Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/31/2023 has been considered by the examiner and an initialed copy of the IDS is hereby attached.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. 22207713.1 filed on November 16, 2022.
Claim Objections
Claims 2 and 16 are objected to because of the following informalities: recite “that” and should read “than” Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 3-15 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Stettiner et al (US 20210156982 A1), hereinafter Stettiner.
Regarding claim 1, Stettiner discloses:
a radar sensor comprising (Stettiner, para [0005], For shorter range detection, as in automotive radar, FMCW radar is commonly used. Several benefits of FMCW radar in automotive applications include: (1) FMCW modulation is relatively easy to generate, provides large bandwidth, high average power, good short range performance, high accuracy, low cost due to low bandwidth processing and permits very good range resolution and allows the Doppler shift to be used to determine velocity, (2) FMCW radar can operate at short ranges, (3) FMCW sensors can be made small having a single RF transmission source with an oscillator that is also used to downconvert the received signal, (4) since the transmission is continuous, the modest output power of solid state components is sufficient),
a chirp generator that is configured to provide radar signalling for transmission, wherein the radar signalling comprises a sequence of radar chirps (Stettiner, para [0041], In one embodiment, the present invention is a radar sensor incorporating the ability to detect, mitigate and avoid mutual interference from other nearby automotive radars. The normally constant start frequency sequence for linear large bandwidth FMCW chirps is replaced by a sequence of lower bandwidth, short duration chirps with start frequencies spanning the wider bandwidth and ordered nonlinearly (e.g., randomly) in time (as opposed to an ever increasing sequence of start frequencies) to create a pseudo random chirp hopping sequence. The reflected wave signal received is then reassembled using the known nonlinear hop sequence),
and wherein each radar chirp has a chirp slope that defines the rate of change of frequency in the radar chirp (Stettiner, para [0043], To mitigate interference, a dedicated receiver is provided with wideband listening capability. The signal received is used to estimate collisions with other radar signals. If interference is detected, a constraint is applied to the nonlinearization (e.g., randomization) of the chirps. The hopping sequence and possibly also the slope of individual chirps are altered so that chirps would not interfere with the interfering radar's chirps. Offending chirps are either re-randomized, dropped altogether or the starting frequency of another non-offending chirp is reused);
a mixer that is configured to multiply the transmitted radar signalling with a received version of the transmitted radar signalling that has been reflected from any detected objects in order to provide analogue intermediate frequency, IF, signalling (Stettiner, para [0170], Each receive block comprises an antenna 48, low noise amplifier (LNA) 50, mixer 52, intermediate frequency (IF) block 54, and analog to digital converter (ADC) 56. In one embodiment, the radar sensor 40 comprises a separate detection wideband receiver 46 dedicated to listening. The sensor uses this receiver to detect the presence of in-band interfering signals transmitted by nearby radar sensors. The processing block uses knowledge of the detected interfering signals to formulate a response (if any) to mitigate and avoid any mutual interference);
an analogue to digital converter, ADC, that is configured to sample the analogue intermediate frequency, IF, signalling in order to generate digital signalling (Stettiner, para [0170]),
wherein the digital signalling comprises a plurality of digital-values (Stettiner, para [0149], In operation, the chirp counter receives the start frequency and slope 579 of the required chirp from the chirp sequencer. The output 573 is a digital sequence of frequency values (increasing with time) updated at each clock cycle. The SDM functions to translate the digital value of the chirp counter into an analog reference signal 581 that is input to the PFD 570. The frequency divider (fractional integer) 576 functions to divide the IF output signal 575 to generate a frequency divided signal 577 that is input to the PFD. The PFD produces pulses voltages representing the frequency difference between its two inputs. The correction pulses from the HD are filtered via low pass filter (LPF) 572 to generate a tuning voltage 586. The LPF (i.e. loop filter) smooths the tuning voltage response such that the VCO synthesizes smooth linear frequency modulation (LFM). The VCO is operative to receive the tuning voltage which controls the frequency of the output signal 575. Note that the chirp generator circuit shares a common clock reference signal for synchronized operation);
a digital processor that is configured to populate a 2-dimensional array of bin-values based on the digital-values, such that (Stettiner, para [0179], In one embodiment, in the receiver processing, the digital input data samples 132 representing the beat frequency after the mixer fill a 2D data grid. A diagram illustrating example fast time and slow time processing is shown in FIG. 21. The columns 134 of the 2D data grid 130 represent the data samples received in the fast time dimension (i.e. over each PRI) and the rows 136 of the grid represent the data samples received in a slow time dimension (i.e. over each CPI)):
a first axis of the 2-dimensional array is a fast time axis and a second axis of the 2-dimensional array is a slow time axis (Stettiner, para [0179]);
