CN218097945U - Compact radar level gauge - Google Patents
Compact radar level gauge Download PDFInfo
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- CN218097945U CN218097945U CN202222633701.1U CN202222633701U CN218097945U CN 218097945 U CN218097945 U CN 218097945U CN 202222633701 U CN202222633701 U CN 202222633701U CN 218097945 U CN218097945 U CN 218097945U
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Abstract
An embodiment of the utility model provides a compact radar level gauge. The compact radar level gauge is used for measuring the level of a medium in the tank; the compact radar level gauge comprises a microwave transceiving chip, wherein an antenna structure is arranged on the microwave transceiving chip; wherein, the microwave transceiver chip generates microwave transmitting signals and then emits the signals through the antenna structure; and the microwave transmitting signal forms reflection after reaching the surface of the medium in the tank to generate a microwave echo signal, and the microwave echo signal is received by the antenna structure of the microwave transceiving chip. The embodiment of the utility model provides an in, microwave transceiver chip self is integrated with antenna structure, need not to draw the antenna on PCB, and the circuit structure of having overcome current radar level meter is more complicated, and PCB's area is big on the contrary, and technological process tends to the redundant miscellaneous to and the too high problem of development cost, simplified radar level meter's circuit structure, reduced PCB's among the radar level meter area, retrencied radar level meter's technological process, reduced radar level meter's development cost.
Description
Technical Field
An embodiment of the utility model provides a relate to radar technical field, the utility model especially relates to a compact radar level meter.
Background
The radar level gauge has the advantages of safety, high efficiency, environmental protection and the like, so that the radar level gauge is widely popularized and applied in the level monitoring process.
At present, most of the existing radar level meters adopt microwave high-frequency chips without antennas, so that when a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) of the radar level meter needs to be manufactured, the antennas are drawn on the PCB according to actual working condition requirements and are connected with corresponding pins of the microwave high-frequency chips, so that microwave signals generated by the microwave high-frequency chips are sent out through the antennas; meanwhile, an antenna is used for receiving an echo signal transmitted from the outside, and the echo signal is transmitted to a microwave high-frequency chip, so that the position information of the material to be detected is calculated. Therefore, the circuit structure of the conventional radar level gauge is complex, the area of a PCB (printed Circuit Board) is large, the process flow tends to be redundant and the development cost is overhigh.
SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL
An embodiment of the utility model provides a compact radar level meter to simplify the circuit structure of radar level meter, PCB's area in the radar level meter is reduced, simplifies the technological process of radar level meter, reduces the development cost of radar level meter.
The embodiment of the utility model provides a compact radar level meter for measuring the level of the medium in the tank; the compact radar level gauge comprises:
the microwave transceiver chip is provided with an antenna structure;
the microwave transceiver chip generates a microwave transmitting signal and then emits the microwave transmitting signal through the antenna structure; and reflecting the microwave transmitting signal after reaching the surface of the medium in the tank to generate a microwave echo signal, wherein the microwave echo signal is received by the antenna structure of the microwave transceiving chip.
Optionally, the method further comprises:
and the microwave transceiver chip is fixedly connected to the circuit board.
Optionally, the method further comprises:
the center of the microwave convergence mechanism is over against the antenna structure and is used for converging the microwave transmitting signals emitted by the antenna structure so as to improve the energy of the microwave transmitting signals emitted by the antenna structure;
the microwave convergence mechanism comprises a waveguide, a lens or a conical horn structure, and a first port of the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure faces the antenna structure.
Optionally, the method further comprises:
the first port of the horn antenna is connected with the second port of the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure, and the second port of the horn antenna is used for transmitting the microwave transmitting signal.
Optionally, the second port of the feedhorn is provided with an insulating cover.
Optionally, a lens structure is formed in the center of the insulating cover to converge the microwave transmitting signal, concentrate the radiation energy of the microwave transmitting signal, and narrow the beam of the microwave transmitting signal.
Optionally, the bottom of the insulating cover is triangular or elliptical in shape.
Optionally, the material of the insulating cover is plastic, wave-transparent sealing material or anti-corrosion material.
Optionally, the method further comprises:
the first end of the shielding shell is fixed on the circuit board connected with the microwave transceiver chip; and the second end of the shielding shell is connected with the first port of the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure and is connected with the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure into a whole so as to surround the microwave transceiver chip.
