IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,724,054
Granted Patent B2
US 12,724,054 · App. 18/820,180 · Granted Sep 1, 2026

System and method for estimating an angle of arrival

Inventors: Seyedmohammadreza Faghih Imani (Phoenix, AZ); Abu Huraira Muhammad Idban (Tempe, AZ)
Assignee: ARIZONA BOARD OF REGENTS ON BEHALF OF ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY
G01R29/10G01R29/0892H01Q21/20
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,724,054
App. No.
18/820,180
Granted
Sep 1, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A system and method for estimating an angle of arrival. In some embodiments, the system includes an array antenna and a processing circuit. The array antenna may be curved, and may include a first radiator having a first resonant frequency and a second radiator having a second resonant frequency different from the first resonant frequency. The processing circuit may be configured to receive a signal from the array antenna and to calculate, from the signal, an estimated angle of arrival of electromagnetic radiation corresponding to the signal.

Claims (44)

1 . A system, comprising:

an array antenna;

a radio frequency (RF) front end; and

a processing circuit,

the array antenna being curved,

the array antenna comprising a plurality of radiators, including a first radiator having a first resonant frequency and a second radiator having a second resonant frequency different from the first resonant frequency, the plurality of radiators comprising at least 10 radiators,

the processing circuit being configured to receive a signal from the array antenna and to calculate, from the signal, an estimated angle of arrival of electromagnetic radiation corresponding to the signal,

wherein:

the array antenna comprises a substrate integrated waveguide,

the substrate integrated waveguide has the shape of a hollow cylinder,

the array antenna has a first feed and a second feed,

the two feeds are at diametrically opposed positions on the hollow cylinder, and

the calculating of the angle of arrival comprises calculating a normalized cross correlation vector, the normalized cross correlation vector comprising, for each of a plurality of frequency points, a normalized cross correlation of a signal at the first feed and a signal at the second feed.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein:

the first radiator is a complementary I-shaped resonator, and

the second radiator is a complementary I-shaped resonator.

3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the radiators of the plurality of radiators are uniformly spaced around the hollow cylinder.

4 . The system of claim 3 , wherein each of the plurality of radiators has a respective resonant frequency, the respective resonant frequencies being nonuniformly distributed.

5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the calculating further comprises:

calculating, for a first tentative angle of arrival, a first discrepancy, the first discrepancy being a measure of the difference between a reference normalized cross correlation vector and the calculated normalized cross correlation vector;

calculating, for a second tentative angle of arrival, a second discrepancy, the second discrepancy being a measure of the difference between a reference normalized cross correlation vector and the calculated normalized cross correlation vector;

determining that the first discrepancy is greater than the second discrepancy; and

setting the estimated angle of arrival equal to the second tentative angle of arrival.

6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the calculating further comprises calculating the estimated angle of arrival using ridge regression based on a reference response of the array antenna for a plurality of angles of arrival.

7 . A method, comprising:

receiving an electromagnetic signal with an array antenna, to generate an antenna signal; and

calculating, by a processing circuit, from the antenna signal, an estimated angle of arrival of the electromagnetic signal,

wherein:

the array antenna is curved,

the array antenna has a first feed and a second feed,

the array antenna comprises a first radiator having a first resonant frequency and a second radiator having a second resonant frequency different from the first resonant frequency, and

the calculating of the angle of arrival comprises calculating a normalized cross correlation vector, the normalized cross correlation vector comprising, for each of a plurality of frequency points, a normalized cross correlation of a signal at the first feed and a signal at the second feed.

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein:

the first radiator is a complementary I-shaped resonator, and

the second radiator is a complementary I-shaped resonator.

9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the array antenna comprises a substrate integrated waveguide.

10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the array antenna comprises a plurality of radiators, including the first radiator and the second radiator, the plurality of radiators comprising at least 10 radiators.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the substrate integrated waveguide has the shape of a hollow cylinder.

12 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the calculating further comprises:

calculating, for a first tentative angle of arrival, a first discrepancy, the first discrepancy being a measure of the difference between a reference normalized cross correlation vector and the calculated normalized cross correlation vector;

calculating, for a second tentative angle of arrival, a second discrepancy, the second discrepancy being a measure of the difference between a reference normalized cross correlation vector and the calculated normalized cross correlation vector;

determining that the first discrepancy is greater than the second discrepancy; and

setting the estimated angle of arrival equal to the second tentative angle of arrival.

13 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the calculating further comprises calculating the estimated angle of arrival using ridge regression based on a reference response of the array antenna for a plurality of angles of arrival.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 11, 2024
From: FAGHIH IMANI, SEYEDMOHAMMADREZA; MUHAMMAD IDBAN, ABU HURAIRA
To: ARIZONA BOARD OF REGENTS ON BEHALF OF ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY
Reel/Frame 069197/0468 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 63579936 · Aug 31, 2023
Related Publication 20250076358A1 · Mar 6, 2025
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