a chirp slope frequency adjuster that is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps based on an index in the sequence of radar chirps (Stettiner, para [0149] and [0169], A high-level block diagram illustrating an example MIMO FMCW radar in accordance with the present invention is shown in FIG. 19. The radar transceiver sensor, generally referenced 40, comprises a plurality of transmit circuits 66, a plurality of receive circuits 46, 58, local oscillator (LO) 74, ramp or chirp generator 60 including local oscillator (LO) 61, nonlinear frequency hopping sequencer 62, optional TX element sequencer 75 (dashed), and signal processing block 44. In operation, the radar transceiver sensor typically communicates with and may be controlled by a host 42. Each transmit block comprises power amplifier 70 and antenna 72. The transmitters receive the transmit signal output of the chirp generator 60 which is fed to the PA in each transmit block. The optional TX element sequencer (dashed) generates a plurality of enable signals 64 that control the transmit element sequence. It is appreciated that the MBC techniques of the present invention can operate in a radar with or without TX element sequencing and with or without MIMO operation);
and wherein the digital processor is further configured to perform discrete Fourier transform, DFT (Stettiner, para [0216], In a first stage, the fast-time Fourier processing of the received signal is given by the following and is shown in FIG. 25:
[00021]
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where W.sub.ρ [.] is the one dimensional discrete time Fourier transform (DTFT) of a window in the fast-time dimension (e.g., sinc), and the coarse range axis ρ has bin width δρ=c/(2B.sub.chirp)),
calculations on the bin-values in the 2-dimensional array along the fast time axis and the slow time axis in order to determine the range and velocity of any detected objects (Stettiner, para [0213], The modified range-Doppler processing paradigm of the present invention will now be described in more detail. In one embodiment, the modified range-Doppler (i.e. fine range and Doppler) processing consists of: (1) fast-time Fourier processing with index t whereby a coarse range dimension is generated, and (2) a modified or extended slow-time Fourier processing whereby both a residual range dimension and a velocity dimension are generated simultaneously).
Regarding claim 3, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the sequence of radar chirps comprises at least 128 chirps,
at least 256 chirps,
at least 512 chirps (Stettiner, para 0240], Consider the following illustrative example. In this example assume that K=512 LFM pulses (i.e. chirps) were transmitted where the bandwidth of each chirp B.sub.chirp=125 MHz during a PRI of T=7 μs. The aggregated bandwidth is B.sub.total=1 GHz. The resulting coarse range resolution is calculated as δρ=1.2 m, and the velocity resolution δV=0.53 m/s. A single target was positioned at an initial range R.sub.0=11 m with velocity V.sub.0=10 m/s),
or at least 1024 chirps.
Regarding claim 4, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps based on the corresponding index of the slow time axis (Stettiner, para [0207], The processing paradigm of conventional radar systems is composed of range-Doppler processing: (1) fast time (i.e. range) FFT processing over index t, and (2) slow time (i.e. velocity/Doppler) FFT processing over index k. The RCM effect exists as the term kV.sub.0T becomes more dominant and closer (in magnitude) to the range resolution (after K pulses). In this case, the target peak power range bin may shift during the CPI frame. As a result, the slow-time Fourier processing will result in a “smeared” signal power spectrum over several bins resulting in attenuated coherent processing gain, as shown in FIG. 24.),
by applying a linear function to the index of the slow time axis to set the chirp slope (Stettiner, para [0207]).
Regarding claim 5, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of any of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps based on the corresponding index of the slow time axis, by applying one or more of (Stettiner, para [0207]):
a non-linear function to the index of the slow time axis to set the chirp slope (Stettiner, para [0045], The present invention also provides an example technique for generating the nonlinear start frequency hopping sequence of chirps as well as a novel technique for slow time processing of the multiband chirps in the receiver resulting in significantly improved fine range resolution and reduced sidelobes. Reducing the RF bandwidth of the chirps results in broader range peaks which helps mask range cell migration (RCM). In addition, transmitting the chirps in a nonlinear sequence changes the detected phase for each chirp for the same target, even if stationary at the same range. These phase changes due to the different start frequency of each chirp provides additional resolution. In this manner, the phase evolution of the individual broad peaks of the chirps calculated in fast time is combined in slow time across the CPI to produce a single sharp peak with fine resolution. A modified Fourier transform is used to calculate the improved fine resolution);
a parabolic function to the corresponding index of the slow time axis to set the chirp slope;
an oscillating function to the corresponding index of the slow time axis to set the chirp slope (Stettiner, para [0169], A high-level block diagram illustrating an example MIMO FMCW radar in accordance with the present invention is shown in FIG. 19. The radar transceiver sensor, generally referenced 40, comprises a plurality of transmit circuits 66, a plurality of receive circuits 46, 58, local oscillator (LO) 74, ramp or chirp generator 60 including local oscillator (LO) 61, nonlinear frequency hopping sequencer 62, optional TX element sequencer 75 (dashed), and signal processing block 44. In operation, the radar transceiver sensor typically communicates with and may be controlled by a host 42. Each transmit block comprises power amplifier 70 and antenna 72. The transmitters receive the transmit signal output of the chirp generator 60 which is fed to the PA in each transmit block. The optional TX element sequencer (dashed) generates a plurality of enable signals 64 that control the transmit element sequence. It is appreciated that the MBC techniques of the present invention can operate in a radar with or without TX element sequencing and with or without MIMO operation);
and a stochastic ( =RANDOM) function to the index of the corresponding slow time axis to set the chirp slope.
