TEST DEVICE FOR TESTING A DISTANCE SENSOR OPERATING WITH ULTRASONIC WAVES

Abstract

A test device for testing a distance sensor operating with ultrasonic waves, wherein the distance sensor to be tested comprises at least a sensor radiating element for emitting a transmission signal and a sensor receiving element for receiving a reflected signal. For effective and accurate testing and stimulation of the distance sensor, the test device has a test receiving element for receiving ultrasonic waves emitted from the distance sensor to be tested, and at least one test radiating element for radiating test ultrasonic waves, and a signal processing unit, wherein ultrasonic waves received by the test receiving element are transmitted as a received signal to the signal processing unit and the signal processing unit, as a function of the received signal and simulation distance information relating to a distance to be simulated, and determines an excitation signal for the test radiating element.

Claims

1. A test device for testing a distance sensor operating with ultrasonic waves, the test device comprising: at least one sensor radiating element for radiating a transmission signal; a sensor receiving element for receiving a reflected signal; a test receiving element for receiving the ultrasonic waves emitted by the distance sensor to be tested; at least one test radiating element for radiating test ultrasonic waves; and a signal processing unit, wherein ultrasonic waves received by the test receiving element are transmitted as a received signal to the signal processing unit, and wherein the signal processing unit, as a function of the received signal and a simulation distance information relating to a distance to be simulated, determines an excitation signal for the test radiating element, which is delayed according to the simulation distance information and transmits it to the test radiating element, and wherein the test radiating element generates corresponding test ultrasonic waves and radiates them onto the distance sensor to be tested.

2. The test device according to claim 1, wherein a test device distance information relating to a distance between the test device and the distance sensor to be tested is stored in the signal processing unit, and wherein the signal processing unit additionally takes this test device distance information into account when determining the delayed excitation signal.

3. The test device according to claim 1, wherein an amplitude of the excitation signal and thus an amplitude of the test ultrasonic waves is determined by the signal processing unit as a function of an amplitude of the received signal as a function of the simulation distance information or as a function of the test device distance information.

4. The test device according to claim 3, wherein the amplitude of the excitation signal and thus the amplitude of the test ultrasonic waves is determined by the signal processing unit as a function of an object information or as a function of the effective reflection surface of the object and/or the reflection properties of the reflection surface of the object and/or the contour of the reflection surface of the object.

5. The test device according to claim 1, wherein the excitation signal and thus the test ultrasonic waves have a frequency, wherein the frequency is constant or time-variable for simulating a change in distance.

6. The test device according to claim 1, wherein the received signal is evaluated as a received signal by the signal processing unit only above a predetermined or calculated intensity threshold or above a predetermined or calculated amplitude of the received signal or a duration of the received signal is calculated by the signal processing unit from the duration of the received signal exceeding a predetermined or calculated amplitude of the received signal, and wherein the duration of the received signal corresponds to the duration of the output signal determined by the signal processing unit.

7. The test device according to claim 6, wherein signal components of a received signal which have a predetermined minimum intensity or lie within a time window of predetermined magnitude between two signal components with predetermined minimum intensity are determined to be a single coherent received signal by the signal processing unit.

8. The test device according to claim 1, wherein the received signal is sampled at high frequency by the signal processing unit and stored, wherein the sampled received signal is transmitted at least indirectly as an output signal to the test radiation unit with a sampling rate being at least twice as high or at least ten times as high as the frequency of the transmitted signal emitted by the distance sensor to be tested.

9. The test device according to claim 1, wherein the signal processing unit calculates the excitation signal as a sinusoidal oscillation by specifying a frequency and/or an amplitude or an amplitude curve and/or the number of oscillations and/or the duration.

10. The test device according to claim 1, wherein a spacer with a defined length is arranged in the radiation direction of the test radiating element such that the test device is placed at a defined distance on the distance sensor to be tested or the mounting location of the distance sensor to be tested.

11. The test device according to claim 1, wherein the signal processing unit operates the test device as a distance sensor, in that a measurement signal is transmitted via the test radiating element and a reflected signal is detected by the test receiving element and is transmitted as a received signal to the signal processing unit, and wherein the signal processing unit determines the signal propagation time and determines distance information from the signal propagation time, and wherein the determined distance information is stored as test device distance information.

