JP4624195B2 - High frequency transceiver and radar device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a mixer used in a millimeter wave integrated circuit, a millimeter wave radar module, or the like. Specifically, a bias supply circuit for a high frequency detection element which is a component of the mixer includes a semi-fixed resistor. The present invention relates to a mixer that can tune mixing characteristics and transmission characteristics in a mixer to a desired state by this semi-fixed resistor, and a high-frequency transceiver including the mixer.

  The present invention also relates to a radar apparatus including the above-described high-frequency transmitter / receiver, a radar apparatus-equipped vehicle equipped with the radar apparatus, and a radar apparatus-equipped small ship.

  As examples of conventional mixers, for example, those disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 4 are known. A mixer as disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a mixer using a non-radiative dielectric line (NonRadiative Dielectric Waveguide, hereinafter also referred to as an NRD guide), and serves as a high-frequency detection element at the end of the dielectric line. A Schottky barrier diode and a substrate for supplying a bias to the Schottky barrier diode are provided, and a cavity resonator is provided via a direction changer that changes the direction of the lines of magnetic force by 90 °. It is a configuration that inserted a movable part that changes the impedance, and by changing the resonance frequency of the cavity resonator by moving this movable part, the impedance viewed from the dielectric line side can be changed. is there.

  In addition, as a high-frequency transmitter / receiver that is used by incorporating such a mixer and is expected to be applied to a millimeter-wave radar module, a millimeter-wave wireless communication device, or the like, for example, there is one disclosed in Patent Document 5. The high-frequency transmitter / receiver disclosed in Patent Document 5 is known as a pulse modulation type high-frequency transmitter / receiver.

  A conventional high-frequency transmitter / receiver of such a pulse modulation method is connected to, for example, a high-frequency oscillator 61 that generates a high-frequency signal and an output end side of the high-frequency oscillator 61, as shown in a schematic block circuit diagram of FIG. A branching device 62 that branches the high-frequency signal and outputs it to one output unit 62b and the other output unit 62c, and one of the high-frequency signals connected to one output unit 62b of the branching device 62. A modulator 63 that modulates the signal and outputs it as a high-frequency signal for transmission, and first, second, and third terminals 64a, 64b, and 64c. The circulator 64 is connected to the terminal 64a, outputs a high-frequency signal input from the first terminal 64a to the second terminal 64b, and outputs a high-frequency signal input from the second terminal 64b to the third terminal 64c. And the transmission connected to the second terminal 64b of the circulator 64. The high frequency as the local signal LO output to the other output part 62c of the branching device 62 connected between the communication antenna 65 and the other output part 62c of the branching device 62 and the third terminal 64c of the circulator 64. The mixer 66 is configured to mix the signal and the high frequency signal RF received by the transmission / reception antenna 65 and output an intermediate frequency signal.

  In addition, it is known that such a high-frequency transceiver is preferably a non-radiative dielectric line as a high-frequency transmission line that connects high-frequency circuit elements and transmits a high-frequency signal.

  This non-radiative dielectric line has been conventionally used in many cases for transmitting a microwave or millimeter wave high-frequency signal, whereas a metal waveguide is often used. This is a high-frequency transmission line that is attracting attention because of the low transmission loss of high-frequency signals in the background of the development of high-frequency modules that use body lines as waveguides for high-frequency signals.

  As shown in a partially broken perspective view in FIG. 17, the basic configuration of this non-radiative dielectric line is such that the cross-sectional shape is rectangular between parallel plate conductors 51 and 52 arranged in parallel with a predetermined interval a. If the interval a is a ≦ λ / 2 with respect to the wavelength λ of the high-frequency signal, the intrusion of noise from the outside to the dielectric line 53 is eliminated. The high frequency signal can be efficiently propagated in the dielectric line 53 without radiating the high frequency signal to the outside. The wavelength λ of the high frequency signal is a wavelength in the air (free space) at the operating frequency.

An example of a conventional radar device equipped with such a high-frequency transceiver and a radar device-equipped vehicle equipped with the radar device is disclosed in Patent Document 6, for example.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-242766 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-203537 JP 2002-158540 A JP 2002-290113 A JP 2000-258525 A JP 2003-35768 A

  However, in a mixer as disclosed in Patent Document 1, an adjustment mechanism for adjusting mixing characteristics and transmission characteristics in the mixer (corresponding to an adjustment mechanism for a cavity resonator and a movable part in this example) is a high-frequency transmission line. By adjusting the structural dimensions, the electrical length of the adjusting mechanism through which the high-frequency signal is transmitted can be changed by adjusting the structural dimensions. Since the impedance is changed, the electrical length may change even if there is a slight play in the structure, and there is a problem that the controllability is not good. Also, if there is almost no such play, the adjustment mechanism itself becomes a large scale, which is not practical.

  Also, because the electrical length in the adjusting mechanism such as the cavity resonator and the movable part is shifted due to vibration, thermal expansion and contraction, etc., even if it is adjusted and set to the best state once, it is easily shifted from that state. There was a problem that stability was not good.

  In addition, in the conventional high-frequency transmitter / receiver equipped with such a mixer, the receiving sensitivity is not uniform because the tuning accuracy and stability of the mixer are not good, and it is difficult to stably obtain a good characteristic. There was a problem.

  Further, in the high frequency transmitter / receiver disclosed in Patent Document 5, as shown in a schematic block circuit diagram of FIG. 18, a part of the local signal LO is reflected by the mixer 66, and then the circulator 64 The leaked high frequency signal leaks from the third terminal 64c to the first terminal 64a, and the leaked high frequency signal is totally reflected by the modulator 63 in the off state and transmitted from the transmitting / receiving antenna 65 as an unnecessary high frequency signal. When the modulator 63 is in the on state and in the off state, the on / off ratio, which is the ratio of the intensity of the respective transmission high-frequency signals transmitted from the transmission / reception antenna 65, decreases, and the transmission / reception performance is There was a problem that it decreased. That is, when such an unnecessary high-frequency signal is transmitted, the unnecessary high-frequency signal is mixed into the high-frequency signal RF that should be received, and a part of the high-frequency signal RF that should be received cannot be received correctly. There was a problem.

  In a radar apparatus using such a high-frequency transmitter / receiver, a low-frequency high-frequency signal reflected by a far object to be detected is buried in a high-frequency signal that is noise that is transmitted when the modulator 63 is off. As a result, there is a problem in that the detection range is narrow, or detection of a detection target object may be delayed because erroneous detection is likely to occur.

  Further, in vehicles and small ships equipped with such a radar device, it is performed to detect an object to be detected by the radar device and take appropriate behavior such as avoidance and braking based on the information, Since the detection of the object to be detected is delayed, there is a problem that the vehicle or the small ship may be caused to suddenly behave after the detection.

  The present invention has been devised to solve the above-described problems that are desired to be improved in the prior art. The object of the present invention is to provide a bias supply circuit for a high-frequency detection element that is a component of a mixer. An object of the present invention is to provide a mixer that includes a fixed resistor and that can tune mixing characteristics and transmission characteristics of the mixer by using the semi-fixed resistor. In addition, by providing the mixer, it is possible to turn on / off the transmission output with a simple configuration by suppressing that a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission is transmitted as an unnecessary signal when the modulator is in the off state. An object of the present invention is to provide a high-performance high-frequency transmitter / receiver capable of improving transmission / reception performance by increasing the ratio.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a radar apparatus equipped with such a high-performance high-frequency transmitter / receiver, a radar apparatus-equipped vehicle equipped with the radar apparatus, and a radar apparatus-equipped small ship.

  In the mixer of the present invention, a high frequency detection element is provided at the output end of the coupler having two input ends and one or two output ends, and a bias supply circuit connected to the high frequency detection element is provided. A semi-fixed resistor for adjusting a bias current flowing through the high-frequency detection element is provided.

  The mixer according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above configuration, the semi-fixed resistor is a trimmable chip resistor.

  A first high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to a third aspect of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator to branch the high-frequency signal and output one of them. A branching device that outputs to the first output unit and the other output unit, a modulator that is connected to the one output unit, modulates a high-frequency signal branched to the one output unit, and outputs a high-frequency signal for transmission; A first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal. In this order, a high-frequency signal input from one terminal is output from an adjacent next terminal, and the output of the modulator is the first terminal. The two input terminals are connected between the signal separator that is input to the transmission / reception antenna, the transmission / reception antenna connected to the second terminal, and the other output section of the branching device and the third terminal. Output from the other output unit. A mixer according to any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention that mixes the high-frequency signal received and the high-frequency signal received by the transmitting and receiving antenna and outputs an intermediate frequency signal from the one or two output ends. It is a feature.

The first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention has the above configuration, wherein the high-frequency signal transmitted through the modulator in the off state is Wa ₂ , and the mixer and the signal separator are connected from the other output section of the branching device. A high-frequency signal that passes through the output of the modulator and reflects at the output end of the modulator of the modulator is defined as Wb _2, and the intensity of each of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ is defined as Pa ₂ and Pb _2. In this case, the transmission coefficient between the two input ends of the mixer is set to satisfy Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ .

In this configuration, the first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention has a line length between the output terminal of the one output unit of the branching device and the modulator, or the other output unit of the branching device. Δ = (2N + 1), where the line length between the output end of the signal line and the modulator that has passed through the mixer and the signal separator is δ, where the phase difference at the center frequency between the Wa ₂ and the Wb ₂ is δ. ) · Π (where N is an integer).

  A second high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to a sixth aspect of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator to branch the high-frequency signal and output one of them. A branching device that outputs to the first output unit and the other output unit; a modulator that is connected to the one output unit and that modulates the high-frequency signal branched to the one output unit and outputs a high-frequency signal for transmission; and an input An isolator that has a terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal is connected to the output section of the modulator, and transmits the high-frequency signal for transmission from the input terminal side to the output terminal side; and the output terminal of the isolator Each of the two input terminals is connected between the connected transmitting antenna, the receiving antenna, the other output unit of the branching device, and the receiving antenna, and is branched to the other output unit. And the high frequency signal received by the receiving antenna to output an intermediate frequency signal from the one or two output terminals. It is.

  A third high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to a seventh aspect of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator and receives the high-frequency signal supplied from the high-frequency oscillator. A selector switch that selectively outputs from one output unit and the other output unit, a first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal, and adjacent high-frequency signals input from one terminal in this order A signal separator for outputting a high-frequency signal output from the one output unit to the first terminal, a transmission / reception antenna connected to the second terminal, and the other One of the two input ends is connected to the output section of the first input terminal, the other of the two input ends is connected to the third terminal, and the high-frequency signal output from the other output section is transmitted and received A It is characterized in that it comprises a one mixer of the present invention of each configured to output by mixing the high frequency signal received intermediate frequency signal from the one or two outputs with antenna.

  A fourth high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to claim 8 of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator and receives the high-frequency signal supplied from the high-frequency oscillator. A switch that selectively outputs from one output unit and the other output unit, a transmission antenna connected to the one output end, a reception antenna, and one of the input ends connected to the other output unit The other of the two input terminals is connected to the receiving antenna, and the high frequency signal output from the other output unit and the high frequency signal received by the receiving antenna are mixed to generate the intermediate frequency signal. Alternatively, the mixer includes any one of the mixers of the present invention configured as described above, which outputs from two output ends.

