Spread spectrum ranging for an ACC-radar

The paper reports on the system concept, design and realization of an experimental radar using PN-codes for ranging and wavefront reconstruction for angular discrimination. The road evaluation of the system has confirmed the specifications regarding essential system parameters such as radial and longitudinal resolution, sensitivity and velocity discrimination. Simulative studies have shown that by choosing suitable parameters for the PN-code, the system is not limited by the influence of the Doppler effect. The memory readout concept for PN-codes enables the expected fast access to radially separated range gates and allows on-line tracking of several objects. The overall performance with respect to ranging, angular resolution and velocity discrimination obtained from an evaluation process demonstrates the usefulness of the principles, making them potential candidates for an implementation into second generation autonomous cruise control (ACC) or collision warning systems.