Electronic Scanning MIMO Radar Development for Railway Level Crossing Obstruction Detection and Alerting

Level Crossing (LC) safety a key issue across EU & global rail networks. The global need to
improve LC safety has led to the development of a number of Level Crossing Obstacle
Detection (LCOD) systems, but none are reported to fully meet rail operator cost or
performance requirements. The current leading LCOD radar system needs a clear background
for measurements when no objects are present & is not able to measure objects close to the
ground. It has a narrow elevation beam & needs to be mounted sufficiently high so that the
ground & ground level clutter is not covered by the beam. To detect children or low level
objects, additional systems, usually lasers are required. This need for a combination of sensors
means overall systems are complicated, costs are high & installation rates are limited.
The project objective is to prove the concept of a low cost, all-weather, high performance, and
high reliability radar system for LCOD that meets rail operator requirements. Guidance
Automation Ltd (GAL) will use an electronic scanning FMCW radar operating at 24 GHz
with a small Multiple In Multiple Out (MIMO) patch antenna array, mounted at ground level.
For a viable solution the software & algorithms enabling ground clutter cancellation &
accurate object of interest identification need to be robustly proven. GAL with its subcontractors
University College London (UCL) & Cambridge Pixel has world leading technical
capability in sensor development, radar imaging & data processing. The project will; Collect
representative radar data; Develop & test algorithms to provide robust object detection for
both moving & stationary objects whilst also not resulting in false positives; Sensor analysis
to determine the optimum resolution to minimise cost, improve processing speed & detection
accuracy & Design & construct test unit for system trials.
The project is initially focused on the rail sector but also provides opportunities in mining,
airports, & tramways.