System and method for radar based mapping for autonomous robotic devices
AssigneesBSH Home Appliances Corporation, BSH Hausgeräte GmbH
InventorsLaurenz Altenmueller, Philip Roan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Data from a radar sensor (502) moving through a static environment may be smoothed and used to generate range profiles by approximating peaks. A direction of arrival (DOA) can then be determined based on the range profile in order to generate a reprojection map. The reprojection map is used to provide updates to a stored map in a robot (102).
Claims20
A method for mapping an environment in which an autonomous device is located, the method comprising:
- receiving raw radar data at each of three radar receivers of the autonomous device, the three radar receivers being disposed in a noncollinear arrangement, and the raw radar data corresponding to a radar signal reflected by an object in the environment;
- estimating, using a processor in communication with the three radar receivers, respective peaks in the raw radar data received at each of the three radar receivers;
- determining, using the processor, a Doppler speed associated with the raw radar data;
- determining, using the processor, a direction of arrival (DOA) of the object based on the estimated peaks and the Doppler speed;
- and
- generating a reprojection map based on the DOA and the estimated respective peaks.
A method for mapping an environment in which a robot is located, the method comprising:
- receiving, at a plurality of receivers of the robot, a radar signal reflected by a feature of the environment, wherein the plurality of receivers includes at least three receivers arranged noncollinearly;
- determining, using a processor in communication with the plurality of receivers, a Doppler speed associated with the reflected radar signal;
- calculating, using the processor, a direction of arrival (DOA) of the environmental feature based on the Doppler speed and respective peaks of the reflected radar signal received at each of the plurality of receivers;
- and
- updating a map of the environment based on the DOA and the reflected radar signal.
A method of navigating an autonomous device in an environment, the method comprising:
- receiving raw radar data at each of two radar receivers of an autonomous device, the raw radar data corresponding to a radar signal reflected by an object in the environment, wherein the two radar receivers are spaced from each other by half a wavelength or less;
- determining, using a processor in communication with the two radar receivers, relative phase information corresponding to peaks in the raw radar data received at the two radar receivers;
- determining, using the processor, a Doppler speed associated with the raw radar data;
- determining, using the processor, a direction of arrival (DOA) associated with the object based on the Doppler speed, the relative phase information, and the peaks;
- and
- generating a reprojection map based on the DOA and the peaks.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.