Radio detection and ranging (radar) uses reflected radio waves to detect and determine the distance, angle, and velocity of objects relative to the radar system. A basic radar system consists of a transmitter producing electromagnetic waves in the radio or microwave spectrum (these can be pulsed or continuous), a transmitting antenna, a receiving antenna (often […]
RADAR/LiDAR
How are sensors improving maritime navigation?
Of course, GPS is important, but radar and the automatic identification system (AIS) use various sensors to track and report on ship positions in real-time. Sensor fusion is being developed for autonomous shipping. And there are hydrophones combined with other sensors and artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to identify and track whale movements […]
What sensors do you need to land on the moon?
NASA is developing several sensor systems and algorithms for use on Artemis moon landings. It’s called the Safe and Precise Landing – Integrated Capabilities Evolution (SPLICE) technology suite. It consists of three primary elements: An inertial measurement unit (IMU) and a camera for terrain relative navigation. Second is Doppler LiDAR to determine the lander’s velocity […]
How do time-of-flight sensors work?
Using the time-of-flight (ToF) principle, a ToF sensor measures the distance between the sensor and an object. The sensor emits a signal that is reflected off an object and then detects the time for a round trip to occur. Typically, either light or sound waves can provide the transmitted signal. In either case, the distance […]
How can you see through walls?
It depends on what you want to “see” and how much you want to pay. To locate a stud, the old school technique of tapping a tool on the wall for acoustic differences used hearing rather than sight and it was free. Initially, battery-operated stud finders used magnets to find screws and nails and provided […]
The role of ADAS sensors in automotive design
Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are intended to prevent deaths and injuries by reducing accidents. Exemplary ADAS applications include: pedestrian detection/avoidance, lane departure warning/correction; traffic sign recognition; automatic emergency braking, and; blind-spot detection. This FAQ starts with an overview of the “levels of driving automation” and its relation to ADAS. It then reviews the role […]
Sensors, sensors everywhere. Now what do I do?
By Moshe Sheier, Vice President of Marketing at CEVA Mobile computing has driven an explosion in product opportunities – smartphones, wearables, hearables, sports cameras, and more. Sensing will further extend opportunities in applications which must be environment-aware. Now it’s commonplace to think about object recognition and collision warning through visual, radar, or Lidar sensing. Short-range […]
How do materials impact a sensor’s performance? Pt 2
The right materials are essential to achieve the desired sensor electrical performance, especially in many more demanding, high performance applications. Part 1 showed the performance impact of different sensor materials on infrared (IR) optical sensors. Radio frequency (RF) sensors also provide some interesting examples of a material’s impact on sensor performance. With expanding RF applications […]
What sensors make the latest Waymo Driver smarter?
You may read about the 5th-generation Waymo Driver but until you see one on the road, it is hard to appreciate the extent of its sensing capabilities. Sensors are visible everywhere on the all-electric Jaguar I-Pace SUV. In fact, each visible mounting location has more than one sensor. To consistently obtain the amount of information […]
What is the newest use for radar in automobiles?
The use of radar in advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) including adaptive cruise control (ACC), automatic emergency braking (AEB), pedestrian and cyclist detection and more has been widespread for many years. In these external vehicle applications, radar detects the speed and range of objects in the vicinity of the vehicle and typically operates at 77 […]