Optionally, the shielding shell is cylindrical, square or ellipsoidal in shape.
Optionally, the shielding shell is constructed of metal or plastic.
Optionally, the first end of the shielding shell is fixedly connected to the circuit board through a screw or a pin.
Optionally, the number of said screws or pins is at least two.
Optionally, the pins are cylindrical or cubic in shape.
Optionally, the method further comprises:
the central shaft of the lens antenna is perpendicular to the microwave transceiver chip and the circuit board and is arranged right opposite to the microwave transceiver chip, and the lens antenna is used for converging the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal so as to improve the gains of the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal.
Optionally, the lens antenna is made of plastic or other materials which are easily penetrated by microwaves.
Optionally, the frequency range of the microwave transmitting signal generated by the microwave transceiver chip is 60GHz to 300GHz.
Optionally, the microwave transceiver chip includes:
the VCO signal source is used for generating different microwave signals according to different control voltages;
a power amplifier connected between said VCO signal source and said antenna structure for amplifying the power of said microwave signal generated by said VCO signal source to generate said microwave transmission signal;
the low-noise amplifier is connected with the antenna structure and is used for performing power amplification and noise suppression on the microwave echo signal;
the mixer is connected with the low-noise amplifier to access the microwave echo signal, and is connected with the antenna structure and the power amplifier to access the microwave transmitting signal; the frequency mixer is used for mixing the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal to obtain an intermediate frequency signal;
the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source is amplified by the power amplifier to form the microwave transmitting signal, and the microwave transmitting signal is transmitted to the mixer and the antenna structure and then emitted through the antenna structure on the microwave transceiver chip; the microwave transmitting signal is reflected by the surface of the medium in the tank to generate the microwave echo signal, the microwave echo signal is received by the antenna structure, and the low-noise amplifier performs power amplification and noise suppression so as to be transmitted to the mixer to be mixed with the microwave transmitting signal.
Optionally, the peripheral circuit of the microwave transceiver chip includes a power module, a processor, a phase-locked loop, an ADC module, a communication module, and a display module;
the power supply module is connected with the microwave transceiver chip and the processor and used for receiving external power supply and converting the external power supply into multi-stage working voltage so as to maintain the normal work of the compact radar level gauge;
the processor is connected with the ADC module and the phase-locked loop and used for receiving the output signal of the ADC module and generating a level value and a level waveform curve based on the output signal of the ADC module; the VCO signal source is also used for outputting configuration parameters of starting frequency, bandwidth, sampling point and sampling rate to the phase-locked loop so as to adjust the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source;
the communication module is connected between the processor and the display module and is used for realizing communication between the processor and the display module;
the display module is used for displaying the output information of the processor so that a user can debug and/or control the compact radar level gauge based on the output information of the processor displayed by the display module; wherein the output information of the processor comprises at least the level value or the level waveform profile;
the phase-locked loop is connected between the processor and the VCO signal source and used for adjusting the amplitude and the voltage type of the control voltage output to the VCO signal source according to the configuration parameters generated by the processor and the feedback signal of the VCO signal source so as to control the frequency and the phase of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source;
and the ADC module is connected between the processor and the frequency mixer and used for collecting and processing the output signal of the frequency mixer and then uploading the output signal to the processor.
Optionally, the antenna structure is an antenna integrated with transceiver or an antenna separated from transceiver.
Optionally, the antenna structure comprises a dipole antenna, a dipole antenna or a microstrip antenna.
The embodiment of the utility model provides a technical scheme is through setting up antenna structure on microwave transceiver chip for after microwave transceiver chip produced microwave emission signal, microwave emission signal jets out through antenna structure, forms the reflection behind the surface of microwave emission signal arrival jar interior medium, produces microwave echo signal, and microwave echo signal is received by microwave transceiver chip's antenna structure, and then measures the level of jar interior medium. Therefore, in the embodiment of the utility model provides an in, microwave transceiver chip self is integrated with antenna structure, need not to draw the antenna on PCB, and the circuit structure that has overcome current radar level meter is more complicated, and PCB's area is big partially, and the process flow tends to the redundant miscellaneous to and the too high problem of development cost, simplified radar level meter's circuit structure, reduced PCB's in the radar level meter area, retrencied radar level meter's process flow, reduced radar level meter's development cost.
