US-12625244-B2 - Target detection using a plurality of transceivers

US12625244B2US 12625244 B2US12625244 B2US 12625244B2US-12625244-B2

Abstract

Some aspects of the present disclosure relate to a detection system having a plurality of wide-band transceivers and a controller circuitry communicatively connected to each of the transceivers. Each transceiver comprises a transmitter and a receiver. The controller circuitry is configured to trigger a subset of the transmitters to transmit a first set of signals for receipt by a subset of the receivers, establish a baseline channel-impulse-response (CIR) profile for the system based on the receipt of the first set of signals, subsequently trigger the subset of the transmitters to transmit a second set of signals for receipt by the subset of the receivers, establish a first current CIR profile for the system based on the receipt of the second set of signals, and detect a non-transmitting target in proximity to the system based on the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR profile.

Inventors

Ajinder Pal Singh
Daniel Lee
Kameswara Medapalli
Cecilia Carbonelli

Assignees

INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20240507

Claims (20)

1 . A method for detecting a person inside a vehicle, wherein: the vehicle comprises: a plurality of wide-band transceivers each comprising a transmitter and a receiver; a controller circuitry communicatively connected to each of the transceivers; and the method comprises the control circuitry: triggering a subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a first set of signals for receipt by a subset of the receivers; establishing a baseline channel impulse response (CIR) profile for the vehicle based on the receipt of the first set of signals; subsequently triggering the subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a second set of signals for receipt by the subset of the receivers; establishing a first current CIR profile for the vehicle based on the receipt of the second set of signals; and detecting the person inside the vehicle based on the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR profile, wherein detecting the person comprises triggering a second subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers, to transmit a third set of signals for receipt by a second subset of the receivers of the plurality of transceivers, to focus on a determined location.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: detecting the person comprises: determining a presence of a candidate person based on comparing the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR; determining the location of the candidate person; extracting vital-signs information based on the receipt of the third set of signals; and determining that the candidate person is the person based on the extracted vital-signs information; and the third set of signals is shaped to focus on the determined location.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: detecting the person comprises: determining a presence of a candidate person based on comparing the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR; determining the location of the candidate person; extracting vital-signs information based on the receipt of the third set of signals; and determining that the candidate person is the person based on the extracted vital-signs information; and triggering the second set of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers comprises modifying operating parameters of the second subset of the receivers to focus on the determined location.
4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the modifying operating parameters comprises at least one of: focusing on a corresponding time window of interest in the received second set of signals; and adjusting a combination of received signals across the plurality of transceivers.
5 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the triggering of the second subset of the transmitters comprises using a pulse shape for the third set of signals that is different from a pulse shape for the second set of signals.
6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the plurality of transceivers comprises at least three transceivers each anchored in a respective location in the vehicle to form a multi-static array; the first and second sets of signals are impulse-radio ultra-wide-band (IR-UWB) signals; the method further comprises the controller circuitry and the plurality of transceivers: determining a location and an identification of a transmitting vehicle-key device; and allowing and denying access to vehicle functions based on the determined location and identification of the transmitting vehicle-key device.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the triggering is initiated in response to one of a car unlock, car start, seat adjustment, car turnoff, and car lock event; and the subsequent triggering is initiated in response to one of a car turnoff, car lock, and car park event.
8 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising the controller circuitry: triggering a different subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a fourth set of signals for receipt by a different subset of the receivers of the plurality of transceivers; establishing a different baseline CIR profile for the vehicle based on the receipt of the third set of signals; subsequently triggering the different subset of the transmitters to transmit a fifth set of signals for receipt by the different subset of the receivers; and establishing a different current CIR profile for the vehicle based on the receipt of the fifth set of signals, wherein detecting the person inside the vehicle is further based on the different baseline CIR profile and the different current CIR profile.
9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the vehicle further comprises a set of cabin sensor systems comprising at least one of a camera system and a microphone system, the cabin sensor systems configured to be in one of an operating mode and a non-operating mode; and the controller circuitry performs the method while the cabin sensor systems are in the non-operating mode.
10 . A detection system comprising: a plurality of wide-band transceivers, wherein each transceiver comprises a transmitter and a receiver; and a controller circuitry communicatively connected to each of the transceivers, wherein the controller circuitry is configured to: trigger a subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a first set of signals for receipt by a subset of the receivers of the plurality of transceivers; establish a baseline channel impulse response (CIR) profile for the system based on the receipt of the first set of signals; subsequently trigger the subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a second set of signals for receipt by the subset of the receivers of the plurality of transceivers; establish a first current CIR profile for the system based on the receipt of the second set of signals; detect a non-transmitting target in proximity to the system based on the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR profile; and trigger a second subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a third set of signals for receipt by a second subset of the receivers, to focus on a determined location.
11 . The detection system of claim 10 , wherein: the controller circuitry is further configured to: determine a presence of a candidate target based on comparing the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR; determine the location of the candidate target; perform an analysis of the received third set of signals; and validate the candidate target as a valid target based on the analysis; and the third set of signals is shaped to focus on the determined location.
12 . The detection system of claim 11 , wherein: the target is a person; and the analysis comprises extracting vital-signs information.
13 . The detection system of claim 10 , wherein the controller circuitry is further configured to: determine a presence of a candidate target based on comparing the baseline CIR profile and the first current CIR; determine the location of the candidate target; modify operating parameters of the second subset of the receivers to focus on the determined location; perform an analysis of the received third set of signals; and validate the candidate target as a valid target based on the analysis.
14 . The detection system of claim 13 , wherein: the target is a person; and the analysis comprises extracting vital-signs information.
15 . The detection system of claim 13 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to modify operating parameters of the second subset of the receivers to focus on the determined location by focusing on a corresponding time window of interest in the received second set of signals.
16 . The detection system of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of transceivers comprises at least three transceivers each located in a respective different location to form a multi-static array.
17 . The detection system of claim 16 , wherein the controller circuitry is co-located with a first transceiver of the plurality of transceivers.
18 . The detection system of claim 16 , wherein the controller circuitry is in a controller device located in a corresponding location different from the locations of the plurality of transceivers.
19 . The detection system of claim 10 , wherein the first and second sets of signals are impulse-radio ultra-wide-band (IR-UWB) signals.
20 . The detection system of claim 10 , wherein the controller circuitry is further configured to: trigger a different subset of the transmitters of the plurality of transceivers to transmit a fourth set of signals for receipt by a different subset of the receivers of the plurality of transceivers; establish a different baseline CIR profile for the system based on the receipt of the fourth set of signals; subsequently trigger the different subset of the transmitters to transmit a fifth set of signals for receipt by the different subset of the receivers; and establish a different current CIR profile for the system based on the receipt of the fifth set of signals, wherein detecting the target is further based on the different baseline CIR profile and the different current CIR profile.

