Radar arrangement

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a radar arrangement for a vehicle comprising a design element, such as an emblem or a vehicle light, and a radar device comprising a plurality of radar device units, wherein the radar device and the design element are integrated with each other such that they form one common integral unit. The design element comprises a main body having a cavity that houses the radar device. The cavity may be filled with a filling material, and the radar device may be embedded in the filling material. The disclosure also relates to a vehicle comprising the radar arrangement. The disclosure further relates to a method of manufacturing a radar arrangement.

Claims

1. A radar arrangement for a vehicle comprising: a design element; and a radar device comprising a plurality of radar device units; wherein the design element comprises a main body that comprises or is constituted by a radar transparent material, the main body has a cavity housing the radar device, a bottom of the cavity is configured to function as a radome for the radar device, the cavity is filled with a filling material after formation of the main body, the radar device is completely embedded in the filling material, and the radar device and the design element are integrated with each other such that they form one common integral unit, and wherein the plurality of radar device units is arranged on a circuit board, and the plurality of radar device units comprises a transmitter, a receiver and a processor that are all completely embedded in the filling material.

2. The radar arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the design element comprises an emblem or a vehicle light.

3. The radar arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the circuit board comprises a printed circuit board.

4. The radar arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of radar device units comprises a memory.

5. The radar arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of radar device units comprises an analogue demodulator with digital out.

6. The radar arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the radar arrangement further comprises at least one positioning unit adapted to hold the radar device in a desired position relative to the design element in the cavity.

7. The radar arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the radar device comprises a heatable surface.

8. A vehicle comprising a vehicle body and the radar arrangement according to claim 1 attached to the vehicle body.

9. A method of manufacturing a radar arrangement including a design element and a radar device, the method comprising: providing the design element having a main body comprising a radar transparent material, the main body having a cavity formed therein to house the radar device; placing the radar device in the cavity such that a bottom of the cavity is configured to function as a radome for the radar device; and filling the cavity with a filling material after formation of the main body so that the radar device is completely embedded in the filling material.

10. The method according to claim 9 wherein the design element comprises an emblem or a vehicle light.

11. The method according to claim 9 wherein the filling is performed partly before and partly after placing the radar device in the cavity.

12. The method according to claim 9 wherein the filling comprises filling the cavity with enough filling material to completely fill the cavity with the radar device and the filling material.

13. The method according to claim 9 further comprising providing at least one positioning unit for holding the radar device in a desired position relative to the design element in the cavity.

14. The method according to claim 9 further comprising providing a heatable surface in the radar device.

15. The method according to claim 9, wherein the radar device comprises a transmitter, a receiver and a processor arranged on a circuit board, and wherein the filling step is performed so that the transmitter, the receiver and the processor are completely embedded in the filling material.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The present disclosure will hereinafter be further explained by means of non-limiting examples with reference to the attached drawings.

(2) FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a vehicle according to the disclosure;

(3) FIG. 2 illustrates a radar arrangement according to an exemplifying embodiment of the disclosure;

(4) FIG. 3 illustrates a design element of the radar arrangement of FIG. 2;

(5) FIG. 4 illustrates a radar device of the radar arrangement of FIG. 2;

(6) FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-section of the radar arrangement of FIG. 2;

(7) FIG. 6 illustrates a radar arrangement according to a second embodiment of the disclosure; and

(8) FIG. 7 illustrates a method of manufacturing a radar arrangement according to the disclosure.

(9) It should be noted that the appended drawings are schematic and that individual components are not necessarily drawn to scale and that the dimensions of some features of the present disclosure may have been exaggerated for the sake of clarity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(10) The disclosure will, in the following, be exemplified by embodiments. It should however be realized that the embodiments are included in order to explain principles of the disclosure and not to limit the scope of the disclosure, as defined by the appended claims. A feature from one embodiment may be combined with one or more features of any other embodiment.

(11) FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a vehicle 1 comprising one or more radar arrangements 3, 9, 11, 13, 15, 16 according to the disclosure. The radar arrangement 3, which comprises a design element 5 and a radar device 7, will be described in more detail below in conjunction with FIGS. 2-5.

(12) FIG. 1 shows a couple of suitable locations for the radar arrangement according to the disclosure. The radar arrangement may e.g., be located at a front of the vehicle 1 forming a front radar arrangement 3. The design element 5 may comprise or be constituted by an emblem with a symbol 21 of the vehicle manufacturer or text, as is illustrated in FIG. 2.

(13) Moreover, going back to FIG. 1, radar arrangements 9, 11, 13, 15, 16 according to the disclosure may be located at sides of the vehicle 1 or at its rear end, e.g., at doors of the vehicle 1. These radar arrangements 9, 11, 13, 15, 16 may comprise design elements comprising or being constituted by emblems, as for the radar arrangement 3 illustrated in FIGS. 2-5.

(14) Furthermore, radar arrangements 17, 19 according to the disclosure may also be integrated into lights of the vehicle 1, such that the light constitutes the design element, in FIG. 1 illustrated as integrated into the rear lights.

(15) FIGS. 2-5 illustrate a radar arrangement 3 according to the disclosure. As mentioned above, the radar arrangement 3 comprises a design element 5, see FIG. 3, and a radar device 7, see FIG. 4, which are integrated with each other to form one common integral unit, see FIGS. 2 and 5, wherein FIG. 5 is a cross-section of FIG. 2.