  A fifth high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to a ninth aspect of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator to branch the high-frequency signal and output one of them. And a branching device that outputs to the other output unit, a first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal. In this order, a high-frequency signal input from one terminal is received from an adjacent next terminal. A signal separator that outputs the output of the one output unit to the first terminal, a transmission / reception antenna connected to the second terminal, the other output unit of the branching unit, and the Each of the two input terminals is connected between a third terminal and an intermediate frequency signal obtained by mixing a branched high frequency signal output from the other output unit and a high frequency signal received by the transmitting / receiving antenna. The one or two It is characterized in that it comprises a one mixer of the present invention of the above structures to be output from the power terminal.

  A sixth high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to claim 10 of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator to branch the high-frequency signal and output one of them. A branching device that outputs to the other output unit, a transmission antenna connected to the one output unit of the branching device, a receiving antenna, and the other output unit of the branching device and the receiving antenna Each of the two input terminals is connected between the high-frequency signal branched to the other output section and the high-frequency signal received by the receiving antenna to mix the intermediate frequency signal with the one or two output terminals. And the mixer according to any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention.

  A radar apparatus according to the present invention includes a high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to any of the above-described configurations of the present invention, and distance information for detecting distance information to a detection target by processing the intermediate frequency signal output from the high-frequency transmitter / receiver. And a detector.

  The radar device-equipped vehicle of the present invention includes the radar device of the present invention having the above-described configuration, and is characterized in that this radar device is used for detection of an object to be detected.

  A small ship equipped with a radar apparatus according to the present invention includes the radar apparatus according to the present invention having the above-described configuration, and is characterized in that this radar apparatus is used for detection of a detection target.

  According to the mixer of the present invention, a high frequency detection element is provided at the output end of the coupler having two input ends and one or two output ends, and a bias supply connected to the high frequency detection element is provided. Since the circuit includes a semi-fixed resistor that adjusts the bias current flowing through the high-frequency detection element, the semi-fixed resistor is biased when adjusting mixing characteristics, transmission characteristics in the mixer, and the like for the high-frequency detection element. Since the current is set to an appropriate value, otherwise it operates so that the bias current value once set is kept stable even if there is some mechanical play compared to adjusting the electrical length. Compared to adjusting the electrical length, it can maintain the state after setting even if there is mechanical play, so mixing characteristics and transmission characteristics in the mixer can be improved. A mixer that can be good for stable tuning time.

  Further, according to the mixer of the present invention, when the semi-fixed resistor is a trimmable chip resistor, since the trimmable chip resistor has no movable part, the resistance set even when external force such as external vibration is applied. Since the value is reliably maintained, the mixer can be tuned more stably.

  According to the first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal and two output units are connected to the high-frequency oscillator, and the high-frequency signal is branched so that one output unit and the other A branching device that outputs to the output unit, a modulator that is connected to the one output unit, modulates the high-frequency signal branched to the one output unit, and outputs a high-frequency signal for transmission, and a first terminal , A second terminal and a third terminal, and in this order, a high frequency signal input from one terminal is output from the next adjacent terminal, and an output of the modulator is input to the first terminal. Each of the two input ends is connected between the signal separator, the transmission / reception antenna connected to the second terminal, the other output unit of the branching unit and the third terminal, Branched output from the other output A mixer according to any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention that mixes a frequency signal and a high-frequency signal received by the transmission / reception antenna and outputs an intermediate frequency signal from the one or two output ends. However, since it functions to tune the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer according to the characteristics of the high-frequency detection element and its mounting state, it becomes a high-performance high-frequency transceiver that can stably obtain good reception sensitivity.

Further, according to the first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency signal transmitted through the modulator in the off state is passed through Wa ₂ , and the other output section of the branching device is passed through the mixer and the signal separator. The high-frequency signal transmitted through the output unit of the modulator and reflected at the output end of the output unit of the modulator is Wb _2, and the intensity of each of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ is Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ . Sometimes, when the transmission coefficient between the two input ends of the mixer is set to be Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ , the mixer is tuned to adjust the transmission coefficient between the input ends. Te, the intensity Pa ₂ of the high-frequency signal passing through the modulator in the off state, the high-frequency signal reflected at the output of the modulator from the mixer side through the circulator and the intensity Pb ₂ substantially Since these high-frequency signals can be effectively interfered with each other and attenuated with each other, a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission is transmitted as an unnecessary signal when the modulator is in the off state. It becomes a high-performance high-frequency transmitter / receiver capable of suppressing this and improving the transmission / reception performance.

According to the first high-frequency transceiver of the present invention, the line length between the output terminal of the one output unit of the branching device and the modulator, or the output of the other output unit of the branching device. When the line length between the end and the modulator passing through the mixer and the signal separator is δ, the phase difference at the center frequency between the Wa ₂ and the Wb ₂ is δ = (2N + 1) · When set so as to be π (where N is an integer), Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are combined in opposite phases between the output end of the modulator and the circulator, and cancel each other most. Since it effectively attenuates, it is possible to improve the transmission / reception performance by effectively suppressing the transmission of a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission as an unnecessary signal when the modulator is in the off state. It becomes a high frequency transceiver.

  According to the second high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency oscillator for generating a high-frequency signal and two output units are connected to the high-frequency oscillator, and the high-frequency signal is branched to one output unit and the other. A branching device that outputs to the output unit, a modulator that is connected to the one output unit, modulates the high-frequency signal branched to the one output unit, and outputs a high-frequency signal for transmission, an input terminal, and an output The input terminal is connected to the output portion of the modulator, and is connected to the output terminal of the isolator, and an isolator that transmits the high-frequency signal for transmission from the input terminal side to the output terminal side. Each of the two input ends is connected between the transmitting antenna, the receiving antenna, the other output unit of the branching unit, and the receiving antenna, and the high-frequency signal branched to the other output unit and the Since it comprises the mixer according to any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention that mixes the high-frequency signal received by the transmission antenna and outputs the intermediate frequency signal from the one or two output ends, Even in a high-frequency transmitter / receiver using a mixer, the mixer functions to tune the mixing characteristics and transmission characteristics of the mixer according to the characteristics of the high-frequency detection element and its mounting state, so that high reception sensitivity can be stably obtained. It becomes a high-performance transceiver.

  According to the third high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency oscillator for generating a high-frequency signal and two output units are connected to the high-frequency oscillator, and the high-frequency signal supplied from the high-frequency oscillator is output as one of the outputs. And a change-over switch that selectively outputs from the other output unit, a first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal, and the next adjacent high-frequency signal input from one terminal in this order A signal separator for outputting a high frequency signal from the one output unit to the first terminal, a transmission / reception antenna connected to the second terminal, and the other output unit One of the two input terminals is connected to the third terminal, the other of the two input terminals is connected to the third terminal, and a high-frequency signal output from the other output unit and the transmission / reception antenna And the mixer of any one of the above-described configurations that mixes the received high-frequency signal and outputs an intermediate-frequency signal from the one or two output terminals, so that the mixer has characteristics of the high-frequency detection element. Since it functions to tune the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics of the mixer according to the mounting state, it becomes a high-performance high-frequency transceiver that can stably obtain good reception sensitivity.

  According to the fourth high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency oscillator for generating a high-frequency signal and two output units are connected to the high-frequency oscillator, and the high-frequency signal supplied from the high-frequency oscillator is output as one of the outputs. One of the input terminals is connected to the other output unit, the switch that selectively outputs from the output unit and the other output unit, the transmission antenna connected to the one output terminal, the reception antenna, The other of the two input terminals is connected to a receiving antenna, and a high frequency signal output from the other output unit and a high frequency signal received by the receiving antenna are mixed to generate an intermediate frequency signal as the one or two Since the mixer according to any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention that outputs from the output end is provided, even in a high-frequency transmitter / receiver that uses a separate antenna, A high performance RF transceiver obtained stably with good reception sensitivity to serve to tune the transmission characteristics in the mixing characteristics and the mixer according to the characteristics and the mounting state of the wave detection element.

  According to the fifth high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency oscillator for generating a high-frequency signal and the two output units are connected to the high-frequency oscillator, and the high-frequency signal is divided into one output unit and the other. And a branching device that outputs to the output section of the first, second, and third terminals, and outputs a high-frequency signal input from one terminal in this order from the next adjacent terminal. , A signal separator in which an output of the one output unit is input to the first terminal, a transmission / reception antenna connected to the second terminal, the other output unit of the branching unit, and the third output unit Each of the two input ends is connected to a terminal, and the branched high-frequency signal output from the other output unit and the high-frequency signal received by the transmission / reception antenna are mixed to generate the intermediate frequency signal. One or two outputs Since the mixer according to any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention to output is provided, the mixer functions to tune the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer according to the characteristics of the high-frequency detection element and its mounting state. It becomes a high-performance high-frequency transceiver capable of stably obtaining good reception sensitivity.

  According to the sixth high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency oscillator for generating a high-frequency signal and two output units are connected to the high-frequency oscillator, branch the high-frequency signal, and one output unit and the other A branching device that outputs to the output unit, a transmission antenna connected to the one output unit of the branching unit, a reception antenna, and the other output unit of the branching unit between the reception antenna and the reception antenna. Each of the two input ends is connected, and the high frequency signal branched to the other output section and the high frequency signal received by the receiving antenna are mixed to output an intermediate frequency signal from the one or two output ends. Since the mixer of any one of the above-described configurations of the present invention is provided, the mixer tunes the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer according to the characteristics of the high-frequency detection element and its mounting state. To serve graying, it becomes a stable high performance RF transceiver obtained a good reception sensitivity.

  According to the radar apparatus of the present invention, the high-frequency transmitter / receiver having any one of the above-described configurations and the distance information detection for detecting the distance information to the detection target by processing the intermediate frequency signal output from the high-frequency transmitter / receiver. Since the high-frequency transmitter / receiver transmits a good high-frequency signal with a high transmission output on / off ratio and receives it with good reception sensitivity, the detection object can be detected quickly and reliably. At the same time, the radar apparatus can reliably detect a detection object at a close distance or a distant object.

  Further, according to the vehicle equipped with the radar apparatus of the present invention, the radar apparatus of the present invention having the above-described configuration is provided, and this radar apparatus is used for detection of the detection object. Vehicle, obstacles, etc. can be detected, for example, without causing the vehicle to take a sudden action to avoid them, appropriate control of the vehicle and appropriate warning to the driver can be made The vehicle is equipped with a radar device.

  Further, according to the small-sized ship equipped with the radar device of the present invention, the radar device of the present invention having the above-described configuration is provided and this radar device is used for detection of the detection object, so that the radar device is a detection object quickly and reliably. Since other small vessel obstacles can be detected, for example, appropriate control of small vessels and appropriate warnings to the operator are made without causing the small vessels to take a sudden action to avoid them. It becomes a small ship equipped with a radar device.

