Ultrasonic Phased Array Scanner for Service Robot Applications

Ultrasonic Sensors are known as robust and cheap distance sensors suitable for various applications. This paper describes the approach of an ultrasonic phased array scanner for long range measurements in air. This scanner can be considered as an ultrasonic RADAR overcoming the large beam width of standard ultrasonic transducers. The functional principle and the characteristics of the sensor are described and the application of the sensor to a variety of service robot applications is presented.