Low power millimeter wave radar system for the visually impaired

Abstract

In order to help visually impaired people to avoid obstacles, a K‐band millimetre wave (MMW) radar system based on the principle of frequency‐modulated continuous wave (FMCW) is proposed in this study. The FMCW basic principle and the signal processing algorithm are elaborated in detail. The prototype of the radar system has been designed and manufactured. The experiment results show the qualified detection accuracy in view of low deviation. The maximum deviations from the range measurement experiments for a person and a car are 0.14 and 0.47 m, respectively. As a wearable system, the radar system has the characteristics of low power and small size, which is very suitable for blind navigation application. In addition, the MMW radar has broad application prospects in the field of automotive blind spot detection and small robots.