  First, a mixer according to the present invention and a high-frequency transceiver including the mixer will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic circuit diagram showing an example of an embodiment of a mixer of the present invention. 2A and 2B are schematic views showing another example of the embodiment of the mixer of the present invention, in which FIG. 2A is a plan view and FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view schematically showing an example of a high-frequency detector in the mixer shown in FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a trimmable chip resistor that is a component of the bias supply circuit shown in FIG. 1, wherein (a) is a plan view and (b) is a side view thereof. FIGS. 5A to 5E are schematic plan views showing examples of other trimming methods in the trimmable chip resistor shown in FIG. FIGS. 6 and 7 are a schematic block circuit diagram and a plan view, respectively, showing an example of an embodiment of the first high-frequency transceiver of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of a substrate on which a diode used in a non-radiative dielectric line type modulator is mounted. FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 are a schematic block circuit diagram and a plan view, respectively, showing an example of an embodiment of the second high-frequency transceiver of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a schematic block circuit diagram showing an example of the embodiment of the third high-frequency transceiver according to the present invention. FIG. 12 is a schematic block circuit diagram showing an example of an embodiment of the fourth high-frequency transceiver of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a schematic block circuit diagram showing an example of the fifth embodiment of the high frequency transceiver according to the present invention. FIG. 14 is a schematic block circuit diagram showing an example of an embodiment of a sixth high-frequency transceiver according to the present invention. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing intensities Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ in the embodiment of the high-frequency transceiver of the present invention. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the on / off ratio characteristics of the transmission output for the embodiment of the high-frequency transceiver of the present invention. FIG. 17 is a partially broken perspective view showing the basic configuration of the non-radiative dielectric line.

  1, 4, and 5, 1 is a coupler, 2 is a Schottky barrier diode as a high-frequency detection element, 3 is a trimmable chip resistor as a semi-fixed resistor, 4 is a choke inductor, and 5 is a DC voltage. A source 3a is a dielectric substrate, 3b is a resistor layer, 3c1 and 3c2 are electrodes, and 3d, 3d1 to 3d4 are trimming portions.

  2, 3 and 6 to 14, 11 is a high-frequency oscillator, 12 is a branching unit (for example, a directional coupler), 13 is a modulator, 14 is a circulator as a signal separator, 15 is a transmission / reception antenna, 16 is a mixer, 17 is a switch, 18 is an isolator, 19 is a transmission antenna, 20 is a reception antenna, 21 and 31 are lower flat conductors, 22 and 32 are first dielectric lines, 33 is a second dielectric line, 24 and 34 are ferrite plates as magnetic materials, 25 and 35 are third dielectric lines, 26 and 36 are fourth dielectric lines, and 27 and 37 are fifth dielectrics. Body lines 28, 38a and 38b are non-reflective terminators, 39 is a sixth dielectric line, 40 and 44 are substrates, 41 and 46 are choke-type bias supply lines, 42 and 47 are connection terminals, and 43 is high frequency modulation. 45, high frequency detection element 45, 12a, 71a and 73a are input parts, 12b, 71b and 73b are one output part, 12c, 71c and 73c are other output parts, and 13a is The input part of the modulator 13, 13b is the output part of the modulator 13, 18a is the input terminal, 18b is the output terminal, 14a, 24a, 34a, 72b, 75a are the first terminals, 14b, 24b, 34b, 72a, 75b. Is a second terminal, and 14c, 24c, 34c, 72c, and 75c are third terminals. Reference numeral 71 denotes a switching RF switch as a switching device, and 72 denotes a second switching RF switch as a signal separator. 73 and 74 are rat race type hybrid couplers and termination resistors as branching components, respectively, and 75 and 76 are second rat race type hybrid couplers and termination resistors as signal separator components, respectively. is there. In FIG. 2, the flat conductor is not shown. 7 and 10, the upper flat conductor is not shown.

  An example of an embodiment of the mixer of the present invention is a coupler having two input terminals 1a, 1b and one or two (one in this example) output terminals 1c as shown in a circuit diagram in FIG. 1 is provided with a Schottky barrier diode 2 as a high-frequency detection element, and a bias supply circuit C connected to the Schottky barrier diode 2 adjusts a bias current flowing through the Schottky barrier diode 2. In this configuration, a trimmable chip resistor 3 is provided. In this configuration, the coupler 1 is composed of a high-frequency transmission line such as a coplanar line, and multiplexes two high-frequency signals.

  Specifically, the output terminal 1c of the coupler 1 is connected to the anode of the Schottky barrier diode 2, and the cathode of the Schottky barrier diode 2 is grounded. The bias supply circuit C is connected to the anode of the Schottky barrier diode 2.

  Another example of the embodiment of the mixer of the present invention is a directional coupler (DC) having two input ends 26a and 27a and two output ends 26b and 27b as shown in FIG. A Schottky barrier diode 45 (corresponding to the Schottky barrier diode 2 in FIG. 1) as a high-frequency detection element is provided at the output terminals 26b and 27b. The Schottky barrier diode 45 (2) is provided in the Schottky barrier diode 45 (2). The connected bias supply circuit C as shown in FIG. 1 includes a trimmable chip resistor 3 that adjusts the bias current flowing through the Schottky barrier diode 45 (2). In this configuration, the directional coupler DC is formed by a non-radiative dielectric line in which a dielectric line 26 and a dielectric line 27, which are close to each other or joined so as to be electromagnetically coupled to each other, are sandwiched by flat plate conductors (not shown). It is configured. The configuration of this nonradiative dielectric line is the same as that shown in the partially broken perspective view of FIG. 17 for each of the dielectric line 26 and the dielectric line 27. Further, as shown in a plan view of FIG. 3, the Schottky barrier diode 45 (2) includes a wide line 46a made of a conductive layer formed on the substrate 44 and a narrow line 46b having λ / 4. (Λ is the wavelength of the high-frequency signal to be transmitted to the dielectric lines 26 and 27), and is connected to a connection terminal 47 formed in an interrupted portion of the choke-type bias supply line 46 that is alternately connected at a period of The substrate 44 to which the Schottky barrier diode 45 (2) is connected so that the high-frequency signals output to the output ends 26b and 27b of the dielectric lines 26 and 27 are incident on the Schottky barrier diode 45 (2). Is arranged.

  In each of the above configurations, the bias supply circuit C includes the choke inductor 4 and the DC voltage source 5 as shown in the circuit diagram of FIG. 1. The Schottky barrier diode 2 includes the choke inductor 4 and the trimmable chip resistor. 3 and the DC voltage source 5 are sequentially connected. The choke-type bias supply line 46 corresponds to the choke inductor 4.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the trimmable chip resistor 3 includes a resistor layer 3b made of a resistor such as a Ni—Cr alloy on a dielectric substrate 3a made of a dielectric such as alumina ceramic. The electrodes 3c1 and 3c2 are formed so as to be connected to both ends of the resistor layer 3b and cover both ends of the dielectric substrate 3a. The resistor layer 3b of the trimmable chip resistor 3 is formed. Are irradiated with a laser beam from a YAG (yttrium, aluminum, garnet) laser or the like to evaporate or oxidize a part of the resistor layer 3b by an appropriate area to form a trimming portion 3d, thereby forming electrodes 3c1, The resistance value between 3c2 can be changed.

  For example, an insulating film that protects the resistor layer 2b and allows 90% or more of the YAG laser to pass therethrough is provided on the resistor layer 2b, and a part of the resistor layer 2b is oxidized and trimmed from above the insulating film. If the resistance value is changed by forming the portion 2d, it is not necessary to separately provide a process for protecting the resistor layer 2b, so that the productivity is improved and the resistor layer 2b is protected. Since it is possible to prevent the resistance value from changing due to the subsequent manufacturing process or the surrounding environment, a high-frequency oscillator having stable characteristics can be obtained.

  According to the mixer of the present invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the high frequency signals inputted from the two input terminals 1a and 1b (26a and 27a) are mixed (mixed) and mixed as in the conventional mixer. Operates to output frequency signals. At that time, the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer depend on the bias current flowing through the Schottky barrier diode 2 (45). In the present invention, the DC voltage source 5 and the Schottky barrier diode 2 (45) Since the trimmable chip resistor 3 as a semi-fixed resistor for adjusting the bias current is provided between the two, the bias current is adjusted by adjusting the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 3 by a method such as trimming. Mixing characteristics and mixer transmission characteristics can be adjusted (tuned) to an optimum state.

  In the present invention, the mixing characteristic means a conversion gain characteristic mainly represented by a relative ratio between the intensity of the high frequency signal to be mixed and the intensity of the intermediate frequency signal to be output. The characteristic refers to the transmission characteristic of a high-frequency signal that passes through the two input ends of the mixer.

  The function of the trimmable chip resistor 3 as described above can be similarly achieved by using a semi-fixed resistor such as a rotary trimmer resistor, a mechanical trimmer resistor, or a potentiometer in addition to the trimmable chip resistor 3. Although it can be obtained, the trimmable chip resistor 3 is preferable in that the resistance value does not deviate even when vibration is applied from the outside and the reliability with respect to temperature and humidity is high.

  Specifically, the trimmable chip resistor 3 may be used as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, for example, YAG laser light is irradiated from the outer side to the inner side of the peripheral portion where the electrodes 3c1 and 3c2 of the resistor layer 3b are not connected to form a linear cut (linear cut). The trimming portion 3d may be formed by putting The resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 3 varies depending on the area of the trimming portion 3d such as the linear cut, and the cross-sectional area through which the current flows in the cross section of the resistor layer 3b decreases as the area increases. Can be bigger. Normally, a resistance value with a small initial value in a desired adjustment range may be selected and adjusted in the direction of increasing the resistance value. Further, when the area of the trimming portion 3d is expanded by linear cutting, the width is set to a fixed size determined by the spot size of the YAG laser beam, and the YAG laser beam is scanned in a uniaxial direction. The area may be expanded in the direction of the movement. At that time, the pulsed YAG laser light may be irradiated multiple times at the same site before the next scanning. In this way, the resistance value can be adjusted (trimmed) with high accuracy.

  In addition to the linear cut as shown in FIG. 4, as shown in the plan view of FIG. 5A, the linear cut as described above is provided in a so-called island shape at the center of the resistor layer 3b. The trimming portion 3d may be used. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), after the linear cut as described above is provided as the first cut 3d1, the same linear cut is provided as the second cut 3d2 and is slightly separated from the first cut 3d1. The position may be provided with a length shorter than the first cut 3d1 (double cut). Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5C, a double cut in which the second cut 3d2 is provided on the side opposite to the side on which the first cut 3d1 is provided may be used for such a double cut. . Further, as shown in FIG. 5D, double cuts 3d1 and 3d2 as shown in FIG. 5C and double cuts 3d3 and 3d4 similar to this may be provided in a comb shape ( Serpentine cut). If the trimming portions 3d, 3d1 to 3d4 are formed as shown in FIGS. 5B to 5D, the resistance value can be set more precisely by the second cuts 3d2 and 3d4. Can be adjusted. In particular, as shown in FIG. 5 (d), when the cut portions 2d1 to 2d4 are provided in a comb shape, the line length of the resistor layer 2b can be increased, so that the resistance value can be adjusted in a wide range. Therefore, it is preferable.

  Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5 (e), an L-shaped cut (L cut) may be provided in which the scanning direction with respect to the linear cut is bent at a substantially right angle in the middle. In this case, the stress applied to the resistor layer 3b is relieved and microcracks are less likely to enter the resistor layer 3b, and the drift of the resistance value due to the influence of the microcracks can be reduced.