Description

BACKGROUND Progressing automotive technology has seen the introduction into automobiles of various computing and sensing systems designed to address particular corresponding perceived needs. For example, microphones are used to assist in driver communication by allowing for hands-free telephone calls and provision of vocalized instructions to an automobile's information and entertainment systems. Tire-pressure monitoring systems, for example, measure and transmit tire pressure information and provide an alert if any tires are under-inflated. As further examples, outward-facing cameras, ultrasonic, radar, and other sensor systems are used to assist drivers in tasks such as parking, lane maintenance, and general driving, while global positioning system (GPS) sensors are used to provide navigation information. As an additional example, ultra-wideband (UWB) systems are used in authenticating UWB-transmitting key fobs to allow automatic locking and unlocking and engine start and stop. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Some examples of circuits, apparatuses and/or methods will be described in the following by way of example only. In this context, reference will be made to the accompanying Figures. FIG. 1 illustrates an example automotive UWB system. FIG. 2 illustrates the example automotive UWB system of FIG. 1 in an alternative configuration. FIG. 3 shows a simplified illustration of an example round of several cycles of frame transmission and receipt for establishing a channel impulse response (CIR) profile by the UWB system of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 shows an illustration of an example CIR profile for the UWB system of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 shows a flowchart for an example procedure for the UWB system 200 of FIG. 2. FIG. 6 shows a flowchart for an example procedure in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout, and wherein the illustrated structures and devices are not necessarily drawn to scale. Impulse-Radio Ultra-Wide-Band (IR-UWB) refers to a low-power wireless near-field communication technology that uses numerous very short and narrow radio-frequency electromagnetic pulses transmitted over a wide frequency band. Typically, the transmitted pulses are shorter than 2 ns, the transmit power is limited to −41.3 dBm/MHz, and the corresponding bandwidth is in the neighborhood of 500 MHz or more. In addition to being useful for communication and sensing, the shortness and narrowness of the transmitted pulses also allow for an accurate calculation of distances between transceivers by, for example, using two-way ranging. Two way ranging involves calculating a time-of-flight (ToF) for transmitted messages based on tracking message receipt, transmission, and processing times for the two transceivers. One of the two transceivers may be designated as an anchor and the other may be designated as a tag. Generally, the more-fixed transceiver would be designated as the anchor. However, the designations may be dynamic such that, for example, where both transceivers are implemented in mobile devices, the anchor and tag designations may alternate between the two transceivers during the two-way ranging procedure. The distance between a tag and an anchor may be determined by multiplying the calculated time of flight (typically lasting no more than a few nanoseconds) by the speed of light (˜3×108 m/s). Some automotive UWB systems utilize multiple UWB anchor transceivers (a.k.a. anchors) located in respective fixed locations in an automobile to calculate respective distances to a UWB tag such as a key fob. The UWB system can use the calculated distance information to determine the location of the key fob, using, e.g., trilateration, which refers to localization based on calculating an intersection of circles centered on respective anchors. The UWB system may then provide corresponding automotive functionality based on the determined location of the tag—e.g., locking and/or unlocking the driver door or trunk or enabling and/or disabling a motor start. Typically, prior to the provision of automotive functionality, the key fob is first securely verified using an authentication protocol. The authentication protocol may use one or more UWB anchors or may instead, or in addition, use other wireless communication technologies such as, for example, Bluetooth (a registered trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc.). FIG. 1 illustrates an example automotive UWB system 100 that includes a UWB tag transceiver 103 and an automobile 110 that includes a plurality of UWB anchor transceivers 101, namely anchors 101(1)-101(5), which are communicatively connected to a controller 102. The controller 102 may, for example, be circuitry implemented in an engine control unit (ECU) integrated circuit and may include a digital signal processor (DSP) as well as an artificial-intelligen