12. The test device according to claim 1, wherein in addition to the one test radiating element, at least one further test radiating element is arranged, wherein the signal processing unit determines a plurality of delayed excitation signals for the test radiating elements as a function of the received signal and the simulation distance information and transmits them to the test radiating elements, and wherein the test radiating elements generate corresponding test ultrasonic waves and radiate them onto the distance sensor to be tested or onto a plurality of sensor receiving elements of the distance sensor to be tested.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus, are not limitive of the present invention, and wherein:

[0027] FIG. 1 is a test device from the conventional art in the form of a real physical object,

[0028] FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an exemplary embodiment of a test device according to the invention;

[0029] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an exemplary embodiment of a test device according to the invention,

[0030] FIG. 4 is an exemplary of a test device according to the invention taking signal amplitudes into account,

[0031] FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a method implemented in the test device for determining the duration of a received signal,

[0032] FIG. 6 is a schematic view of an exemplary of the test device according to the invention with a spacer; and

[0033] FIG. 7 is a schematic view of an exemplary of the test device according to the invention with several testing and radiating elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] FIGS. 1 to 4, 6 and 7 each show a test device 1 for testing a distance sensor 2 operating with ultrasonic waves. In embodiments 1 to 3 and 7, it is shown that the distance sensor 2 to be tested is installed in an operational environment; a bumper 3 is in each case indicated schematically here.

[0035] The distance sensor 2 to be tested has a sensor radiating element 4 for radiating a transmission signal 5 and a sensor receiving element 6 for receiving a reflected signal 7. In FIGS. 1 to 3 and 7, it is shown schematically in each case that the distance sensor 2 to be tested is connected to a control unit 8, via which the distance sensor 2 is controlled and with which the signals received from the distance sensor 2 are evaluated. In the distance sensors 2 shown schematically, the sensor radiating element 4 and the sensor receiving element 6 are formed by a single common transmitting and receiving unit, with which both the transmission signals 5 are generated and with which the reflected signals 7 are also received. The reflected signal 7 is—hence the name—an ultrasonic signal reflected by an object 9 (see FIG. 1), i.e. usually the reflected transmission signal 5.

[0036] The issue of interest here is to check the shown distance sensors 2 in as reliable and effective a manner as possible for their functionality, or to simulate an environment for the depicted distance sensors 2 in as reliable and effective a manner as possible. Such a check can be of interest in various situations, for example as a functional test after manufacture of the distance sensors, after replacement of a distance sensor in an installation situation (workshop), during official inspections, etc.

[0037] FIG. 1 shows the basic relationships, wherein the transmitted signal 5 is reflected at the object 9 and returns to the distance sensor 2 as a reflected signal 7. It is known from the prior art to use a “real” physical object 9 as a test device for testing the distance sensor 2, and to position said object with the required accuracy in the radiation range of the distance sensor 2, as shown in FIG. 1. It is therefore necessary to position the real object 9, which in this sense can therefore also be understood as the “test device” 1, at the distance to be checked, which is recognizably costly.

[0038] Even though FIGS. 1 to 3 and 7 show the distance sensor 2 to be tested, the distance sensor 2 to be tested is of course not part of the claimed test device. However, the illustration of the distance sensor 2 to be tested and the explanation of its operation facilitate the description of the operation of the claimed test device 1.

[0039] FIGS. 2 to 4, 6 and 7 each show a test device 1 with which it is possible to simulate a reflected signal 7 to the distance sensor 2 to be tested. The illustrated test devices 1 each have a test receiving element 10 for receiving ultrasonic waves 5 emitted from the distance sensor 2 to be tested, and a test radiating element 11 for radiating test ultrasonic waves 12. In addition, the test devices 1 each also have a signal processing unit 13. In all cases, the test devices 1 are configured such that ultrasonic waves 5 received by the test receiving element 10 are transmitted as a received signal S.sub.RX to the signal processing unit 13, and the signal processing unit 13 determines an excitation signal S.sub.TX for the test radiating element 11, which is delayed in accordance with the simulation distance information d.sub.sim, as a function of the received signal S.sub.RX and a simulation distance information d.sub.sim relating to a distance to be simulated, and transmits said excitation signal S.sub.TX to the test radiating element 11. The test radiating element 11 generates corresponding test ultrasonic waves 12 and radiates these to the distance sensor 2 to be tested. The distance sensor 2 to be tested interprets the test ultrasonic waves 12 as a reflected signal.