  Although such a trimmable chip resistor 3 can be trimmed with a sufficient adjustment width, a plurality of such trimmable chip resistors 3 connected in series or in parallel may be used.

  Such a trimmable chip resistor 2 is provided so as to be exposed to the outside when the mixer 16 is assembled to a high frequency transceiver. As a result, the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 2 can be changed in a state where the mixer 16 is assembled to the high-frequency transceiver.

  According to the example of the embodiment of the mixer of the present invention, because of the above configuration, the trimmable chip resistor 3 as the semi-fixed resistor is in contrast to the Schottky barrier diode 45 (2) as the high frequency detection element. When adjusting mixing characteristics and mixer transmission characteristics, etc., set the bias current to an appropriate value.Otherwise, for example, when a high-frequency oscillator is incorporated in a product such as a high-frequency transceiver, the bias current that has been set once is set. Compared with adjusting the electrical length of the adjustment mechanism using the high-frequency transmission line provided on the extension of the high-frequency detection element, the mechanical play is reduced or the setting is reduced. Since the state can be kept stable, the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer can be tuned accurately and stably.Further, if the semi-fixed resistor is the trimmable chip resistor 3, the trimmable chip resistor 3 has no movable part, and therefore the set resistance value is kept stable even when external force such as vibration is applied from the outside after adjustment. It is suitable for stable tuning.

  In addition to the trimmable chip resistor 3, a semi-fixed resistor as described above may be used. The semi-fixed resistor in the present invention means that the resistance value can be set variably and the set resistance value has a characteristic that does not fluctuate inadvertently. The specification of the number of times may be any number as long as it can withstand at least several tens of adjustments, for example.

  In the mixer of the present invention, a strip line, a microstrip line, a coplanar line with a ground, a slot line, a waveguide, a dielectric conductor, in addition to a coplanar line and a nonradiative dielectric line, are used as a high-frequency transmission line. A wave tube or the like may be used.

  Next, an example of an embodiment of the first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator 11 that generates a high-frequency signal and a high-frequency oscillator 11 connected to the high-frequency oscillator 11 as shown in a block circuit diagram of FIG. A branching device 12 for branching a high-frequency signal and outputting it to one output unit 12b and the other output unit 12c, and a high-frequency signal branched to one output unit 12b connected to one output unit 12b are modulated. And a modulator 13 for outputting a high-frequency signal for transmission, and a first terminal 14a, a second terminal 14b, and a third terminal 14c around the magnetic body, and the high-frequency signals input from one terminal in this order. A circulator 14 that outputs a signal from the next adjacent terminal and outputs the modulator 13 to the first terminal 14a, a transmission / reception antenna 15 connected to the second terminal 14b of the circulator 14, and a branch And the other output part 12c of the vessel 12 The two input terminals 16a and 16b are respectively connected to the third terminal 14c of the data 14, and the high frequency signal branched to the other output unit 12c and the high frequency signal received by the transmitting / receiving antenna 15 are mixed. The intermediate frequency signal is output from the one or two output terminals (in this example, from one output terminal). It is a configuration.

Further, in the above configuration, as a preferable configuration, a high-frequency signal transmitted through the modulator 13 in the off state is Wa ₂ , and the output terminal of the modulator 13 passes through the mixer 16 and the circulator 14 from the other output portion 12c of the branching device 12. When the high-frequency signal transmitted through 13b and reflected at the output end of the output section 13b of the modulator 13 is Wb ₂ and the respective intensities of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ , ₂ of the mixer 16 The transmission coefficient between the two input terminals 16a and 16b is set so that Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ .

In this configuration, as a more preferable configuration, the line length between one output unit 12b of the branching device 12 and the modulator 13, or the other output unit 12c of the branching device 12, the modulation through the mixer 16 and the circulator 14 is used. Assuming that the line length to the unit 13 is δ and the phase difference at the center frequency of Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ is δ, δ = (2N + 1) · π (where N is an integer). It is set. In order to set the phase difference δ to be δ = (2N + 1) · π, the line length of the second dielectric line 23 is shortened by the length of the line of the first dielectric line 22 or Alternatively, the line length of the second dielectric line 23 may be increased by an amount corresponding to the shortening of the line length of the first dielectric line 22. In this way, it is not necessary to change the arrangement of other circuit elements excluding the modulator 13, and such adjustment can be facilitated. In this case, the position of the part where the first dielectric line 22 and the fifth dielectric line 27 are close to each other or joined (the part constituting the branching device 12) is not changed.

  In addition, the first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention shown in FIG. 6 uses a nonradiative dielectric line as a high-frequency transmission line for connecting the above-described components. The basic configuration of this nonradiative dielectric line is the same as that shown in the partially broken perspective view of FIG.

  That is, the first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention shown in FIG. 6 is arranged in parallel at an interval of 1/2 or less of the wavelength of the high-frequency signal, as shown in a plan view in FIG. One end of the first dielectric line 22 is connected between the flat conductors 21 (the other flat conductor is not shown), and the high frequency signal output from the high frequency diode is frequency-modulated and the first high frequency signal is provided. A high-frequency oscillator 11 that propagates through the dielectric line 22 and outputs it, and the high-frequency signal connected to the other end of the first dielectric line 22 is reflected or output to the input unit 13a side according to the pulse signal. On the peripheral portion of the ferrite plate 24 disposed in parallel to the flat conductor 21, the modulator 13 to be transmitted to the portion 13 b, the second dielectric line 23 having one end connected to the output portion 13 b of the modulator 13, , First terminals 24a, which are input / output terminals for high-frequency signals, respectively. The first terminal 24a has the second terminal 24b and the third terminal 24c, and outputs the high-frequency signal input from one terminal in this order from the next adjacent terminal. A third dielectric having a circulator 14 connected to the other end of the circulator 14 and a peripheral portion of the ferrite plate 24 of the circulator 14 arranged radially and having one end connected to the second terminal 24b and the third terminal 24c. A body line 25 and a fourth dielectric line 26, a transmitting / receiving antenna 15 connected to the other end of the third dielectric line 25, and a midway approaching or joining the midway of the first dielectric line 22, A fifth dielectric line 27 for branching and propagating a part of the high-frequency signal propagating through the first dielectric line 22, and a non-reflection connected to one end of the fifth dielectric line 27 on the high-frequency oscillator 11 side Other than the terminator 28, the other end of the fourth dielectric line 26, and the fifth dielectric line 27 The high frequency signal input from the fifth dielectric line 27 and the high frequency signal received by the transmission / reception antenna 15 and input from the circulator 14 are mixed to output intermediate frequency signals. This is a configuration provided with any mixer 16 in the configuration of the embodiment of the present invention.

Further, in the above configuration, as a preferable configuration, the transmission coefficient between the two input ends 16a and 16b of the mixer 16 is a high-frequency signal transmitted through the modulator 13 in the off state and input to the second dielectric line 23. Wa ₂ , the circulator 14 from the proximity or junction of the first dielectric line 22 and the fifth dielectric line 27 and the proximity or junction of the fifth dielectric line 27 and the fourth dielectric line 26 through passes through the output portion 13b of the modulator 13, it is reflected at the output of the output portion 13b of the modulator 13, a high-frequency signal input to the second dielectric waveguide 23 and Wb _2, these Wa ₂ and Wb _When each strength of ₂ is Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ , it is set so that Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ . In order to do this, the transmission coefficient between the two input terminals 16a and 16b of the mixer 16 may be adjusted using the tuning function of the mixer of the present invention.

Further, in this configuration, as a more preferable configuration, the first dielectric line 22 and the fifth dielectric line 27 are close to or joined to each other (this part constitutes the branching device 12). A line length to the other end of one dielectric line 22 (corresponding to a line length between the branching device 12 and the modulator 13) or a first dielectric line 22 and a fifth dielectric line 27 Total line length of the line length from the adjacent or joined portion to the other end of the fifth dielectric line 27, the line length of the fourth dielectric line 26, and the line length of the second dielectric line 23 ( This is equivalent to the line length between the branching device 12 and the modulator 13 on the mixer 16 side.), Wa _{2 is} a high-frequency signal transmitted through the modulator 13 in the off state, and the first dielectric line 22 and the fifth The fifth dielectric line 27 to the mixer 16, the fourth dielectric line 26, and Through over calculator 14 transmits to the output unit 13b of the modulator 13, a high-frequency signal reflected at the output end of the output portion 13b of the modulator 13 and Wb _2, the phase difference at the center frequency of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ When δ is set, δ = (2N + 1) · π is set. As described above, the first dielectric line 22 and the fifth dielectric line 27 constitute the branching device 12 in the proximity portion or the junction portion thereof.

  In FIG. 7, the first terminal 24a, the second terminal 24b, and the third terminal 24c correspond to the first terminal 14a, the second terminal 14b, and the third terminal 14c in FIG. 6, respectively. Yes.

  In this configuration, as shown in a perspective view of FIG. 8, the modulator 13 is connected to a connection terminal 42 formed at a discontinuous portion of the choke-type bias supply line 41 formed on the surface of the substrate 40 for high frequency modulation. A high-frequency modulation unit connected with a diode 43 as an element is connected between the first dielectric line 22 and the second dielectric line 23 and a high-frequency signal output from the first dielectric line 22 is sent to the diode 43. It is inserted so as to be incident. The choke-type bias supply line 41 has the same shape as the choke-type bias supply line 46 shown in FIG. In this configuration, a PIN diode may be used as the diode 43 as the high frequency modulation element. Further, instead of the diode 43, a transistor or a microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) may be used.

  Such a transmission type modulator is suitable for the modulator 13 in the high-frequency transceiver of the present invention. Instead of the transmissive modulator, a switch such as a semiconductor switch or a MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical System) switch that can transmit or reflect a high-frequency signal may be used.

  The first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 configured as described above operates in the same manner as a conventional high-frequency transmitter / receiver. However, since the mixer of the present invention is provided as the mixer 16 at that time, the mixer 16 has a mixing characteristic and a mixer in accordance with the characteristics of the Schottky barrier diode 2 (45) as a high frequency detection element and its mounting state. Since it works to tune the transmission characteristics, it becomes a high-performance high-frequency transceiver that can stably obtain good reception sensitivity.

Further, the transmission coefficient between the two input terminals 16a and 16b of the mixer 16 is set to Wa ₂ , the high-frequency signal transmitted through the modulator 13 in the off state, and the mixer 16 and the circulator from the other output section 12c of the branching device 12. through 14 transmitted to the output terminal of the output portion 13b of the modulator 13, a high-frequency signal reflected at the output end of the output portion 13b of the modulator 13 and Wb _2, the respective intensities of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ Pa _{Since 2} and Pb ₂ are set so that Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ , the Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ can be interfered with each other and attenuated to each other. It is possible to suppress the transmission of a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission as an unnecessary signal when 13 is in the off state, to increase the on / off ratio of the transmission output, and to improve the transmission / reception performance. .