Drawings
FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of another compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of yet another compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of an antenna structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another antenna structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of yet another compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 7 is a front view of a connection structure of a shielding shell according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 8 is a top view of a connection structure of a shielding shell according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 9 is a top view of another shield shell connection structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 10 is a top view of a connection structure of another shielding shell according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is a schematic structural view of yet another compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Description of the reference numerals：
1000. Compact radar level gauge
1001. Circuit board
1002. Microwave transceiver chip
1003. Antenna structure
1004. Shielding case
1005. Waveguide
1006. Horn antenna
1007. Insulating cover
1008. Lens antenna
1009. VCO signal source
1010. Power amplifier
1011. Low noise amplifier
1012. Frequency mixer
1013. Power supply module
1014. Phase-locked loop
1015. ADC module
1016. Processor with a memory having a plurality of memory cells
1017. Communication module
1018. Display module
1019. Conical horn structure
10031. Receiving antenna
10032. Transmitting antenna
A. Pin insertion
D. And (4) screw holes.
Detailed Description
The present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the invention and are not limiting of the invention. It should be further noted that, for the convenience of description, only some of the structures related to the present invention are shown in the drawings, not all of the structures.
FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, a compact radar level gauge 1000 is used for measuring a level of a medium in a tank; the compact radar level gauge 1000 comprises a microwave transceiver chip 1002, the microwave transceiver chip 1002 having an antenna structure 1003 thereon.
Wherein, the microwave transceiver chip 1002 generates microwave transmitting signals and then emits the signals through the antenna structure 1003; the microwave transmitting signal is reflected after reaching the surface of the medium in the tank, so as to generate a microwave echo signal, and the microwave echo signal is received by the antenna structure 1003 of the microwave transceiving chip 1002.
It is known that the state of the medium in the tank can be solid, liquid or mixed; the characteristic parameters of the microwave transmitting signal and the characteristic parameters of the microwave echo signal have differences, such as the amplitude, the phase and the like of the two signals.
Optionally, the frequency range of the microwave transmitting signal generated by the microwave transceiver chip 1002 is 60GHz to 300GHz.
Optionally, the antenna structure 1003 is an antenna integrated with or separated from a transceiver.
The receiving and transmitting integrated antenna is an antenna structure which transmits microwave transmitting signals and receives microwave echo signals through the same antenna; the antenna which is separated from the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna is an antenna structure which transmits microwave transmitting signals and receives microwave echo signals through different antennas.
Exemplarily, fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of an antenna structure provided by an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another antenna structure provided by an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 4 and 5, it can be seen that the antenna structure 1003 shown in fig. 4 is an antenna integrated with a transceiver, the antenna structure 1003 shown in fig. 5 is an antenna integrated with a transceiver, and specifically, the antenna structure 1003 shown in fig. 5 may include a receiving antenna 10031 and a transmitting antenna 10032. It is understood that in some embodiments, the locations of the receive antenna 10031 and the transmit antenna 10032 can be interchanged.
Optionally, the antenna structure 1003 includes a dipole antenna, or a microstrip antenna.
To sum up, the embodiment of the utility model provides a through set up antenna structure on microwave transceiver chip for after microwave transceiver chip produced microwave emission signal, microwave emission signal jetted out through antenna structure, and microwave emission signal forms the reflection behind the surface of jar medium, produces microwave echo signal, and microwave echo signal is received by microwave transceiver chip's antenna structure. Therefore, in the embodiment of the utility model provides an, microwave transceiver chip self is integrated to have antenna structure, need not to draw the antenna on PCB, and the circuit structure of having overcome current radar level meter is more complicated, and PCB's area is big on the contrary, and process flow tends to the redundant miscellaneous to and the too high problem of development cost, simplified radar level meter's circuit structure, reduced PCB's in the radar level meter area, retrencied radar level meter's process flow, reduced radar level meter's development cost.
It should be noted that, with the teaching of the embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art can adjust or select the models of the microwave transceiver chip 1002 and the antenna structure 1003 according to the practical application environment of the radar level gauge, which is not limited by the embodiments of the present invention.
On the basis of the above embodiment, fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of another compact radar level gauge provided by the embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 2, optionally further including a circuit board 1001, and the microwave transceiver chip 1002 is fixedly connected to the circuit board 1001.
The microwave transceiver chip 1002 may be fixedly connected to the circuit board 1001 through a process such as soldering, die attach, wire bonding, or flip chip bonding.
