24 GHz Patch Antenna Array Design for RADAR

Abstract: Radar is a technology that is widely used in many diverse areas; from monitoring space down to ocean surveillance, with many more applications in between. The technology existed before, but was mainly developed in secret by several nations during World War II. Radar technology uses radio waves to detect various kinds of objects and can determine their range, velocity and orientation. It is, therefore, an very attractive technology to be used for surveillance applications. The main goal with the thesis is to create a non-expensive, fast and efficient people detecting device that can be used for surveillance applications. The device should be able to detect the position of people in the area under surveillance. The motivation for using radar technology is that it is unaffected by poor weather conditions or low visibility, unlike visual based surveillance systems. Three different configurations of 24 GHz Frequency-Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) patch antenna arrays were designed, manufactured and tested with an existing radar. Different signal processing algorithms, so called Directionof- Arrival (DOA) methods, were also implemented in order to process the data from the radar. The antenna array configurations showed good results, with one of them showing a more robust performance overall.