FOR PHASED-ARRAY RADAR sensors, the design should be a simple structure with fewer receivers than antennas. A K-band, frequency-modulated, CW (FMCW) phased-array radar sensor with a low-complexity receiver based on antenna switching was recently proposed by Moon-Sik Lee from Korea’s Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute together with Yong-Hoon Kim from Korea’s Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology. Using a beamforming method, the researchers evaluated the radar sensor’s performance based on angle and range information.

The short-range radar sensor comprises the following: a transmitter; transmitting antenna; four receiving antennas; a single-pole, four-throw (SP4T) switch; a receiving channel; two analog-todigital converters (ADCs), a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), and a digital signal processor (DSP). The receiving antennas are periodically switched to the single receiving channel. See “Development of a K-band FMCW Phased Array Radar Sensor with Low Complexity Receiver Based on Antenna Switching,” Microwave And Optical Technology Letters, December 2009, p. 2848.