[0040] The test device 1 thus operates completely independently of the distance sensor 2 to be tested, apart from the fact that the transmitting device 1 must of course receive a transmission signal 5 from the distance sensor 2 to be tested. Beyond that, however, the test device 1 does not require any further information from and about the distance sensor 2 to be tested or from the components connected to the distance sensor 2 to be tested, for example from the control unit 8 shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 7. The test device 1 can therefore operate completely independently of the distance sensor 2 to be tested.

[0041] FIG. 2 (and also some subsequent figures) indicate that the signal processing unit 13 receives the received signal S.sub.RX at a time t.sub.0. Using the simulation distance information d.sub.sim, the signal processing unit 13 then calculates a delay time t.sub.d, which thus corresponds to the time with respect to the reception time t.sub.0 after which the excitation signal S.sub.TX is transmitted to the test radiating element 11 with a delay. The signal processing unit 13 thus calculates the time delay required to simulate a corresponding propagation delay of an ultrasonic signal to the distance sensor 2 to be tested.

[0042] For very small real distances d.sub.test between the distance sensor 2 to be tested and the test device 1 or the test radiating element 11 of the test device 1, knowledge of the simulation distance information d.sub.sim is sufficient for calculating the delay time t.sub.d. However, the greater the distance of the test device 1 from the distance sensor 2 to be tested, the more important it is to know this distance in the form of the test device distance information d.sub.test, which is shown in FIG. 3. Here, the signal processing unit 13 has knowledge of the test device distance information d.sub.test concerning the distance between the test device 1 and the distance sensor 2 to be tested. The signal processing unit 13 additionally takes this test device distance information d.sub.test into account when determining the delayed excitation signal S.sub.TX, since the real propagation delay of the test ultrasonic waves 12 over the distance d.sub.test must not be included again in the calculation of the delay time t.sub.d, but rather must be factored out here.

[0043] In the exemplary embodiment of the test device 1 shown in FIG. 4, the signal processing unit 13 determines the amplitude A.sub.TX of the excitation signal S.sub.TX and thus the amplitude of the test ultrasonic waves 12 as a function of the amplitude A.sub.RX of the received signal S.sub.RX. This is useful because the transmitted signal 5 emitted by the distance sensor 2 to be tested naturally undergoes attenuation along its path. In the interest of physically consistent generation of the excitation signal S.sub.TX and thus of the test ultrasonic waves 12, the amplitude A.sub.TX of the excitation signal S.sub.TX should therefore be adjusted. For the reasons already described with regard to FIG. 3, the signal processing unit 13 additionally takes into account the simulation distance information d.sub.sim and also the test device distance information d.sub.test when determining the amplitude A.sub.TX of the excitation signal S.sub.TX (A.sub.TX=g(A.sub.RX, d.sub.sim, d.sub.test)).

[0044] In a further development of the test device 1 shown in FIG. 4, the signal processing unit 13 determines the amplitude A.sub.TX of the excitation signal S.sub.TX, and thus the amplitude of the test ultrasonic waves 12, by additionally taking into account object information, i.e. information about the object to be simulated, which is simulated by the test device 1, and whose reflected signals are simulated. Thus, it is taken into account here that various object properties influence the reflectivity for ultrasonic waves. In this test device 1, which is not explicitly shown here, the object information O.sub.i taken into account is the effective reflection area of the object, the reflection characteristics of the reflection area of the object, which includes the orientation of the reflection area in space. Thus, the amplitude A.sub.TX of the excitation signal S.sub.TX is additionally a function of the object information O.sub.i (A.sub.TX=g(A.sub.RX, d.sub.sim, d.sub.test, O.sub.i)).

[0045] In the test device 1 shown in the figures, a “copy” of the received signal S.sub.RX is basically used as the excitation signal S.sub.TX. For this purpose, it is provided that the received signal S.sub.RX is sampled at high frequency by the signal processing unit 13 and stored, and the sampled received signal is transmitted at least indirectly as an output signal S.sub.TX to the test radiation unit 11. The signal processing unit 13 shown here samples the received signal S.sub.RX at a sampling rate that is significantly more than twice as high as the highest frequency signal portion of interest of the received signal S.sub.RX. The excitation signal S.sub.TX may of course undergo further changes, for example attenuation, temporal compression or stretching, etc.

