JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE AND

TECHNOLOGY

BSc. TELECOMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION ENGINEERING

ETI 2504: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION 1

LABORATORY PRACTICAL REPORT

DOPPLER RADAR

MAY – AUGUST 2024

GROUP 5

NAME REGISTRATION NUMBER SIGNATURE

SHARON MAKENA MBAE EN273-5490/2015

KEVIN ONYIEGO EN273-0510/2014

ELIZABETH JAEL AKOTH ENE221-0126/2018
BRAMWEL WANGOMA ENE221-0113/2017
KEMBOI S. KIMARU ENE221-0297/2016
OBJECTIVES

• To understand the operation of Doppler Radar.

• To describe the construction and operation of a Hybrid Tee waveguide junction.
• To understand the use of a mixer.

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED

Quantity Identity Letter Description

1 - Control Console
1 A Variable Attenuator
1 H Hybrid Tee
1 M Diode Detector
2 N Horn Antenna
1 P X-Band Oscillator
1 R Short-circuit Terminator

THEORY
If a wave is transmitted toward an object which reflects some of the wave back to the source;
at a particular point on the path, the outward and reflected waves may be in phase with one
another, in antiphase, or anywhere between. If the distance x between source and reflecting
object increases by δx, then the total path length, out and back, changes by 2δx, so the relative
2δx
phase of the two signals will alter by radians, where λ is the wavelength in the space
2πλ
surrounding the reflecting object. If the object is moving, the result will be a change in
frequency of the reflected wave, since, if e cos (ωt) is the transmitted wave's electric field then,
because of the distance 2x travelled, the reflected field will be:
𝑥
ke cos (ωt - )
𝜋𝜆𝑐

where k is a constant and c is the wave velocity.

If v is the velocity of the object away from the source, and x has the value x0 when t = 0,

then: x = vt + x0

so that the reflective wave becomes:

𝑥vt + x0
ke cos (ωt - )
𝜋𝜆𝑐

which = ke cos (ω1t - Φ)

𝑣
where the angular frequency ω1 = ω – ( )
𝜋𝜆𝑐
 and Φ is a fixed phase value

The received frequency, ω1, is thus displaced from that transmitted, ω, by an amount
proportional to the velocity v. This is known as the 'Doppler principle', and is similar in nature
to the change in pitch of a sound, as heard by a stationary listener, which comes from an object
moving past the listener at speed.

The change of frequency is detected by applying both the received and (suitably attenuated)
the transmitted signals simultaneously to a 'mixer'. This is a non-linear device, such as the
crystal detector.

If two signals (e cos ωt) and (e1 cos ω1t) are applied to a detector having the characteristic

i = Ke2, the output becomes:

The terms represent:

Usually, all the terms except the last are ignored. One of the input frequencies to the mixer is
always a signal of some kind; the other is usually generated in the equipment housing the
mixer, and is therefore called the 'local oscillator' signal.

In a Doppler radar the local oscillator is the same oscillator which supplies the transmitted
signal. Only a very small fraction of its output is used by the mixer, so that the mixer works
correctly in its small-signal, square-law range. In this case ω and ω1, are the transmitted and
𝑣
reflected frequencies discussed earlier, and the last term has a frequency ( ). It is therefore
𝜋𝜆𝑐
a measure of v, the velocity of the reflecting object. In order to separate the transmitted and
received signals sufficiently, this assignment will use a “hybrid tee”, as illustrated in the figure
1 below.
 figure 1

This is a combination of the series and shunt-type tees. It operates in a similar manner to a
hybrid transformer at low frequency. That is, it has two principal ports which are not directly
coupled to each other, though each is coupled to two symmetrical load ports. These can
produce reflections, which can pass to both principal ports. If the loads are symmetrical, the
reflections from them cancel one another at the other principal ports, so that the latter are
still not coupled together. If there is unbalance in the loads however, the reflections will not
cancel and there will be some coupling between the principal ports.

