Characterization of a 76 GHz antenna for personnel avoidance radar for robotics vehicles

A radar system for robotic vehicles has been developed for collision avoidance. A major component of the system is an antenna that has a narrow beam in azimuth and a broad beam in elevation with very low side-lobes. This paper presents the design and characterization of the antenna that operates at around 76 GHz. The high operating frequency required a special set up for the measurements of the antenna performance. The antenna is designed as an array of pyramidal horns fed with an E-plane waveguide power divider that produces the required aperture taper for low side-lobes.