The reason why Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ is good is that Pa ₂ (unit: watts) that is the intensity of the high-frequency signal Wa ₂ and Pb ₂ (unit: watts) that is the intensity of the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ are substantially the same. Accordingly, a high-frequency signal Wa ₂ and the high frequency signal Wb ₂ is effectively interfere, these high-frequency signals _{Wa 2, Pa} 2 + Pb 2 significantly than the sum of the respective intensities of Wb _2, these high-frequency signals Wa ₂ , Wb ₂ can be reduced in strength. This follows the general theory of interference when two high-frequency signals are caused to interfere. On the other hand, if Pa ₂ ≠ Pb ₂ , the effect of the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ interfering with each other and weakening is reduced, so that the strength when the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are combined is high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ . Compared with Pa ₂ + Pb ₂ which is the sum of the respective intensities of Wb ₂ , the output of the high-frequency signal cannot be reduced when the modulator 13 is in the off state, and the on / off ratio is increased. I can't do that.

Furthermore, the line length between one output unit 12b of the branching device 12 and the modulator 13 or the line between the other output unit 12c of the branching device 12 and the modulator 13 passing through the mixer 16 and the circulator 14 Since the length is set to be δ = (2N + 1) · π (where N is an integer), where δ is the phase difference at the center frequency between Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ , Since these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are combined in opposite phases between the output end of the output section 13b of the modulator 13 and the circulator 14, they cancel each other and attenuate most effectively, so that the modulator 13 is in the off state. In this case, it is possible to further effectively suppress the transmission of a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission as an unnecessary signal, to increase the on / off ratio of the transmission output, and to improve the transmission / reception performance. .

  In addition to the above configuration, a switch 17 that opens / closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in accordance with an open / close control signal from the outside is preferably provided at the output end of the mixer 16.

  When a switch 17 that opens and closes (switches) an intermediate frequency signal in response to an external switching control signal is provided at the output end of the mixer 16, the first terminal 14a and the third terminal of the circulator 14 as a signal separator Even if a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission leaks to the third terminal 14c of the circulator 14 due to lack of isolation with the 14c, the switch is set so as not to output an intermediate frequency signal for the leaked high-frequency signal. Since the 17 can be operated so as to block such an intermediate frequency signal, it is possible to easily identify the high frequency signal to be received on the receiving side.

  Next, an example of an embodiment of the second high-frequency transceiver according to the present invention includes a high-frequency oscillator 11 that generates a high-frequency signal and a high-frequency oscillator 11 connected to the high-frequency oscillator 11, as shown in a block circuit diagram of FIG. A branching device 12 that branches a high-frequency signal and outputs it to one output unit 12b and the other output unit 12c, and is connected to one output unit 12b, and modulates the high-frequency signal branched to this one output unit 12b. A modulator 13 for outputting a high frequency signal for transmission, and an isolator 18 having an input terminal 18a connected to the output portion 13b of the modulator 13 and transmitting the high frequency signal for transmission from the input terminal 18a side to the output terminal 18b side; Between the transmitting antenna 19 connected to the isolator 18, the receiving antenna 20 connected to the other output unit 12c side of the branching device 12, and between the other output unit 12c of the branching device 12 and the receiving antenna 20, two Input terminals 16a and 16b are connected Further, the high frequency signal branched to the other output unit 12c and the high frequency signal received by the receiving antenna 20 are mixed to output an intermediate frequency signal from one or two output ends (in this example, from one output end). This is a configuration provided with the mixer 16 of the embodiment of the present invention having the above-described configuration for outputting.

  Further, the second high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention shown in FIG. 9 uses a non-radiative dielectric line as a high-frequency transmission line for connecting the above-described components. The basic configuration of this nonradiative dielectric line is the same as that shown in the partially broken perspective view of FIG.

  That is, the second high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention shown in FIG. 9 is specifically arranged in parallel at an interval of 1/2 or less of the wavelength of the high-frequency signal, as shown in a plan view in FIG. One end of the first dielectric line 32 is connected between the flat conductors 31 (the other flat conductor is not shown), and the high frequency signal output from the high frequency diode is frequency-modulated and the first dielectric A high-frequency oscillator 11 that propagates and outputs the line 32, and the high-frequency signal connected to the other end of the first dielectric line 32 is reflected to the input unit 13a side according to the pulse signal, or the output unit 13b side. High-frequency modulator 13, a second dielectric line 33 having one end connected to output portion 13 b of modulator 13, and a peripheral portion of ferrite plate 34 arranged in parallel to flat conductor 31, respectively. The first terminal 34a and the second terminal 34b, which are signal input / output terminals, The first terminal 34a is connected to the other end of the second dielectric line 33. The first terminal 34a outputs a high-frequency signal input from one terminal in this order from the next adjacent terminal. Circulator 14 and a third dielectric line 35 arranged radially on the periphery of the ferrite plate 34 of the circulator 14 and having one end connected to the second terminal 34b and the third terminal 34c, and 4 dielectric lines 36, a transmission antenna 19 connected to the other end of the third dielectric line 35, and a first dielectric that is in the vicinity of or joined to the middle of the first dielectric line 32 A fifth dielectric line 37 for branching and propagating a part of the high-frequency signal propagating in the line 32; a non-reflection terminator 38a connected to the other end of the fourth dielectric line 36; and a fifth dielectric Non-reflective terminator 38b connected to one end of the body line 37 on the high-frequency oscillator 11 side, and one end receiving A sixth dielectric line 39 connected to the antenna 20; a fifth dielectric line connected between the other end of the fifth dielectric line 37 and the other end of the sixth dielectric line 39; The high frequency signal input from 37 and the high frequency signal received by the receiving antenna 20 and input from the sixth dielectric line 39 are mixed to output an intermediate frequency signal. This is a configuration including any mixer 16 in the example. Note that the first dielectric line 32 and the fifth dielectric line 37 constitute the branching device 12 in the proximity portion or the junction portion thereof. The circulator 14, the fourth dielectric line 36, and the non-reflective terminator 38a constitute an isolator 18. In FIG. 10, the first terminal 34a and the second terminal 34b correspond to the input terminal 18a and the output terminal 18b in FIG. 9, respectively.

  The second high frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention configured as described above operates in the same manner as a conventional high frequency transmitter / receiver. However, since the mixer of the present invention is provided as the mixer 16 at that time, the mixer 16 has a mixing characteristic and a mixer in accordance with the characteristics of the Schottky barrier diode 2 (45) as a high frequency detection element and its mounting state. Since it works to tune the transmission characteristics, it is a high-performance device that can stably obtain good reception sensitivity.

  In addition to the above configuration, a switch 17 that opens / closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in accordance with an open / close control signal from the outside is preferably provided at the output end of the mixer 16.

  When the switch 17 that opens and closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal according to the open / close control signal from the outside is provided at the output end of the mixer 16, due to insufficient isolation between the transmitting antenna 19 and the receiving antenna 20, etc. Even if a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission leaks to the receiving antenna 20, the switch 17 can be operated so as to cut off the intermediate-frequency signal so that the intermediate-frequency signal corresponding to the leaked high-frequency signal is not output. Therefore, it is possible to easily identify the high frequency signal to be received on the receiving side.

  Next, an example of the third high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to the present invention shown in FIG. 11 is a high-frequency oscillator 11 that generates a high-frequency signal, and is connected to the high-frequency oscillator 11 to switch the high-frequency signal and output one of them. A switching RF switch 71 serving as a switch that outputs a high-frequency signal RFt for transmission to the unit 71b or a local signal LO to the other output unit 71c, an input terminal 72b as a first terminal, and a third terminal An output end 72c and an input / output end 72a as a second terminal, the input end 72b is connected to one output portion 71b, and the input / output end 72a is switched to the input end 72b or the output end 72c for connection. The second switching RF switch 72 as a signal separator, the transmission / reception antenna 15 connected to the input / output terminal 72a of the second switching RF switch 72, the other output terminal 71c of the switching RF switch 71, and the second Switching The local signal LO connected between the output end 72c of the F switch 72 and output to the other output unit 71c and the high frequency signal RFr received by the transmission / reception antenna 15 are mixed to produce one or two intermediate frequency signals. The configuration includes the mixer 16 according to the embodiment of the present invention having the above-described configuration that outputs from the output end (in this example, from one output end).

  In addition to the above configuration, a switch 17 that opens / closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in accordance with an open / close control signal from the outside is preferably provided at the output end of the mixer 16.

  When a switch 17 that opens and closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in response to an external switching control signal is provided at the output end of the mixer 16, the first terminal 72b of the second RF switch 72 as a signal separator Even if a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission leaks to the third terminal 72c of the second RF switch 72 due to lack of isolation with the third terminal 72c, the intermediate frequency with respect to the leaked high-frequency signal. Since the switch 17 can be operated so as to block such an intermediate frequency signal so as not to output a signal, it is possible to easily identify the high frequency signal to be received on the receiving side.

  Further, in the third high frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, it is desirable to increase the on / off ratio of the high frequency signal for transmission as in the first high frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention.

Specifically, in the third high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the high-frequency signal transmitted from one output unit 71b of the switch 71 in the OFF state is transmitted from Wa ₂ and the other output unit 71c of the switch 71. mixer 16, a high-frequency signal reflected at the output of one output part 71b of the signal separator 72 through selectors 71 and Wb _2, the respective intensities of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ was Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ Sometimes, the transmission coefficient between the two input ends of the mixer 16 may be designed to be Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ . From this, Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ can be interfered with each other and attenuated to each other. Therefore, when the switch 71 is in the off state with respect to the one output unit 71c, one of the high-frequency signals for transmission can be obtained. It is possible to suppress the transmission of the signal as an unnecessary signal, increase the on / off ratio of the transmission output, and improve the transmission / reception performance.

The reason why Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ is good is that Pa ₂ (unit: watts) that is the intensity of the high-frequency signal Wa ₂ and Pb ₂ (unit: watts) that is the intensity of the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ are substantially the same. Accordingly, a high-frequency signal Wa ₂ and the high frequency signal Wb ₂ is effectively interfere, these high-frequency signals _{Wa 2, Pa} 2 + Pb 2 significantly than the sum of the respective intensities of Wb _2, these high-frequency signals Wa ₂ , Wb ₂ can be reduced in strength. This follows the general theory of interference when two high-frequency signals are caused to interfere. On the other hand, if Pa ₂ ≠ Pb ₂ , the effect of the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ interfering with each other and weakening is reduced, so that the strength when the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are combined is high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ . Compared with Pa ₂ + Pb ₂ which is the sum of the respective intensities of Wb ₂ , the output of the high-frequency signal cannot be reduced when the switch 71 is in the off state with respect to the one output unit 71c. The on / off ratio cannot be increased.

Further, the line length between the other output portion 71c of the switch 71 and one output portion 71b of the switch 71 passing through the mixer 16 and the signal separator 72 is set to the center frequency of Wa ₂ and Wb _2. When the phase difference at δ is δ, if it is set so that δ = (2N + 1) · π (where N is an integer), the output terminal of one output unit 71b of the switch 71 and the signal separation Since these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are combined with each other in the opposite phase with each other and cancel each other and are attenuated most effectively, when the switch 71 is in the off state with respect to one output section 71b Transmission of a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission as an unnecessary signal can be further effectively suppressed, the on / off ratio of the transmission output can be increased, and transmission / reception performance can be improved.

