A passive millimeter-wave imaging radar which is adaptable to traffic accidents prevention system has been recently developed. This radar uses the principle of detecting the difference between the radiation temperature reflected from the metal roof of a vehicle and that radiated from the surface of the road. It can inform a driver of a vehicle approaching a curve of obstacles ahead or of oncoming vehicles even in poor visibility caused by snow or mist. This newly developed passive millimeter-wave imaging radar is a prototype which can take 16 x 16 pixel millimeter-wave pictures. As a result of evaluation experiments, useful results were obtained with this radar, such as images of an automobile even in limited visibility caused by smoke. (A*)
Abstract