A novel OFDM-MIMO radar with non-equidistant dynamic subcarrier interleaving

Abstract

A novel orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) multiple input multiple output (MIMO) radar concept for automotive applications is presented in this paper. Multiple transmit antennas are multiplexed via OFDM subcarrier interleaving. Such a multiplexing enables a simultaneous operation of transmit antennas utilizing the complete bandwidth. Whereas the known OFDM-MIMO radar concepts use an equidistant subcarrier interleaving, we propose a non-equidistant, dynamic subcarrier interleaving for multiplexing of transmit antennas. Its advantage over the equidistant interleaving is the full unambiguously measurable range in both distance and velocity, not reduced through the use of multiple transmit antennas simultaneously. We propose an optimization of the interleaving pattern and demonstrate the performance of the proposed multiplexing concept in terms of simulations. Measurements with an OFDM-MIMO radar prototype validate the proposed concept.