Regarding claim 6, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1, wherein (Stettiner, para [0005]):
the radar sensor is configured to receive a control signal (Stettiner, para [0041]);
and the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps by applying one of a plurality of predetermined functions to the corresponding index of the slow time axis based on the control signal (Stettiner, para [0207]).
Regarding claim 7, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 6 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the control signal represents an operational characteristic of an automobile to which the radar sensor is fitted (Stettiner, para [0005]).
Regarding claim 8, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 7 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the control signal is a sensed signal that represents a sensed operational characteristic of the automobile (Stettiner, para [0122], Determination of both parameters within a single measurement cycle is possible with FM chirp sequences. Since a single chirp is very short compared with the total measurement cycle, each beat frequency is determined primarily by the delay component f.sub.T. In this manner, the range can be ascertained directly after each chirp. Determining the phase shift between several successive chirps within a sequence permits the Doppler frequency to be determined using a Fourier transform, making it possible to calculate the speed of vehicles. Note that the speed resolution improves as the length of the measurement cycle is increased) Examiner notes speed as an operational characteristic.
Regarding claim 9, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 7 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the operational characteristic is (Stettiner, para [0122]):
the speed of the automobile (Stettiner, para [0122]);
and / or representative of an oscillation that is associated with a component of the automobile to which the radar sensor is fitted (Stettiner, para [0005]).
Regarding claim 10, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps based on (Stettiner, para [0149]):
(i)the index of the slow time axis (Stettiner, para [0207]);
and (ii) a targeted range / velocity ratio (Stettiner, para [0181], In the case of a MIMO radar system, multiple receive antenna elements add a third dimension to the 2D data grid. A diagram illustrating range-velocity data block for multiple receive antenna elements is shown in FIG. 22. In the 3D data grid 150, the depth dimension 154 is used to store range-Doppler data from each antenna element. For example, hatched area 152 represents range-Doppler data across all receive antenna elements).
Regarding claim 11, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1, wherein (Stettiner, para [0005]):
the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps such that the chirp slope for the maximum index of the slow time axis corresponds to a maximum range / maximum velocity of the radar sensor (Stettiner, paras [0207] and[0213])
Regarding claim 12, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1, wherein (Stettiner, para [0005]):
the mixer is configured to multiply the received version of the transmitted radar signalling by both (Stettiner, para [0144], The receiver 84 comprises antenna 100, RF front end 101, mixer 102, IF block 103, ADC 104, fast time range processing 106, slow time processing (Doppler and fine range) 108, and azimuth and elevation processing):
a 2-dimensional beat signal that represents a predetermined constant velocity (Stettiner, par [0181], In the case of a MIMO radar system, multiple receive antenna elements add a third dimension to the 2D data grid. A diagram illustrating range-velocity data block for multiple receive antenna elements is shown in FIG. 22. In the 3D data grid 150, the depth dimension 154 is used to store range-Doppler data from each antenna element. For example, hatched area 152 represents range-Doppler data across all receive antenna elements);
and the transmitted radar signalling, in order to provide the analogue intermediate frequency, IF, signalling (Stettiner, para [0169]).
Regarding claim 13, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps by setting the value of a digital control word that controls the chirp slope of the radar chirps (Stettiner,para [0149], In operation, the chirp counter receives the start frequency and slope 579 of the required chirp from the chirp sequencer. The output 573 is a digital sequence of frequency values (increasing with time) updated at each clock cycle. The SDM functions to translate the digital value of the chirp counter into an analog reference signal 581 that is input to the PFD 570. The frequency divider (fractional integer) 576 functions to divide the IF output signal 575 to generate a frequency divided signal 577 that is input to the PFD. The PFD produces pulses voltages representing the frequency difference between its two inputs. The correction pulses from the HD are filtered via low pass filter (LPF) 572 to generate a tuning voltage 586. The LPF (i.e. loop filter) smooths the tuning voltage response such that the VCO synthesizes smooth linear frequency modulation (LFM). The VCO is operative to receive the tuning voltage which controls the frequency of the output signal 575. Note that the chirp generator circuit shares a common clock reference signal for synchronized operation) Examiner notes that frequency divider (fractional integer) 576 as the digital control word.