[0046] An alternative approach for test devices here is to generate the excitation signal and thus the test ultrasonic waves according to a fixed waveform, i.e., independent of the appearance of the received signal. For example, a harmonic signal is then simply generated with a sine generator or pulse trains with a fixed shape. This approach is possible if the shape of the received signal is known or if, for example, it is known that the distance sensor to be tested does not analyze the reflected signal it receives in more detail. This can be the case, for example, if the transmitted signal generated by the distance sensor to be tested is not coded, and the distance sensor to be tested consequently does not check whether the signal it has received has also been emitted by it.

[0047] FIG. 5 shows a special feature of the signal processing by the signal processing unit 13. The received signal S.sub.RX is evaluated as a received signal by the signal processing unit 13 only above a predetermined intensity threshold, in this case above a predetermined amplitude A.sub.T of the received signal S.sub.RX. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the received signal S.sub.RX slowly fans out, reaches a maximum and then again contracts in terms of signal height. Only above the threshold value A.sub.T for the amplitude of the received signal S.sub.RX is the signal also evaluated as a received signal. FIG. 5 also shows that the duration t.sub.RX of the received signal S.sub.RX is also determined. This is done because this information is also used by the signal processing unit 13 to generate an output signal S.sub.TX which has a corresponding duration t.sub.RX.

[0048] When processing the received signal S.sub.RX, it is questionable when signal parts are to be evaluated as a coherent signal and when they possibly represent different signals. For this purpose, in the signal processing units 13 shown here, it is implemented as a detection methodology that such signal portions of a received signal S.sub.RX, which have a predetermined minimum intensity A.sub.T or lie within a time window of predetermined size between two signal parts with predetermined minimum intensity A.sub.T, are determined as a single coherent received signal. This procedure is illustrated in FIG. 5. In the uppermost part of the diagram, the continuous-time course of the received signal S.sub.RX is shown. As soon as signal components of the received signal S.sub.RX exceed the amplitude threshold A.sub.T, this is detected and a corresponding carrier signal is generated, which can be seen in the middle diagram. The received signal S.sub.RX oscillating at a certain frequency thus generates an equidistant pulse train S.sub.imp. Each pulse of the pulse train S.sub.imp resets a ramp generator, which is shown in the lower diagram in FIG. 5. The ramp generator generates a ramp signal with a certain edge steepness. Continuous resetting of the ramp generator by the pulse train S.sub.imp produces the sawtooth curve shown in the bottom of FIG. 5. When the ramp generator is no longer reset because the received signal S.sub.RX no longer exceeds the predetermined intensity minimum, the signal generated by the ramp generator runs up unimpeded and exceeds a predetermined signal limit AB. The time between the first triggering and the ramp generator and the subsequent exceeding of the signal threshold AB is then evaluated as the signal duration t.sub.RX of the received signal S.sub.RX.

[0049] FIG. 6 shows a special design feature in a test device 1, namely a spacer 14 with a defined length in the radiation direction of the test radiating element 11. In the present case, the spacer 14 is made of a material that absorbs ultrasonic waves. Also, the spacer can be coated with an ultrasonic wave absorbing coating. The embodiment shown in FIG. 6 has the advantage that the test device 1 can be placed at a defined distance from the distance sensor 2 to be tested or the mounting location of the distance sensor 2 to be tested.

[0050] FIG. 7 shows a test device 1 with three test radiating elements 11. The special feature here is that the signal processing unit 13 determines several delayed excitation signals S.sub.TX for the test radiating elements 11 as a function of the received signal S.sub.RX and the simulation distance information d.sub.test and transmits them to the test radiating elements 11. The test radiating elements 11 generate corresponding test ultrasonic waves 12 and radiate them to the distance sensor 2 to be tested. The distance sensors 2 shown here are installed in a bumper 3 and connected to a control unit 8, which determines a complex image of the environment of the interconnected distance sensors 2 from a plurality of received signals of the distance sensors 2. With the test device 1 according to FIG. 7, it is therefore possible to simulate a physically consistent image of the environment even for a plurality of (interconnected) distance sensors 2.

[0051] The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are to be included within the scope of the following claims.