  In addition, an example of the fourth high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to the present invention shown in FIG. 12 is a high-frequency oscillator 11 that generates a high-frequency signal, and one of the outputs connected to the high-frequency oscillator 11 by switching the high-frequency signal. A switching RF switch 71 serving as a switch, which is output as a transmission high-frequency signal RFt to the unit 71b or a local signal LO to the other output unit 71c, and a transmission antenna 19 connected to the one output unit 71b, The reception antenna 20 connected to the other output part 71c side of the switching RF switch 71 and the other output part 71c of the switching RF switch 71 are connected between the reception antenna 20 and output to the other output part 71c. The local signal LO and the high-frequency signal RFr received by the receiving antenna 20 are mixed to output an intermediate frequency signal from one or two output terminals (in this example, from one output terminal). Example embodiments of a configuration and a mixer 16.

  In addition to the above configuration, a switch 17 that opens / closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in accordance with an open / close control signal from the outside is preferably provided at the output end of the mixer 16.

  When the switch 17 that opens and closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal according to the open / close control signal from the outside is provided at the output end of the mixer 16, due to insufficient isolation between the transmitting antenna 19 and the receiving antenna 20, etc. Even if a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission leaks to the receiving antenna 20, the switch 17 can be operated so as to cut off the intermediate-frequency signal so that the intermediate-frequency signal corresponding to the leaked high-frequency signal is not output. Therefore, it is possible to easily identify the high frequency signal to be received on the receiving side.

  Next, an example of the fifth high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to the present invention shown in FIG. 13 is a high-frequency oscillator 11 that generates a high-frequency signal, and a high-frequency signal connected to the high-frequency oscillator 11 is branched. A rat race type hybrid coupler 73 as a branching device that outputs to the output unit 73b and the other output unit 73c, and a termination resistor 74 (rat race) connected between the one output unit 73b and the other output unit 73c. Type hybrid coupler 73 and termination resistor 74 constitute a signal separator.), A first terminal 75a, a second terminal 75b, and a third terminal 75c, which are inputted in this order from one terminal. The second high frequency signal is output from the next adjacent terminal, and the output of one output unit 73b is input to the first terminal 75a. Connected to the terminal 75c The terminating resistor 76 (the second rat race hybrid coupler 75 and the terminating resistor 76 constitute a signal separator) and the second rat race hybrid coupler 75 connected to the second terminal 75a. Transmission / reception antenna 15 and the other output part 73c connected between the other output part 73c of the rat race type hybrid coupler 73 and the third terminal 75c of the second rat race type hybrid coupler 75. The high frequency signal branched into the above and the high frequency signal received by the transmitting / receiving antenna 15 are mixed to output an intermediate frequency signal from one or two output terminals (in this example, from one output terminal). This is a configuration provided with any mixer 16 in the embodiment of the invention.

  In addition to the above configuration, a switch 17 that opens / closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in accordance with an open / close control signal from the outside is preferably provided at the output end of the mixer 16.

  When a switch 17 that opens and closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in response to an external switching control signal is provided at the output end of the mixer 16, the first rat race type hybrid coupler 75 serving as a signal separator is used. Even if a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission leaks to the third terminal 75c of the second rat race hybrid coupler 75 due to insufficient isolation between the terminal 75a and the third terminal 75c, Since the switch 17 can be operated so as to cut off the intermediate frequency signal so as not to output the intermediate frequency signal with respect to the leaked high frequency signal, the reception side can easily identify the high frequency signal to be received. Can do.

  Further, with respect to the above configuration, the other output part 73c of the rat race type hybrid coupler 73 is connected from the one output part 73b of the rat race type hybrid coupler 73 through the second rat race type hybrid coupler 75 and the mixer 16. The phase difference at the center frequency between the frequency of the high-frequency signal output from one output unit 73b of the rat race type hybrid coupler 73 and the frequency of the high-frequency signal output from the other output unit 73c is If δ is set so that δ = (2N + 1) · π (where N is an integer), the high frequency signal that passes through the mixer 16 of the high frequency signal output from the other output unit 73c. The signal and the high-frequency signal transmitted between the first terminal 75a and the third terminal 75c among the high-frequency signals output from the one output unit 73b are combined in opposite phases and cancel each other. Since most effectively attenuated, it is possible to effectively suppress the unnecessary signal, a low noise high frequency transceiver.

  In addition, an example of the sixth high-frequency transmitter / receiver according to the present invention shown in FIG. 14 is a high-frequency oscillator 11 that generates a high-frequency signal, and a high-frequency signal connected to the high-frequency oscillator 11 is branched to A rat race hybrid coupler 73 as a branching device that outputs to the output unit 73b and the other output unit 73c, and a termination resistor 74 (rat race type) connected between the one output end 73b and the other output end 73c. The hybrid coupler 73 and the termination resistor 74 constitute a signal separator.), The transmission antenna 19 connected to one output end 73b of the rat race hybrid coupler 73, and the rat race hybrid coupler 73 The receiving antenna 20 connected to the other output end 73c side is branched to the other output end 73c connected between the other output end 73c of the rat race hybrid coupler 73 and the receiving antenna 20. Embodiment of the present invention having the above-described configuration in which a frequency signal and a high-frequency signal received by the receiving antenna 20 are mixed and an intermediate frequency signal is output from one or two output terminals (in this example, from one output terminal). In this example, the mixer 16 is provided.

  In addition to the above configuration, a switch 17 that opens / closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal in accordance with an open / close control signal from the outside is preferably provided at the output end of the mixer 16.

  When the switch 17 that opens and closes (switches) the intermediate frequency signal according to the open / close control signal from the outside is provided at the output end of the mixer 16, due to insufficient isolation between the transmitting antenna 19 and the receiving antenna 20, etc. Even if a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission leaks to the receiving antenna 20, the switch 17 can be operated so as to cut off the intermediate-frequency signal so that the intermediate-frequency signal corresponding to the leaked high-frequency signal is not output. Therefore, it is possible to easily identify the high frequency signal to be received on the receiving side.

  In the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth high-frequency transceivers of the present invention, the non-radiative dielectric line, the dielectric waveguide line, the waveguide, and the dielectric waveguide are used as the high-frequency transmission line. Strip lines, microstrip lines, coplanar lines, slot lines, and the like are suitable.

  Further, the switching RF switch 71 and the second switching RF switch 72 may be the same as those of the modulator 13 described above. Specifically, the modulator 13 in the first and second high-frequency transmitters / receivers is pulse-modulated by switching on / off by changing the transmission characteristics. In the third and fourth high-frequency transmitter / receivers, Switching the connection state from the input end 71a to the output end 71b or the output end 71c, the second terminal 72a to the first terminal 72b It is assumed that the connection state to the third terminal 72c is switched. Since such an RF switch 71 serves as both the branching device 12 and the modulator 13 in the first and second high-frequency transceivers, the number of components constituting the high-frequency transceiver can be reduced. preferable.

  The switching RF switch 71 preferably includes a branching device that branches an input high-frequency signal and outputs the branched signal to one output unit 71b and the other output unit 71c, and the one output unit 71b and the other output unit. A first and second PIN diodes connected to each of 71c, and a bias circuit for applying a forward bias voltage is connected to at least one of the first and second PIN diodes; Good. The reason is that at least one of the first and second PIN diodes has a low impedance. Therefore, even when the first and second PIN diodes are switched, the impedance viewed from the high-frequency signal input side (high-frequency oscillator 11 side). This is because the load fluctuation of the high-frequency oscillator 11 can be suppressed and the oscillation frequency of the high-frequency signal can be stabilized without using an isolator or the like.

  When the switching of the switching RF switch 71 and the switching of the second switching RF switch 72 are tuned so that the local signal LO and the received high-frequency signal RFr are simultaneously input to the mixer 16, a desired intermediate frequency signal is obtained. Can be efficiently output.

  In any of the first to sixth high-frequency transceivers of the present invention, the mixer functions to tune the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer in accordance with the characteristics of the high-frequency detection element and its mounting state. Can be obtained with high performance.

In the high frequency transceiver of the present invention, the material of the first to sixth dielectric lines 22, 23, 25 to 27, 32, 33, 35 to 37, 39 is a resin such as ethylene tetrafluoride or polystyrene, or Low dielectric constant cordierite (2MgO · 2Al ₂ O ₃ · 5SiO ₂ ) ceramics, alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ) ceramics, glass ceramics and the like are preferable, and these have low loss in high-frequency signals in the millimeter wave band. is there.

  The first to sixth dielectric lines 22, 23, 25 to 27, 32, 33, 35 to 37, 39 are basically rectangular in shape, but rounded at the corners of the rectangle. It is possible to use various cross-sectional shapes used for transmitting high-frequency signals.

The ferrite plates 24 and 34 are preferably made of zinc, nickel, and iron oxide (Zn _a Ni _b Fe _c O _x ), for example, for high frequency signals among ferrites.

  In addition, the shape of the ferrite plates 24 and 34 is usually a disc shape, but the planar shape may be a regular polygonal shape. In that case, when the number of dielectric lines to be connected is n (n is an integer of 3 or more), the planar shape is preferably a regular m-square (m is an integer greater than n of 3 or more).

  Further, the materials of the flat conductors 21, 31 and the other flat conductor not shown are Cu, Al, Fe, Ag, Au, Pt, SUS (stainless steel) in terms of high electrical conductivity and good workability. A conductive plate such as steel or brass (Cu-Zn alloy) is suitable. Or what formed these conductor layers on the surface of the insulating board which consists of ceramics, resin, etc. may be used.

  The non-reflective terminators 28, 38a, 38b are end portions of the fifth dielectric line 27, the fourth and fifth dielectric lines 36, 37 to which the non-reflective terminators 28, 38a, 38b are connected. On the other hand, a film-like resistor or wave absorber is attached to the upper and lower ends of the side surfaces (the surfaces not facing the inner surfaces of the flat conductors 21, 31 and the other flat conductor not shown). That's fine. At that time, the material of the resistor is preferably a nickel chromium alloy or carbon. In addition, as the material of the radio wave absorber, permalloy or sendust is suitable. If these materials are used, the millimeter wave signal can be attenuated efficiently. Further, materials other than these that can attenuate the millimeter wave signal may be used.

  The substrates 40 and 44 are made of aluminum (Al) on one main surface of a plate-like substrate made of thermoplastic resin such as tetrafluoroethylene, polystyrene, glass ceramics, glass epoxy resin, epoxy resin, so-called liquid crystal polymer. , A choke-type bias supply line 41, 46 formed of a strip conductor made of gold (Au), copper (Cu), or the like is used.

  In the high frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, the configuration including the mixer of the present invention is important, and the high frequency transmission line connecting each circuit element is not only a non-radiative dielectric line but also a conductive line. Select a wave tube, dielectric waveguide, strip line, microstrip line, coplanar line, slot line, coaxial line, or a modified high-frequency transmission line according to the frequency band and application to be used. It doesn't matter. In addition to the millimeter wave band, the frequency band used as the high frequency signal is also effective for the microwave band or lower frequency band.

  Further, for the high-frequency oscillator, the modulator, and the mixer, a bipolar transistor, a field effect transistor (FET), or an integrated circuit (CMOS, MMIC, etc.) integrated with these may be used instead of the diode. In the first and second high-frequency transceivers of the present invention, a duplexer, a switch, a hybrid circuit, or the like may be used instead of the circulator 14. Similarly, in the third high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention, a circulator, a duplexer, or a hybrid circuit may be used instead of the second changeover switch 72. The hybrid circuit includes a branch line type hybrid circuit in addition to the second rat race type hybrid coupler 75.

