Ranging systems and methods with staggered multichannel transducers

A method comprising:

• receiving ranging signal returns by a multichannel transducer device of a ranging system, wherein:
• the multichannel transducer device comprises radar, sonar, or lidar transducer elements arranged in a hybrid transducer element arrangement of a first array of transducer elements and a second array of transducer elements,
• the first array of transducer elements is arranged according to a staggered transducer element arrangement, with the first array of transducer elements bilaterally symmetric relative to one another in a first direction and across a plane extending between adjacent transducer elements, and each transducer element of the first array of transducer elements laterally offset, in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction, from at least one adjacent transducer element, and
• the second array of transducer elements is arranged in a one dimensional linear array;
• forming one or more return beams based, at least in part, on the ranging signal returns;
• and
• generating ranging image data based, at least in part, on the return beams.

A method comprising:

• providing a multichannel transducer device substrate;
• positioning a first array of transducer elements according to a staggered pattern on the multichannel transducer device substrate, wherein the first array of transducer elements are radar, sonar, or lidar transducer elements, and wherein the first array of transducer elements are:
• bilaterally symmetric relative to one another, and
• laterally or longitudinally staggered;
• positioning a second array of transducer elements in a one dimensional (1D) linear array on the multichannel transducer device substrate;
• securing the first array of transducer elements to the multichannel transducer device substrate in the staggered pattern;
• securing the second array of transducer elements to the multichannel transducer device substrate in the 1D linear array;
• and
• providing electrical interfaces to the first array of transducer elements and the second array of transducer elements.