Optionally, the antenna structure further comprises a microwave convergence mechanism, the center of the microwave convergence mechanism is opposite to the antenna structure 1003, and the microwave convergence mechanism is used for converging the microwave transmitting signal emitted by the antenna structure 1003 so as to improve the energy of the microwave transmitting signal emitted by the antenna structure 1003; the microwave converging mechanism includes a waveguide 1005, a lens or a conical horn structure, and a first port of the waveguide 1005, the lens or the conical horn structure faces the antenna structure 1003.
Fig. 2 exemplarily shows that the microwave converging mechanism includes a waveguide 1005, and a first port of the waveguide 1005 faces the antenna structure 1003.
For example, fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of another compact radar level gauge provided by the embodiment of the present invention, and referring to fig. 11, the microwave convergence mechanism includes a conical horn structure 1019, and a first port of the conical horn structure 1019 faces to the antenna structure.
Optionally, a horn antenna 1006 is further included, a first port of the horn antenna 1006 is connected to the waveguide 1005, the second port of the lens or the conical horn structure, and the second port of the horn antenna 1006 is used for transmitting the microwave transmitting signal.
Optionally, the second port of the feedhorn 1006 is provided with an insulating cover 1007.
Optionally, the center of the insulating cover 1007 forms a lens structure to focus the microwave transmission signal and concentrate the radiation energy of the microwave transmission signal, narrowing the beam of the microwave transmission signal.
The center of the insulating cover 1007 forming the lens structure can collect the microwave transmitting signal, concentrate the radiation energy of the microwave transmitting signal, narrow the wave beam of the microwave transmitting signal, and is beneficial to improving the signal gain of the microwave transmitting signal and improving the transmitting angle of the microwave transmitting signal.
Optionally, the microwave transceiver module further comprises a shielding case 1004, wherein a first end of the shielding case 1004 is fixed on the circuit board 1001 to which the microwave transceiver chip 1002 is connected; the second end of the shielding shell 1004 is connected to the first port of the waveguide 1005, lens or cone horn structure, and is integrated with the waveguide 1005, lens or cone horn structure to enclose the microwave transceiver chip 1002.
Optionally, the microwave transceiver further includes a lens antenna 1008, a central axis of the lens antenna 1008 is perpendicular to the microwave transceiver chip 1002 and the circuit board 1001 and is disposed opposite to the microwave transceiver chip 1002, and the lens antenna 1008 is configured to converge the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal, so as to improve gains of the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal.
Optionally, the bottom of the insulating cover 1007 is triangular or elliptical in shape.
The bottom of the insulating cover 1007 refers to an end of the insulating cover 1007 far away from the second port of the horn antenna 1006.
As can be seen, fig. 2 exemplarily shows that the bottom shape of the insulating cover 1007 is an ellipse. In addition, FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another compact radar level gauge according to an embodiment of the present invention, and referring to FIG. 3, the bottom of the insulating cover 1007 is triangular.
Optionally, the material of the insulating cover 1007 is plastic, wave-transparent sealing material or anticorrosive material.
The material of the insulating cover 1007 may be Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or may be Perfluoroalkoxy (PFA), for example.
Optionally, the shielding shell 1004 is cylindrical, square, or ellipsoidal in shape.
Optionally, the shield case 1004 is composed of metal or plastic.
The shielding case 1004 may be made of plastic or plated metal.
Alternatively, the first end of the shielding case 1004 is fixedly connected to the circuit board 1001 by screws or pins.
Alternatively, the number of screws or pins is at least two.
Alternatively, the pins are cylindrical or cubical in shape.
Wherein, when the first end of shielding shell 1004 passes through screw and circuit board 1001 fixed connection, the embodiment of the utility model provides a can set up a plurality of screwed screw holes that have according to the quantity adaptability of screw on shielding shell 1004 and circuit board 1001 to make in the screw in screw hole, and then link in an organic whole with shielding shell 1004's first end and circuit board 1001.
It is understood that, in some embodiments, the first end of the shielding shell 1004 may be fixedly connected to the circuit board 1001 by the same number of screws and nuts, and in this case, a plurality of screw holes having threads may be adaptively formed on the shielding shell 1004 and the circuit board 1001 according to the number of the screws and nuts, and after the screws are screwed into the screw holes, the nuts are screwed onto the screws, so that the first end of the shielding shell 1004 is integrally connected to the circuit board 1001.