In the hybrid tee a straight waveguide run has both a series-tee arm and a shunt-tee arm.
These latter arms are the principal ports. They are not mutually coupled because in effect one
is twisted through 90° relative to the other. Any field generated by one in the other must, from
symmetry have equal strength in one direction and the other, so that the resultant field must
be zero. Each is however coupled to the other arms in either series-tee or shunt-tee fashion

EXPERIMENT PROCEDURE

The setup involved connecting the equipment as shown below:

.
Then, METER READS switch was set on the Control Console to 'detector output' and the
oscillator's power supply was activated. The left-hand switch of the oscillator was adjusted for
internal keying. The Detector amplifier was then fine-tuned to maximize sensitivity.

To initiate the experiment, one Horn Antenna was positioned to face the space in front of the
bench. Adjustments were made to achieve a mid-scale reading on the meter by placing an
Antenna towards the Control Console and approximately 300mm away.

Subsequently, the experiment involved using the body (excluding the face) as a reflective
object visible to the outward-facing Antenna. Observations were made while slowly moving
closer to and farther away from the Antenna to gauge the resulting effects.

OBSERVATIONS

1. Minimal signal was detected in the balanced system.

2. The meter reading increased as the reflective object moved closer to the antenna
and decreased as it moved away.
3. Mid-scale readings were achieved after adjusting the antenna and surrounding
objects.
4. Body movements resulted in clear changes in the signal, confirming the Doppler
effect.

DISCUSSION

The minimal signal in the balanced system indicated correct detector functioning. The
changes in meter readings as objects moved demonstrated the Doppler effect, with the
system effectively capturing the velocity and movement of objects based on frequency
shifts.

EXPERIMENT QUESTIONS

1. Considering the meter current as having a D.C and an A.C component, what
characteristic of the A.C component is related to your speed of motion?

The characteristic of the A.C component related to speed of motion is the frequency.

In a Doppler radar system, the A.C component of the meter current is directly
influenced by the Doppler shift, which is proportional to the relative speed of the
moving object. As you move towards or away from the radar, the frequency of the
reflected wave changes, which in turn affects the A.C component of the meter current.
The faster the motion, the greater the frequency shift in the A.C component, indicating
a higher speed of motion.
 2. Can you imagine how a Doppler system might measure position?

A Doppler system primarily measures velocity rather than position because it detects
changes in frequency due to motion. However, with some modifications and additional
information, a Doppler system can be used to estimate position indirectly.

One possible method for a Doppler system to measure position could involve
integrating the velocity data over time. Since velocity is the rate of change of
position, if the Doppler system continuously monitors the velocity of an object, the
position can be estimated by calculating the cumulative displacement from a known
starting point.

The system would need to keep track of the initial position and then update the position
estimate as the object moves, based on the velocity data provided by the Doppler shift.
However, this method assumes that the velocity is accurately measured and that there
are no significant errors in timing or motion direction, which can complicate precise
position measurements.

For accurate position tracking, Doppler radar might be combined with other sensors or
systems, such as GPS, which provide direct position measurements. This hybrid
approach can offer both velocity and position data, compensating for the limitations of
using Doppler alone for position measurement.

CONCLUSION

The Doppler Radar experiment successfully demonstrated the principles of microwave

signal transmission and the detection of motion through frequency shifts. By observing
the changes in the meter readings as reflective objects moved toward or away from the
radar, the experiment clearly illustrated the Doppler effect and its application in
measuring the velocity of moving objects. The use of ultrasonic sensors and the
integration of a hybrid tee waveguide junction highlighted the practical aspects of radar
technology, particularly in real-time motion detection.

The experiment also explored the potential for Doppler systems to indirectly estimate
position through velocity data, though it was noted that such measurements would
require additional integration and might be prone to errors. Overall, the hands-on
experience provided a solid understanding of the operational characteristics of Doppler
radar systems and their relevance in both everyday and specialized applications, such
as speed detection and autonomous vehicle navigation.

This lab exercise underscored the importance of careful calibration and the challenges
associated with environmental noise and interference, which can affect the accuracy of
radar measurements. The findings support the potential for Doppler radar technology
to be further developed for more precise and reliable applications, especially when
integrated with other systems.