Design of PMCW millimeter-wave radar algorithms on an embedded DSP

The rapid advancements in autonomous driving technology necessitate the extensive deployment of automotive radars operating within the 77-81 GHz millimeter-wave band in the forthcoming years. In contrast to earlier Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) radars, Phase-Modulated Continuous Wave (PMCW) radars exhibit notable improvements in processing speed and flexibility, offering superior range and velocity resolution. These enhancements are critical for the precise detection and interpretation of dynamic and complex traffic scenarios. This paper initially presents the simulation and testing of algorithms for range and speed measurement using single-input single-output (SISO) PMCW millimeterwave radar. Building upon these results, further simulations incorporating multi-input multi-output (MIMO) systems utilizing Hadamard codes are conducted to augment PMCW radar performance. The final phase of this study involves implementing the relevant signal processing algorithms on a custom-developed digital signal processor (DSP) named SWIFT. Experimental findings demonstrate that PMCW radar significantly mitigates multipath effects and clutter, maintaining high performance in complex environments. Furthermore, the algorithms executed on the DSP meet the anticipated performance standards. The proposed methodology not only validates the theoretical framework but also establishes a foundation for future hardware implementation.