Automotive black-ice warning system for improved traffic safety

Purpose and goal:

The purpose of the project was to build a sensor that can identify the condition of the road surface in front of a vehicle in motion. This is a challenging task since the road surface is random and the radar response varies significantly as the sensor measures different areas. Our previous research at the microwave laboratory in Chalmers showed that the randomness of the surface can be handled if we use a full polarimetric radar.

Within the project we developed a polarimetric radar sensor, which was able to detect a wet patch on the road surface from a vehicle in motion and in real time. Expected results and effects:

The results from the project, the availability of functional sensor-prototypes and the fact that we use the same frequency band as automotive radars (77-81 GHz) are expected to attract attention from industry. We have already contact with 2 companies interested in our technology. Our expectations are that in near future we will be able to carry on tests as part of a pre-study.

Approach and implementation:

In our earlier work we developed a method that can identify the condition of the road surface in front of a vehicle in motion before the wheels reach the sensed area. In this project we developed a compact radar sensor that can be integrated on a vehicle and tested in traffic. We tested two different approaches to build a polarimetric-radar.

We used commercial chips for the 77-81 frequency band. Both prototypes were manufactured and proved to be working as expected. At the end of the project, the sensors were tested in traffic and were able to detect a wet patch on the road surface.