  In the fifth and sixth high-frequency transceivers, a directional coupler may be used as the branching unit 73 instead of the rat race type hybrid coupling unit 73 and the terminating resistor 74. Further, the example using the second rat race type hybrid coupler 75 as the signal separator has been described. However, as an alternative to the second rat race type hybrid coupler 75 and the terminating resistor 76, a duplexer, a circulator or a switching unit is used. An RF switch or the like may be used.

  Next, a radar apparatus according to the present invention, a vehicle equipped with the radar apparatus and a small ship equipped with the radar apparatus will be described.

  An example of an embodiment of a radar apparatus according to the present invention is to detect by processing any one of the first to sixth high-frequency transmitters and receivers according to the present invention and the intermediate frequency signal output from the high-frequency transmitter / receiver. A distance information detector for detecting distance information to the object.

  According to the radar apparatus of the present invention, because of the above configuration, the high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention is a high-performance one that can stably obtain good reception sensitivity, and has a transmission output on / off ratio. Since a high and good high-frequency signal is transmitted, it is possible to provide a radar apparatus that can detect a detection object quickly and reliably and can also detect a detection object at a short distance or a distant place.

  The radar device-equipped vehicle of the present invention includes the above-described radar device of the present invention and is configured to use this radar device for detection of a detection target.

  According to the radar device-equipped vehicle of the present invention, since it has such a configuration, the behavior of the vehicle is controlled based on the distance information detected by the radar device, and the vehicle is operated as in the conventional radar device-equipped vehicle. For example, it is possible to warn the person who has detected an obstacle or other vehicle on the road by sound, light, or vibration. However, in the vehicle equipped with the radar device of the present invention, the obstacle on the road that is the detection target object. Since the radar device quickly and reliably detects objects and other vehicles, it is possible to perform appropriate control of the vehicle and appropriate warning to the driver without causing the vehicle to take a sudden action. Further, even if the vehicle vibrates, the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 2 described above does not change, and even if the radar device is provided outside the vehicle, the resistance value hardly changes with respect to temperature and humidity. Since the set mixing characteristic and transmission characteristic can be maintained satisfactorily, a stable detection operation can be realized by a stable radar device.

  The radar device-equipped vehicle of the present invention is not limited to a vehicle for transporting passengers and cargo such as trains, trains, and automobiles, but also bicycles, motorbikes, amusement park vehicles, golf courses, etc. It can also be used for carts and the like.

  A small ship equipped with a radar apparatus according to the present invention includes the radar apparatus according to the present invention, and the radar apparatus is used to detect a detection target.

  According to the radar device-equipped small ship of the present invention, the behavior of the small ship is based on the distance information detected by the radar device in the small ship, similarly to the conventional radar device-equipped vehicle. The radar apparatus according to the present invention operates to control the vehicle, and warn the operator of sound, light, or vibration that an obstacle such as a reef, another ship or other small ship has been detected. In the onboard small vessel, the radar device detects obstacles such as reefs, other vessels or other small vessels, which are detection objects, quickly and reliably, so that the small vessel does not cause a sudden behavior and is small. Appropriate control of the ship and appropriate warning to the operator can be provided. Moreover, even if the ship vibrates, the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 2 described above does not change, and even if the radar device is provided outside the vehicle in the ship, the resistance value hardly changes with respect to temperature and humidity. Since the set mixing characteristic and transmission characteristic can be maintained satisfactorily, a stable detection operation can be realized by a stable radar device.

  The small-sized ship equipped with the radar device of the present invention is specifically a ship that can be operated without a license for a small ship or a license, and is a boat with a total tonnage of less than 20 tons. Motorcycles, small bass boats with outboard motors, inflatable boats with inboard motors (rubber boats), fishing boats, recreational fishing boats, work boats, houseboats, towing boats, sports boats, fishing boats, yachts, open-sea yachts, cruisers or gross tonnage 20 It can be used for pleasure boats of tons or more.

  Thus, according to the present invention, the bias supply circuit of the high-frequency detection element that is a component of the mixer includes a semi-fixed resistor, and the semi-fixed resistor is used for desired mixing characteristics, transmission characteristics in the mixer, and the like. A mixer that can be tuned to the above state can be provided, and by providing the mixer, a signal that does not require a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission when the modulator is in an off state with a simple configuration. And a high-performance high-frequency transmitter / receiver capable of improving the transmission / reception performance by increasing the on / off ratio of the transmission output by suppressing transmission as a high-frequency transmission / reception device. A radar device, a radar device-equipped vehicle including the radar device, and a radar device-equipped small vessel can be provided.

The first high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 was configured as follows. The parallel plate conductor 21 and two 6 mm-thick Al plates as the other flat plate conductor (not shown) are arranged at an interval of 1.8 mm, and the cross-sectional shape is 1.8 mm (height) × 0.8 mm (between them). The first to fifth dielectric lines 22, 23, 25 to 27 made of cordierite ceramics having a rectangular shape of (width) and a relative dielectric constant of 4.8 are arranged. At this time, the circulator 14 has a diameter of 2 mm and a thickness of 0.23 mm, one of the two ferrite plates 24 being brought into close contact with the upper plate conductor and the other with the lower plate conductor. The second dielectric line 23, the third dielectric line 25, and the fourth dielectric line 26 are arranged on the same straight line so as to face each other and radially around the ferrite plate 24. did. Further, the branching unit 12 brings the middle of the first dielectric line 22 and the middle of the fifth dielectric line 27 close to each other with an interval of 2.1 mm between the closest parts, and the high frequency oscillator of the fifth dielectric line 27 An anti-reflection terminator 28 was connected to the end on the 11th side. Further, the modulator 13 includes an organic resin substrate (relative dielectric constant εr = rho) between the first dielectric line 22 and the second dielectric line 23 and made of a thermoplastic resin having a low dielectric constant of 0.2 mm thickness. A millimeter wave modulation switch using a substrate 40 made of 3.0) is arranged. A choke made of copper formed by alternately forming a wide line and a narrow line shown in FIG. 8 on one main surface (the surface opposite to the first dielectric line 22) of the high frequency modulation switch. Type bias supply line 41 is formed, and the length of the wide line is λ ₁ /4=0.7 mm (λ ₁ is 2.8 mm for a wavelength of about 7 mm of the frequency of the high frequency signal 76.3 GHz, and the dielectric substrate is The length of the narrow line is λ ₁ /4=0.7 mm, the width of the wide line is 1.5 mm, and the width of the narrow line is 0.2 mm. Further, as the high-frequency oscillator 11, a pill-type voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) using a Gunn diode element is applied to the flat conductor 21 where the electric field of the standing wave of the high-frequency signal propagating through the first dielectric line 22 is strong. The other end of the waveguide having one end connected to the provided through hole was connected. The transmitting / receiving antenna 15 was connected to the end of the third dielectric line 23 opposite to the ferrite plate 24. The ferrite plate 24 is made of a material having a relative dielectric constant of 13.5 and a saturation magnetization of 3,300 G (Gauss) (magnetic flux density Bm by JIS C2561 DC magnetic measurement).

Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the mixer 16 brings the middle of the fourth dielectric line 26 and the middle of the fifth dielectric line 27 close to each other with an interval of 1.1 mm between the closest portions, Each of the end of the dielectric line 26 opposite to the ferrite plate 24 and the end of the fifth dielectric line 27 opposite to the branching device 12 is made of a low dielectric constant thermoplastic resin having a thickness of 0.2 mm. A high-frequency detector using a substrate 44 made of an organic resin substrate (relative permittivity εr = 3.0) was arranged to constitute a balanced mixer. On one main surface (surface opposite to the fourth and fifth dielectric lines 26 and 27) of the high-frequency detector, a wide line 46a and a narrow line 46b are alternately arranged as shown in FIG. A choke-type bias supply line 46 made of copper is formed, and the length of the wide line 46a is λ ₁ /4=0.7 mm (λ ₁ is about 4 mm of the frequency of the high frequency signal of 76.3 GHz) The length of the narrow line 46b is λ ₁ /4=0.7 mm, the width of the wide line 46a is 1.5 mm, and the width is 2.8 mm. The width of the narrow line 46b was 0.2 mm. A DC voltage source 5 and a trimmable chip resistor 3 as shown in FIG. 5A are connected to the end of the choke type bias supply line 46 as shown in a circuit diagram of FIG. Further, the line lengths of the first and second dielectric lines 22 and 23 were set so that the phase difference δ between the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ was approximately π at 76.3 GHz which is the center frequency of the high-frequency signal for transmission. .

For the high-frequency transmitter / receiver thus configured, first, the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 3 is adjusted, and the bias current flowing through the Schottky barrier diode 2 (45) of the mixer 16 is changed in the range of 0 to 5 mA. The intensities Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ at that time were measured as follows using a vector network analyzer for millimeter wave band. The first test terminal (test port 1) of the vector network analyzer is connected to the end of the waveguide to which the VCO is connected by removing the VCO, and the second test terminal (test port 2) is connected to the third test terminal. transmitting and receiving antenna 19 of the dielectric waveguide 25 is removed and the reception antenna 19 to the end connected to connected to measure the transmission characteristic S ₂₁ between their first and second test terminals. At this time, when measuring the high-frequency signal Wa ₂ that passes through the modulator 13 in the off state, a metal plate for shielding electromagnetic waves is provided between the first dielectric line 22 and the fifth dielectric line 27. insert and cut off the high-frequency signal Wb _2, when measuring the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ reflected at the output end of the output portion 13b of the modulator 13, the first dielectric waveguide 22 of the second dielectric waveguide 23 In the meantime, a metal plate for shielding electromagnetic waves was inserted instead of the high frequency modulation switch, and the high frequency signal Wa ₂ was cut off. That is, the transmission characteristic S ₂₁ was measured independently for each of Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ . Then, the intensity of the high frequency signal outputted from the first test terminal and 0dBm, to obtain a _Pa 2, Pb ₂ from the measured values of the transmission characteristic _{S 21.} FIG. 15 shows an example of this in a diagram.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the intensities Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ in the embodiment of the high-frequency transceiver of the present invention, the horizontal axis is the mixer bias current (unit: mA), and the vertical axis is The intensity (unit: dBm) of the high-frequency signal is shown. The black circle plot indicates the intensity Pa ₂ of the high-frequency signal Wa ₂ having a frequency of 76.3 GHz, and the black square plot indicates the intensity of the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ having a frequency of 76.3 GHz. Pb ₂ is shown respectively.

FIG. 15 shows that the intensity Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ changes as the mixer bias current changes. From this, the Schottky barrier diode 2 is changed by changing the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 3. (45) changes the bias current, thereby changing the impedances of the output ends 26b and 27b of the fourth and fifth dielectric lines 26 and 27 to which the high-frequency detector is connected, and the two inputs of the mixer. It was confirmed that the transmission coefficient between the ends 16a and 16b can be changed. Then, the bias current of the mixer in this example as in the case of about 2 mA, by appropriately setting the trimmable chip resistor 3, and the intensity Pa ₂ of the high-frequency signal Wa ₂ and intensity Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ It turns out that they can be almost the same.