In addition, when the first end of the shield case 1004 is fixedly connected to the circuit board 1001 through the pins, a plurality of pin holes may be adaptively provided on the circuit board 1001 according to the number of pins so that the pins are inserted into the pin holes, thereby integrally connecting the first end of the shield case 1004 to the circuit board 1001.
Exemplarily, fig. 7 is a front view of a connection structure of a shielding shell according to an embodiment of the present invention, fig. 8 is a top view of a connection structure of a shielding shell according to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 7 and 8, it is known that the shielding shell 1004 is integrally connected to a circuit board through a pin a, the shielding shell 1004 is shaped as a rectangular parallelepiped, the first end of the shielding shell 1004 is provided with four pins a, the pin a is shaped as a cube (specifically, a rectangular parallelepiped), and the waveguide 1005 is shaped as a cylinder.
Exemplarily, fig. 9 is a top view of another shield shell connection structure provided in an embodiment of the present invention, and referring to fig. 9, it can be known that a shield shell 1004 is integrally connected to a circuit board by screws, the shield shell 1004 and a waveguide 1005 are both cylindrical, and a first end of the shield shell 1004 is provided with three screw holes D.
Exemplarily, fig. 10 is a top view of a connection structure of another shielding case according to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 10, it can be known that the shielding case 1004 is also connected to the circuit board by screws, the shielding case 1004 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, the first end of the shielding case 1004 is provided with two screw holes D, and the waveguide 1005 has a cylindrical shape.
Optionally, lens antenna 1008 is constructed from plastic or other material that is readily transparent to microwaves.
With continued reference to fig. 2 and/or 3, the specific signal transmission flow of the compact radar level gauge is exemplarily as follows:
the microwave transmitting and receiving chip 1002 generates a microwave transmitting signal, the microwave transmitting signal is emitted from an antenna structure 1003 on the microwave transmitting and receiving chip 1002, and passes through the shielding shell 1004, the waveguide 1005, the horn antenna 1006, the insulating cover 1007 and the lens antenna 1008 in sequence, and finally reaches the surface of the medium in the tank; the microwave transmitting signal is reflected by the surface of the medium in the tank to correspondingly generate a microwave echo signal, and the microwave echo signal sequentially passes through the lens antenna 1008, the insulating cover 1007, the horn antenna 1006, the waveguide 1005 and the shielding case 1004 and is finally received by the antenna structure 1003 on the microwave transceiver chip 1002.
With continued reference to FIG. 11, the specific signal transmission flow of the compact radar level gauge is exemplarily as follows:
the microwave transceiver chip 1002 generates a microwave transmitting signal, the microwave transmitting signal is emitted from an antenna structure on the microwave transceiver chip 1002, sequentially passes through the shielding shell 1004, the conical horn structure 1019, the horn antenna 1006, the insulating cover 1007 and the lens antenna 1008, and finally reaches the surface of a medium in the tank; microwave transmitting signals are correspondingly reflected by the surface of a medium in the tank to generate microwave echo signals, and the microwave echo signals sequentially penetrate through the lens antenna 1008, the insulating cover 1007, the horn antenna 1006, the conical horn structure 1019 and the shielding shell 1004 and are finally received by the antenna structure on the microwave transceiver chip 1002.
Therefore, in the embodiment of the utility model provides an in, microwave transceiver chip self is integrated with antenna structure, need not to draw the antenna on PCB, and the circuit structure that has overcome current radar level meter is more complicated, and PCB's area is big partially, and process flow tends to the redundant miscellaneous to and the too high problem of development cost, the circuit structure of radar level meter has been simplified, has reduced PCB's in the radar level meter area, has retrencied the process flow of radar level meter, has reduced the development cost of radar level meter.
It should be noted that the bottom shape and material of the insulating cover 1007, the shape and composition of the shielding case 1004, the type, shape and number of the connecting medium between the shielding case 1004 and the circuit board 1001, and other technical features can be adaptively adjusted according to the actual application environment of the compact radar level gauge, which is not limited by the embodiments of the present invention.
On the basis of the above embodiment, fig. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of another compact radar level gauge provided by the embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 6, the microwave transceiver chip 1002 includes a VCO signal source 1009, a Power Amplifier (PA) 1010, a Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) 1011, and a mixer 1012.
