System and method for radar calibration using antenna leakage

摘要

The system and method for radar calibration using antenna leakage is a simplified means of calibrating the channels in amplitude and phase using natural signal leakage between antennas. It utilizes as calibration signal a wideband sinusoidal Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) waveform with a modulation index and modulation frequency chosen to generate spectral components (or discrete signal frequencies) that fall within the receiver Doppler passband of the radar. The calibration signal is radiated out of the transmitting antenna and enters the radar receiver front-end through the transmit-to-receive antenna leakage which occurs naturally. This technique provides a low-complexity (simpler hardware realization) means for achieving a wideband calibration rapidly and is a practical alternative to the conventional calibration approach that relies on generating offset Doppler signals that are coupled into the radar receiver front-end through the use of couplers and cabling within the radar.