Regarding claim 14, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the ADC and the digital processor have time bases that are in a fixed relationship with reference to each other (Stettiner, para [0144]).
Claim 15 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 1. 15. A computer-implemented method of determining the velocity of a detected object, the method comprising: providing radar signalling for transmission, wherein the radar signalling comprises a sequence of radar chirps, wherein each radar chirp has a chirp slope that defines the rate of change of frequency in the radar chirp, and wherein the chirp slope of the radar chirps is set based on an index in the sequence of radar chirps; multiplying the transmitted radar signalling with a received version of the transmitted radar signalling that has been reflected from any detected objects in order to provide analogue intermediate frequency, IF, signalling; sampling the analogue intermediate frequency, IF, signalling in order to generate digital signalling, wherein the digital signalling comprises a plurality of digital-values; populating a 2-dimensional array of bin-values based on the digital-values, such that: a first axis of the 2-dimensional array is a fast time axis and a second axis of the 2-dimensional array is a slow time axis; and performing DFT calculations on the bin-values in the 2-dimensional array along the fast time axis and the slow time axis in order to determine the range and velocity of any detected objects
Claim 17 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 3.
Claim 18 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 4.
Claim 19 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 13.
Claim 20 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 12.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 2 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Stettiner et al (US 20210156982 A1) in view of Yu et al (“Randon-Fourier Transform for Radar Target Detection (III): Optimality and Fast Implementations”, pp.991-1004, 2012), hereinafter Yu.
Regarding claim 2, Stettiner discloses:
the radar sensor of claim 1 (Stettiner, para [0005]),
wherein the chirp slope frequency adjuster is configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps based on the index in the sequence of radar chirps such that the difference between the chirp slope for consecutive chirps in the sequence is less than that of a bin in the fast time axis of the 2-dimensional array of bin-values, optionally less that 50%, 25%, 10% or 5% of a bin in the fast time axis of the 2-dimensional array of bin-values (Stettiner, para [0149], In operation, the chirp counter receives the start frequency and slope 579 of the required chirp from the chirp sequencer. The output 573 is a digital sequence of frequency values (increasing with time) updated at each clock cycle. The SDM functions to translate the digital value of the chirp counter into an analog reference signal 581 that is input to the PFD 570. The frequency divider (fractional integer) 576 functions to divide the IF output signal 575 to generate a frequency divided signal 577 that is input to the PFD. The PFD produces pulses voltages representing the frequency difference between its two inputs. The correction pulses from the HD are filtered via low pass filter (LPF) 572 to generate a tuning voltage 586. The LPF (i.e. loop filter) smooths the tuning voltage response such that the VCO synthesizes smooth linear frequency modulation (LFM). The VCO is operative to receive the tuning voltage which controls the frequency of the output signal 575. Note that the chirp generator circuit shares a common clock reference signal for synchronized operation) Examiner notes the voltage control oscillator (VCO) as the chirp frequency adjuster.
Yu discloses:
optionally less that 50%, 25%, 10% or 5% of a bin in the fast time axis of the 2-dimensional array of bin-values (Yu, pg. 1000, lines 1-11)
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Examiner notes 4.25% as less that 5% in the two-dimension array.
It would have been obvious to someone in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Stettiner with Yu to incorporate the features of: optionally less that 50%, 25%, 10% or 5% of a bin in the fast time axis of the 2-dimensional array of bin-values. Stettiner discloses a radar sensor that configured to set the chirp slope of the radar chirps based on the index in the sequence of radar chirps such that the difference between the chirp slope for consecutive chirps in the sequence is less than that of a bin in the fast time axis of the 2-dimensional array of bin-values; however, fails to discloses the option of optionally less that 50%, 25%, 10% or 5% of a bin in the fast time axis of the 2-dimensional array of bin-values as within Yu. The modification would render the predictable results of improved target discrimination and stronger range-Doppler coupling.
Claim 16 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 2.
References Cited But Not Relied Upon
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure as thus:
Wu et al US-20210173042-A1 discloses slow -time and fast-time FFT processing within a radar system
Li et alUS-11536801-B1 discloses vehicular radar sensor utilizing non-uniform FMCW chirps with slow-time and fast-time dimension
Wu et al US-20230393236-A1 discloses a radar communication with interference suppression with both slow-time and fast-time FFT processing
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KIMBERLY JENKINS whose telephone number is (571)272-0404. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8a-5p EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Vladimir Magloire can be reached at 517.270.5144. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KIMBERLY JENKINS/ Examiner, Art Unit 3648 /VLADIMIR MAGLOIRE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3648