Patents by Inventor Stephen William Alland
Stephen William Alland has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Publication number: 20220308160Abstract: An automotive radar using combinations of the techniques of alternating transmit-receive bursts of digitally frequency modulated millimeter wave carriers; sparse MIMO antenna arrays with sidelobe-suppressive coarse and fine beamforming; frequency hopping; range-walking-compensated Doppler analysis and successive, and subtractive target detection in signal strength order.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 24, 2022Publication date: September 29, 2022Inventors: Paul W. Dent, Suleyman Gokhun Tanyer, Murtaza Ali, Frederick Rush, Monier Maher, Aria Eshraghi, Jean Pierre Bordes, Marius Goldenberg, Vasco Caldeira, Stephen William Alland, Curtis Davis
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Patent number: 6556166Abstract: A method of measuring elevational misalignment of an automotive radar sensor in a factory or service setting utilizes two or more targets that can be discriminated by the radar system. The targets are positioned at different elevational angles with respect to the desired elevation axis, and the degree of elevational misalignment is determined according to the ratio or difference in return signal amplitude for the two targets. Discrimination of the targets may be ensured by differences in range, azimuth angle or Doppler. Since the amplitude difference is a measure of misalignment, the measurement may be used to verify proper alignment or to indicate the amount of adjustment required to achieve proper alignment.Type: GrantFiled: February 19, 2002Date of Patent: April 29, 2003Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.Inventors: James Fredrick Searcy, David Leo Hart, Stephen William Alland
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Patent number: 6492938Abstract: An association method for a multi-slope FMCW radar identifies candidate combinations of frequency components as being correctly or incorrectly associated based on calculated range-rate. Range and range-rate are calculated for various pairs of frequency components emanating from like-polarity slopes of the transmitted waveform, and pairs having similar ranges and range-rates are combined to form candidate associations. The range and range rate of the candidate associations are then computed using all four frequency components, and ambiguous candidate associations are resolved by selecting the candidate associations having similar range rates.Type: GrantFiled: February 11, 2002Date of Patent: December 10, 2002Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.Inventor: Stephen William Alland
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Publication number: 20020163463Abstract: An apparatus and method for detecting radar system blockage includes a radar system (10) having an antenna unit (14) configured to transmit radar signals and receive reflected radar signals. In one embodiment, fixed frequency continuous wave radar signals are transmitted, and corresponding reflected signals are sampled and processed to determine a mainbeam clutter signal peak in frequency bins near those corresponding to vehicle speed. If this peak is less than a power threshold, the antenna unit (14) is at least partially blocked. In another embodiment, a number of most recent reflected tracking signal amplitudes are sampled, normalized to a predefined range value and filtered to produce a smoothed tracking amplitude. If the smoothed tracking amplitude drops below an amplitude threshold, the antenna unit (14) is at least partially blocked. The two embodiments may be combined to determine a radar antenna blockage status as a function of both techniques.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 3, 2001Publication date: November 7, 2002Inventors: Gregory George Lajiness, Stephen William Alland, James Fredrick Searcy
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Patent number: 6469659Abstract: An apparatus and method for detecting radar system blockage includes a radar system having an antenna unit configured to transmit radar signals and receive reflected radar signals. In one embodiment, fixed frequency continuous wave radar signals are transmitted, and corresponding reflected signals are sampled and processed to determine a mainbeam clutter signal peak in frequency bins near those corresponding to vehicle speed. If this peak is less than a power threshold, the antenna unit is at least partially blocked. In another embodiment, a number of most recent reflected tracking signal amplitudes are sampled, normalized to a predefined range value and filtered to produce a smoothed tracking amplitude. If the smoothed tracking amplitude drops below an amplitude threshold, the antenna unit is at least partially blocked. The two embodiments may be combined to determine a radar antenna blockage status as a function of both techniques.Type: GrantFiled: May 3, 2001Date of Patent: October 22, 2002Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Gregory George Lajiness, Stephen William Alland, James Fredrick Searcy
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Patent number: 6404328Abstract: An object sensing system is capable of distinguishing an overhead roadway object, that is not in a host vehicle path, from a substantially motionless roadway object that is in the vehicle path. Initially, a plurality of sensor scan signals are provided into an anticipated path of a host vehicle. Next, a plurality of object return signals that correspond to reflections of the plurality of sensor scan signals from at least one detected stationary object are received. Then, an average amplitude slope of the return signals as a function of the range to the at least one detected stationary object is determined. A sufficiently positive amplitude slope identifies the detected stationary object as an overhead roadway object that is not in the vehicle path. A sufficiently negative amplitude slope identifies the detected stationary object as a substantially motionless roadway object that is in the vehicle path.Type: GrantFiled: October 24, 2000Date of Patent: June 11, 2002Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Stephen William Alland, James Fredrick Searcy
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Patent number: 6202027Abstract: An improved system for accurately determining the travel path of a host vehicle and the azimuth angle of a target vehicle through an automatic calibration that detects and compensates for FLS mis-alignment and curve sensor drift. Selected FLS tracking data (range and azimuth angle) are transformed to cartesian coordinates and characterized by a second order curve fitting technique to determine both FLS misalignment and curve sensor bias. Successively determined FLS misalignment and curve sensor bias values are averaged and used to correct subsequently supplied azimuth angle and curve sensor data, thereby compensating an underlying control for both sensor misalignment and curve sensor bias.Type: GrantFiled: June 10, 1999Date of Patent: March 13, 2001Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Stephen William Alland, James Fredrick Searcy
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Patent number: 6002983Abstract: A method of operation for a motor vehicle object detection system is described, in which the extent angle of an identified target is accurately determined by applying a point source scatterer identification technique to data at the periphery of a composite return. Return amplitude data from one or more complete scans of the sensor beam are collected and compared with a target threshold to identify objects in the viewing angle, thereby forming an array of amplitude data associated with successive beam positions for each identified object. In each array, the left-most and right-most pair of amplitude data points associated with successive beam positions are selected and individually used to compute the angle of a point source scatterer which would be responsible for that data pair.Type: GrantFiled: August 27, 1997Date of Patent: December 14, 1999Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Stephen William Alland, James Fredrick Searcy, Kevin Ray Wherry
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Patent number: 5964822Abstract: This disclosure relates to a system for automatically measuring and compensating for any angle of misalignment of a forward-looking sensor of a vehicle. The sensor provides data representing the azimuth angle and the range of a target such as another vehicle. For each angle and range reading of the sensor, the location point of the target is estimated; after a series of such readings, the trajectory line of the target is estimated. The angle of misalignment is estimated from the angle between the trajectory line and the path of travel of the host vehicle. In subsequent readings of the sensor, the estimated angle of misalignment is subtracted from the measured azimuth angle to produce an accurate azimuth angle of the target. The accurate azimuth angle is provided for use by another unit such as a collision warning system and/or an intelligent cruise control.Type: GrantFiled: August 27, 1997Date of Patent: October 12, 1999Assignee: Delco Electronics Corp.Inventors: Stephen William Alland, James Fredrick Searcy