US 9,958,527 B2Granted

Method and a sensor for determining a direction-of-arrival of impingent radiation

AssigneeTrackman A/S

InventorFredrik Tuxen

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Abstract

A sensor for determining a direction-of-arrival of radiation impingent on the sensor which has antennas positioned in a particular set-up different from a rectangle, so that information may be derived between two pairs of the antennas, positioned in corners of a rectangular grid and additional information may be derived from an additional antenna, combined with one of the “grid” antennas forming a third pair of antennas. The additional antenna is positioned away from the corners and other pre-defined lines of the rectangle/grid. In this manner, such as from phase differences between the pairs of antennas, more information may be derived compared to antennas positioned merely at the corners of a rectangle to remove ambiguous angles of direction-of-arrival without compromising accuracy of an angular determination.

Claims22

Dependent claims

A method of determining a three-dimensional direction-of-arrival of radiation impingent on a sensor having a plurality of receiving antennas each being configured to sense the radiation and output a corresponding signal, the method comprising:

positioning the antennas so that:
at least three of the antennas are first receiving antennas which define corners of a parallelogram having two first and two second parallel sides,
one or more of the receiving antennas is/are a second receiving antenna(s), each second antenna forming a pair of antennas with a first antenna,
wherein the second antenna of each pair is positioned, in relation to the first antenna with which it is paired, more than 2% of a smallest distance between two first receiving antennas away from all axes extending through any two of the four corners of the parallelogram, any corner of the parallelogram and a centre point of any of the four sides of the parallelogram, and the centre point of any of the sides of the parallelogram and the centre points of any other side of the parallelogram;
and
determining the three-dimensional direction-of-arrival from at least:
a first phase difference between signals received by a first pair of the first receiving antennas positioned on one of the first parallel sides and a distance between the antennas of the first pair of antennas,
a second phase difference between signals received by a second pair of the first receiving antennas positioned on one of the second parallel sides and a distance between the antennas of the second pair of antennas, and
a third phase difference between signals received by a third pair of antennas, being a pair of antennas comprising a second receiving antenna and a first antenna, and a distance between the antennas of the third pair of antennas.

6 more elements

A sensor for determining a three-dimensional direction-of-arrival of radiation impingent thereon, the sensor comprising no more than six receiving antennas each being configured to sense the radiation and output a corresponding signal, the antennas being positioned so that:

at least three of the antennas are first receiving antennas defining corners of a parallelogram having two first and two second parallel sides,
one or more of the receiving antennas is/are second receiving antenna(s), each second antenna forming a pair of antennas with another of the plurality of receiving antennas, where the antennas of each pair are positioned, in relation to each other, in the same relationship as an antenna positioned, in relation to one of the first receiving antennas, more than 2% of a smallest distance between two first receiving antennas away from all axes extending through any two of the four corners of the parallelogram, any or the corners of the parallelogram and a centre point of any of the four sides of the parallelogram, and the centre point of any of the sides of the parallelogram and the centre point of any other side of the parallelogram, and
the sensor further comprising a determining element configured to receive the output signals from the first receiving antennas and the second receiving antenna(s) and determine the three-dimensional direction-of-arrival from at least:
a first phase difference between signals received by a first pair of the first receiving antennas positioned on one of the first parallel sides and a distance between the antennas of the first pair of antennas,
a second phase difference between signals received by a second pair of the first receiving antennas positioned on one of the second parallel sides and a distance between the antennas of the second pair of antennas, and
a third phase difference between signals received by a third pair of antennas, being a pair of antennas comprising a second antenna, and a distance between the antennas of the third pair of antennas.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/365,251Filed 13 Dec 2012 · us provisional application
Priority: EP 1119578427 Dec 2011
Published: US 2014/0347212 A127 Nov 2014
Granted: 1 May 2018
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

G01S 3/48
Using antennas spaced apart and measuring phase or time difference between signals therefrom, i.e. path-difference systems: the waves arriving at…
G01S 3/14
Using radio waves: systems for determining direction or deviation from predetermined direction
G01S 13/4454
Monopulse radar, i.e. simultaneous lobing: phase comparisons monopulse, i.e. comparing the echo signals received by an interferometric antenna…
G01S
Radio direction-finding