A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring

A new modulation scheme for frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radars with millimeter-level target motion detection capability is presented. The proposed radar scheme is free from the synchronization constraint and exhibits low sensitivity to internal parasitic mutual coupling, thus signific...

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Main Authors: Orlandino Testa, Renato Cicchetti, Stefano Pisa, Erika Pittella, Emanuele Piuzzi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-04-01
Series:Sensors
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/9/2765
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author Orlandino Testa
Renato Cicchetti
Stefano Pisa
Erika Pittella
Emanuele Piuzzi
author_facet Orlandino Testa
Renato Cicchetti
Stefano Pisa
Erika Pittella
Emanuele Piuzzi
author_sort Orlandino Testa
collection DOAJ
description A new modulation scheme for frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radars with millimeter-level target motion detection capability is presented. The proposed radar scheme is free from the synchronization constraint and exhibits low sensitivity to internal parasitic mutual coupling, thus significantly reducing its design complexity without worsening its performance in terms of accuracy and operating ranges. Alternatively to canonical FMCW radars, which exploit chirp signals with triangular or sawtooth-like frequency variation, a radar based on a sinusoidal frequency modulation, which does not require specific synchronization procedures to achieve accurate motion detection even at a short distance from the radar, was developed. Both numerical and experimental results, performed with a 24 GHz radar, have shown the suitability of the proposed modulation scheme for monitoring very small target movements, consistent with those typically exhibited by the human thorax during basic vital activities (heartbeat and respiration). This makes the proposed radar scheme a suitable solution for contactless heart and breath rate monitoring.
format Article
id doaj-art-cbd05d5711034a0f970b6591101fc325
institution DOAJ
issn 1424-8220
language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Sensors
spelling doaj-art-cbd05d5711034a0f970b6591101fc3252025-08-20T02:58:44ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-04-01259276510.3390/s25092765A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory MonitoringOrlandino Testa0Renato Cicchetti1Stefano Pisa2Erika Pittella3Emanuele Piuzzi4Department of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Information Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunications, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, ItalyA new modulation scheme for frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radars with millimeter-level target motion detection capability is presented. The proposed radar scheme is free from the synchronization constraint and exhibits low sensitivity to internal parasitic mutual coupling, thus significantly reducing its design complexity without worsening its performance in terms of accuracy and operating ranges. Alternatively to canonical FMCW radars, which exploit chirp signals with triangular or sawtooth-like frequency variation, a radar based on a sinusoidal frequency modulation, which does not require specific synchronization procedures to achieve accurate motion detection even at a short distance from the radar, was developed. Both numerical and experimental results, performed with a 24 GHz radar, have shown the suitability of the proposed modulation scheme for monitoring very small target movements, consistent with those typically exhibited by the human thorax during basic vital activities (heartbeat and respiration). This makes the proposed radar scheme a suitable solution for contactless heart and breath rate monitoring.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/9/2765FMCW radarsvital sign monitoringremote monitoring
spellingShingle Orlandino Testa
Renato Cicchetti
Stefano Pisa
Erika Pittella
Emanuele Piuzzi
A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring
Sensors
FMCW radars
vital sign monitoring
remote monitoring
title A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring
title_full A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring
title_fullStr A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring
title_full_unstemmed A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring
title_short A Novel FMCW Radar Scheme with Millimeter Motion Detection Capabilities Suitable for Cardio-Respiratory Monitoring
title_sort novel fmcw radar scheme with millimeter motion detection capabilities suitable for cardio respiratory monitoring
topic FMCW radars
vital sign monitoring
remote monitoring
url https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/9/2765
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