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A high-precision long-range cooperative radar system for gantry rail crane distance measurement

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2015

Werner Scheiblhofer ,
Stefan Scheiblhofer ,
Jochen O. Schrattenecker ,
Simon Vogl  and
Andreas Stelzer
Werner Scheiblhofer*
Affiliation:
Institute for Communications Engineering and RF-Systems, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenbergerstr. 69, Linz A-4040, Austria
Stefan Scheiblhofer
Affiliation:
Hainzl Industriesysteme GmbH, Industriezeile 56, Linz A-4030, Austria
Jochen O. Schrattenecker
Affiliation:
Institute for Communications Engineering and RF-Systems, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenbergerstr. 69, Linz A-4040, Austria
Simon Vogl
Affiliation:
VoXel Interaction Design, Altenbergerstr. 69, Linz A-4040, Austria
Andreas Stelzer
Affiliation:
Institute for Communications Engineering and RF-Systems, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenbergerstr. 69, Linz A-4040, Austria
*
Corresponding author: W. Scheiblhofer Email: w.scheiblhofer@nthfs.jku.at
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Abstract

We present the implementation of a cooperative radar system on a gantry rail crane for distance measurements in an industrial environment. The measurement approach is based on the dual-ramp frequency-modulated continuous-wave principle, using identical sensor-nodes at the endpoints of the range of interest. Pseudo-range information is exchanged via a dedicated data-link between these stations. At the sensor-node a flexible high-performance signal processing and remote management engine is implemented. The system setup is controlled by a single host-PC, which is used as a man–machine interface for configuration of the remotely controlled measurement stations, system surveillance, and visualization of the measurement data. Indoor characterization of the developed hardware is sufficient for an efficient calibration of the system, minimizing distance offsets. On-site measurements at distances up to 1000 m with an accuracy better than 2 cm confirm the performance of the ranging system. Furthermore, the results are verified by simulation.

Keywords

Distance measurementradar applicationscooperative systems
Type
Industrial and Engineering Paper
Information
International Journal of Microwave and Wireless Technologies , Volume 7 , Special Issue 3-4: European Microwave Week 2014 , June 2015 , pp. 479 - 487
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and the European Microwave Association 2015 

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References

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