(16) The design element 5 is constituted by an emblem, in the illustrated embodiment having a symbol 21 of the vehicle manufacturer. The symbol 21 may be printed on or painted on the surface of the design element 5, and in that case, it is preferred to use radar transparent ink or paint.

(17) The design element 5, see FIGS. 3 and 5, comprises a main body 23 having a cavity 25 housing the radar device 7. The radar device 7 is embedded in a filling material 27, which fills the cavity 25 of the main body 23, such that a top surface 29 of the filling material 27 preferably is flush with a surface 31 of the main body 23. The radar device 7 is smaller than the cavity 25, such that the radar device 7 is completely housed in the cavity 25 and does not protrude. The design element 5 and the radar device 7 form one integral unit. There is hence not a plurality of parts which are separable from each other. Instead, the radar device 7 is permanently fixed to the design element 5 by means of being embedded in the filling material 27. The exemplary radar arrangement 3 has a shape of a rectangular parallelepiped having a thickness h which is much less than its length and width, such as in the range of 4-30 mm, preferably in the range of 5-25 mm or 6-20 mm. The radar device 7 is connectable to a communication system of the vehicle 1 via a physical interface, e.g., an electrical connector 33.

(18) The radar device 7 comprises a plurality of radar device units arranged on a printed circuit board 35, see FIG. 4. The plurality of radar device units comprises antennas in the form of a transmitter 37 and a receiver 39 for radar signals. There is also a processor 41 and a memory 43, which may be located on the opposite side of the printed circuit board 35 as compared to the antennas 37, 39. There may also be, although not illustrated, one or more additional antennas, memories and/or processors. The printed circuit board 35 of the radar device 7 is held in a desired position relative to the design element 5 by means of positioning units 45a, 45b, 45c, 45d located in the cavity 25 of the main body 23 of the design element 5.

(19) The design element 5 is made in a radar transparent material with a radar transparent thickness t, being the thickness of the bottom of the cavity 25, which may be in the range of 1-15 mm, preferably in the range of 2-10 mm or 2-5 mm, see FIG. 5. The radar arrangement 3 may be combined with a camera 47, which may be used for facilitating parking of the vehicle 1, see FIG. 2.

(20) As an option, illustrated in FIGS. 2-5, the printed circuit board 35 may comprise a heatable surface. The heatable surface may be used to dissipate heat from the radar device units 37, 39, 41, 43. As an alternative or a complement, additional heat wiring may be integrated on the printed circuit board 35, here in the form of a heating strip 49, or as a part of the design element 5. The heatable surface may be used for removal of water and ice on the design element, which otherwise could reduce the radar performance.

(21) The radar arrangement 3 is further provided with fixations 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d for fixing the radar arrangement 3 to the rest of the vehicle 1, e.g., to a grill of the vehicle 1. The fixations 51a, 51b, 51c, 51d may be made of plastics. As an alternative or a complement, the radar arrangement 3 may be attached to the vehicle 1 by means of a fixation constituted by a tape or an adhesive any other fixation means known in the art.

(22) FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative location in the vehicle 1, namely in a rear brake light 53. In this embodiment, the brake light 53 forms the design element, which has a radar device 55, e.g., similar to the one of FIGS. 2-5, embedded in the rear brake light 53.

(23) Below a method of manufacturing a radar arrangement 3 as disclosed herein is described. See the flowchart of FIG. 7, in which optional steps are illustrated as dashed boxes. The method comprises:

(24) 110: Providing the design element 5.

(25) 120: Placing the radar device 7 in the cavity 25.

(26) In order to obtain a radar arrangement like the one illustrated in FIGS. 2-5, the method further comprises:

(27) 115/125: Filling the cavity 25 with a filling material 27.

(28) This is preferably performed partly before step 120 of placing the radar device in the cavity, see step 115 and partly after step 120, see step 125.

(29) Preferably, the cavity 25 is filled with enough filling material 27 to completely fill the cavity 25 with the radar device 7 and the filling material 27, such that a top surface 29 of filling material 27 is formed which preferably is flush with a surface 31 of the main body 23, see FIG. 5.

(30) In order to hold the radar device 7 in a desired position relative to the design element 5 in the cavity 27, the method comprises:

(31) 113: Providing at least one positioning unit 45a, 45b, 45c, 45d for holding the radar device 7 in a desired position relative to the design element 5 in the cavity 25.

(32) Hence, during manufacturing of the radar arrangement 3, the positioning units 45a, 45b, 45c, 45d are provided in the cavity 25. The cavity is then partly filled with the filling material 27. The radar device 7, illustrated as the printed circuit board 35 with its radar device units 37, 39, 41, 43, is placed on top of the already filled filling material 27. Thereafter more filling material 27 is applied to cover the radar device 7, preferably enough filling material 27 to completely fill the cavity 25.

(33) The method may further comprise:

(34) 117: Providing a heatable surface in the radar device.

(35) The heatable surface may be provided on the radar device 7, e.g., on the printed circuit board 35, before the radar device is placed in the cavity 25.

(36) Further modifications of the disclosure within the scope of the appended claims are feasible. As such, the present disclosure should not be considered as limited by the embodiments and figures described herein. Rather, the full scope of the disclosure should be determined by the appended claims, with reference to the description and drawings.