control. To extend their application to collision warning and collision avoidance, increased capability is required in the assessment of hazards and the environment. A signal processing scheme called the advance path measurement (APM) algorithm, which extracts the trajectory of the road path ahead of a radar-equipped vehicle, is presented as a step toward increasing current capabilities. A millimeter-wave radar-equipped vehicle with data logging facilities was used to record real-time millimeter-wave radar data. The recorded data were used as the primary input to the algorithm discussed in this paper. The data were signal processed to generate an image, which was then analyzed using image processing techniques to extract road edge features, using thresholding, peak detection, and Hough transformation. The performance of the APM algorithm was examined by comparing the radar-derived radius of curvature with a digital map database, global positioning system (GPS) position, and yaw-rate data. The results obtained from the radar-derived APM algorithm provide an encouraging basis for continuing its development.