  Next, this high-frequency transmitter / receiver was actually operated, and the on / off ratio characteristics when the bias current of the mixer was 0 to 2.5 mA were measured as follows. That is, the VCO is oscillated stably so that the oscillation output does not change, and the transmitting / receiving antenna 15 is removed from the end of the third dielectric line 25 to which the transmitting / receiving antenna 15 is connected. The test terminal is connected, and the intensity of the high-frequency signal output from the end of the test terminal is measured while gradually scanning the frequency when the modulator 13 is in the on state and in the off state. An on / off ratio, which is a ratio of measured values, was obtained. The results are shown in the diagram of FIG. The intensity (unit: watts) of the high frequency signal as the transmission output when the modulator 13 is in the on state is W_on, and the intensity (unit: watts) of the high frequency signal as the transmission output when the modulator 13 is in the off state. Watt) was defined as W_off.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the on / off ratio characteristics of the transmission output for an embodiment of the high-frequency transceiver of the present invention, where the horizontal axis represents the frequency (unit: GHz) and the vertical axis represents the on / off ratio of the transmission output. Represented by the reciprocal (−10 log (W_on / W_off)) (unit: dB), each plot of white square, white circle, white triangle, black square, black circle, black triangle has a mixer bias current of 0.0, Typical measured values of the on / off ratio characteristics of the transmission output at 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 mA are shown. In FIG. 16, the on / off ratio is represented by the reciprocal, and the smaller the actually measured value, the higher the on / off ratio and the better the on / off ratio characteristic of the transmission output. .

From the measurement results shown in FIG. 16, when the mixer bias current at which the intensity Pa ₂ of the high-frequency signal Wa ₂ and the intensity Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signal Wb ₂ are substantially the same is 2.0 mA, the center frequency of the high-frequency signal for transmission is It can be seen that the on / off ratio is the highest at 76.3 GHz, and the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 3 is tuned so that the strength of the high-frequency signals Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ is Pa ₂ = Pb _2. As a result, Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ are combined in opposite phases between the output 3b of the modulator 13 and the circulator 4, and cancel each other and effectively attenuate, so that the modulator 13 is in the OFF state. It was confirmed that the transmission output on / off ratio can be increased by suppressing the transmission of a part of the transmission high-frequency signal as an unnecessary signal.

  When adjusting the mixing characteristics and transmission characteristics of the mixer, the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor 3 was gradually increased from the lowest value in the trimmable chip resistor 3. As a result, the bias current flowing through the Schottky barrier diode 2 can be reduced. Since the trimmable chip resistor 3 is an irreversible resistor, the mixing characteristic and transmission characteristic of the mixer are adjusted by changing the magnitude of the bias current flowing through the Schottky barrier diode 2 in one direction in this way. .

  In addition, when the same evaluation as described above was performed for the second to sixth high-frequency transceivers of the present invention, a good result with a high transmission output on / off ratio was obtained.

  Finally, a radar apparatus including the high frequency transmitter / receiver is configured, and a radar detection test for detecting a detection object approaching the radar apparatus is performed. As described above, the mixer operates properly. It was confirmed that the tuned radar device outputs distance information quickly and reliably.

  Thus, the mixer of the present invention is a mixer in which the bias supply circuit of the high-frequency detection element has a semi-fixed resistor, and the semi-fixed resistor can tune the mixing characteristics and the transmission characteristics in the mixer. It was. The high-frequency transmitter / receiver of the present invention equipped with the mixer has a simple configuration and suppresses transmission of a part of the high-frequency signal for transmission as an unnecessary signal when the modulator is in an off state. By increasing the on / off ratio of the output, a high-performance high-frequency transmitter / receiver capable of improving transmission / reception performance has been achieved. Further, the radar apparatus of the present invention has become a radar apparatus that can quickly and reliably detect a radar.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and examples, and various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, as the semi-fixed resistor, a contact in a fixed resistance network to which a plurality of fixed resistors are connected may be switched by a relay. In this case, the resistance value of the fixed resistor network can be set dynamically, for example, the bias current of the mixer 16 is dynamically changed so that the operation of the mixer 16 becomes appropriate according to changes in environmental conditions. Or the bias current of the mixer 16 can be changed in synchronization with the operation of the modulator 13.

It is a typical circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the mixer of this invention. It is a typical figure which shows the other example of embodiment of the mixer of this invention, (a) is a top view, (b) is the principal part perspective view of the A section. It is a top view which shows typically the example of the high frequency detection part in the mixer shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a trimmable chip resistor that is a component of the bias supply circuit illustrated in FIG. 1, in which (a) is a plan view and (b) is a side view thereof. (A)-(e) is a typical top view which shows the example of the other trimming method in the trimmable chip resistance shown in FIG. 4, respectively. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the 1st high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. It is a typical top view of the high frequency transmitter-receiver shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows typically an example of the board | substrate with which the diode used for the nonradiative dielectric line type | mold modulator was mounted. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the 2nd high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view of the high frequency transceiver shown in FIG. 9. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the 3rd high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the 4th high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the 5th high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the 6th high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. It is a diagram showing the intensity _Pa 2, Pb ₂ of the high-frequency signal _Wa 2, Wb ₂ in the embodiment of a high frequency transmitter-receiver of the present invention. It is a diagram which shows the on / off ratio characteristic of the transmission output about the Example of the high frequency transmitter-receiver of this invention. It is a partially broken perspective view which shows the fundamental structure of a nonradiative dielectric track | line. It is a typical block circuit diagram which shows the example of the conventional high frequency transmitter-receiver.

Explanation of symbols

1: Coupler (directional coupler)
2: Schottky barrier diode 3: Trimmable chip resistor 3a: Dielectric substrate 3b: Resistor layer 3c1, 3c2: Electrodes 3d, 3d1-3d4: Trimming section 4: Choke inductor 5: DC voltage source
11: High frequency oscillator
12: Turnout
12a: Input terminal
12b: One output section
12c: The other output section
13: Modulator
13a: Input section
18a: Input terminal
13b: Output section
18b: Output terminal
14: Circulator
14a, 24a, 34a: first terminal
14b, 24b, 34b: second terminal
14c, 24c, 34c: Third terminal
15: Transmit / receive antenna
16: Mixer
17: Switch
18: Isolator
19: Transmitting antenna
20: Receive antenna
21, 31: Flat conductor
22, 32: First dielectric line
23, 33: Second dielectric line
24, 34: Ferrite plate
25, 35: Third dielectric line
26, 36: Fourth dielectric line
27, 37: Fifth dielectric line
28, 38a, 38b: Non-reflective terminator
39: Sixth dielectric line
40, 44: Board
41, 46: Choke-type bias supply line
42, 47: Connection terminals
43: High-frequency modulation element (PIN diode)
45: High-frequency detector (Schottky barrier diode)
71: Switching RF switch as a switch
71a: Input section
71b: One output section
71c: The other output section
72: Second switching RF switch as signal separator
72a: Input / output terminal as second terminal
72b: Input terminal as the first terminal
72c: Output terminal as the third terminal
73: Rat race type hybrid coupler as branching device
73a: Input section
73b: One output section
73c: The other output section
74: Termination resistor
75: Second rat race hybrid coupler as signal separator
75a: First terminal
75b: Second terminal
75c: Third terminal
76: Terminating resistor

Claims (4)

A high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal;
A branching device having two output units, connected to the high-frequency oscillator, for branching the high-frequency signal and outputting it to one output unit and the other output unit;
A modulator connected to the one output unit and modulating a high-frequency signal branched to the one output unit to output a transmission high-frequency signal;
A first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal; a high-frequency signal input from one terminal in this order is output from an adjacent next terminal; and an output of the modulator is the first terminal A signal separator input to the terminal;
A transmitting and receiving antenna connected to the second terminal;
A branched high-frequency signal output from the other output unit of the branching unit and a high-frequency signal received by the transmission / reception antenna; connected to the other output unit of the branching unit and a third terminal of the signal separator; A high frequency transmitter / receiver comprising: a mixer that mixes and outputs an intermediate frequency signal;
The mixer includes a coupler having two input ends connected to the other output of the splitter and a third terminal of the signal separator, and one or two output ends, and the output A high-frequency detection element provided at an end; and a trimmable chip resistor connected to the high-frequency detection element for adjusting a bias current flowing through the high-frequency detection element;
Wa ₂ transmits a high-frequency signal that passes through the modulator in the off state from the other output unit of the branching unit to the output unit of the modulator through the mixer and the signal separator, and the modulator When the high-frequency signal reflected at the output end of the output section is Wb ₂ and the intensity of each of Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ is Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ , the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor is changed. A transmission coefficient between the two input ends of the mixer is set so that Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ by changing a current flowing through the high-frequency detection element ,
When the phase difference at the center frequency between the Wa ₂ and the Wb ₂ is δ, δ = (2N + 1) · π (where N is an integer). The line length between the output end of the output unit and the modulator, or the line length between the output end of the other output unit of the branching unit and the modulator passing through the mixer and the signal separator is A high-frequency transceiver characterized by being set. The high- frequency transceiver according to claim 1 , wherein the high-frequency detection element is a Schottky barrier diode . A high-frequency oscillator that generates a high-frequency signal;
A change-over switch that has two output units, is connected to the high-frequency oscillator, and selectively outputs the high-frequency signal given from the high-frequency oscillator from one output unit and the other output unit;
A first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal are provided. A high-frequency signal input from one terminal in this order is output from the next adjacent terminal, and a high-frequency signal output from the one output unit. A signal separator in which a signal is input to the first terminal;
A transmitting and receiving antenna connected to the second terminal;
A high-frequency signal connected to the other output part of the change-over switch and the third terminal of the signal separator is mixed with a high-frequency signal output from the other output part of the change-over switch and the high-frequency signal received by the transmitting / receiving antenna. A high frequency transceiver comprising: a mixer for outputting an intermediate frequency signal;
The mixer includes a coupler having two input ends connected to the other output of the changeover switch and a third terminal of the signal separator, and one or two output ends, and the output A high-frequency detection element provided at an end; and a trimmable chip resistor connected to the high-frequency detection element for adjusting a bias current flowing through the high-frequency detection element;
Wa ₂ transmits a high-frequency signal transmitted from one output of the changeover switch when the changeover switch is in an OFF state, and passes through the mixer and the signal separator from the other output of the changeover switch. When the high-frequency signal reflected at one output unit is Wb ₂ and the intensity of each of these Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ is Pa ₂ and Pb ₂ , the high-frequency detection is performed by changing the resistance value of the trimmable chip resistor. The transmission coefficient between the two input ends of the mixer is set so that Pa ₂ = Pb ₂ by changing the current flowing through the element for use ,
The other output of the changeover switch is such that δ = (2N + 1) · π (where N is an integer), where δ is the phase difference at the center frequency between Wa ₂ and Wb ₂ . A high-frequency transmitter / receiver characterized in that a line length of a line from a part to one output part of the changeover switch through the mixer and the signal separator is set. A high-frequency transceiver according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A radar apparatus comprising: a distance information detector that processes the intermediate frequency signal output from the high-frequency transmitter / receiver to detect distance information to a detection target.

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