The VCO signal source 1009 is configured to generate different microwave signals according to different control voltages; the power amplifier 1010 is connected between the VCO signal source 1009 and the antenna structure 1003, and is configured to amplify power of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source 1009 to generate a microwave transmission signal; the low-noise amplifier 1011 is connected to the antenna structure 1003 and configured to perform power amplification and noise suppression on the microwave echo signal; the mixer 1012 is connected to the low noise amplifier 1011 for receiving the microwave echo signal, and to the antenna structure 1003 and the power amplifier 1010 for receiving the microwave transmit signal; the mixer 1012 is used for mixing the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal to obtain an intermediate frequency signal.
The microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source 1009 forms a microwave transmitting signal after being amplified by the power amplifier 1010, and the microwave transmitting signal is transmitted to the mixer 1012 and the antenna structure 1003 and then emitted through the antenna structure 1003 on the microwave transceiver chip 1002; the microwave transmitting signal is reflected by the surface of the medium in the tank to generate a microwave echo signal, which is received by the antenna structure 1003, and is amplified in power and suppressed in noise by the low noise amplifier 1011, and transmitted to the mixer 1012 to be mixed with the microwave transmitting signal.
It is noted that the VCO in fig. 6 refers to VCO signal source 1009, the pa refers to power amplifier 1010, and the lna refers to low noise amplifier 1011.
Continuing with FIG. 6, the specific signal transmission flow of the compact radar level gauge is exemplarily as follows:
a microwave signal generated by a VCO signal source 1009 forms a microwave transmit signal after being amplified by a power amplifier 1010, the microwave transmit signal is input to a mixer 1012 and an antenna structure 1003, the microwave transmit signal input to the antenna structure 1003 is emitted from a microwave transceiver chip 1002 through the antenna structure 1003, then the microwave transmit signal sequentially passes through a waveguide 1005 (see fig. 2 or fig. 3) or a conical horn structure 1019 (see fig. 11) outside the microwave transceiver chip 1002, and the horn antenna 1006, an insulating cover 1007 and a lens antenna 1008 and is transmitted to a surface of a medium in a tank, the microwave transmit signal is reflected by the surface of the medium in the tank to form a microwave echo signal, and the microwave echo signal sequentially passes through the lens antenna 1008, the insulating cover 1007, the horn antenna 1006, and the waveguide 1005 or the conical horn structure 1019 and is received by the antenna structure 1003.
It is known that there are often a lot of noise components in the microwave echo signal, which results in a low signal-to-noise ratio of the microwave echo signal. In view of this, the embodiment of the present invention first performs power amplification and noise suppression on the microwave echo signal by setting the low noise amplifier 1011, and then transfers the microwave echo signal with higher signal-to-noise ratio to the mixer 1012 for mixing.
As known, the intermediate frequency signal refers to a signal capable of representing a frequency difference between the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal. It will be appreciated that the intermediate frequency signal can be used to determine the level value of the medium in the tank, since the frequency difference between the microwave transmit signal and the microwave echo signal is proportional to time, and the time is proportional to the level value of the medium in the tank.
With continued reference to fig. 6, optionally, the peripheral circuits of the microwave transceiver chip 1002 include a power supply module 1013, a processor 1016, a phase locked loop 1014, an ADC module 1015, a communication module 1017, and a display module 1018.
And a power supply module 1013 connected to the microwave transceiver chip 1002 and the processor 1016 and configured to receive an external power supply and convert the external power supply into multiple working voltages to maintain normal operation of the compact radar level gauge.
A processor 1016, connected to the ADC module 1015 and the phase-locked loop 1014, for receiving an output signal of the ADC module 1015, and generating a level value and a level waveform curve based on the output signal of the ADC module 1015; and is further configured to output configuration parameters of the start frequency, the bandwidth, the sampling point, and the sampling rate to the phase locked loop 1014 to adjust the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source 1009.
A communication module 1017 connected between the processor 1016 and the display module 1018 for enabling communication between the processor 1016 and the display module 1018.
A display module 1018 for displaying output information of the processor 1016 for enabling a user to commission and/or control the compact radar level gauge based on the output information of the processor 1016 displayed by the display module 1018; wherein the output information of the processor 1016 includes at least a level value or a level waveform curve.
The phase-locked loop 1014, connected between the processor 1016 and the VCO signal source 1009, is configured to adjust the amplitude and the voltage type of the control voltage output to the VCO signal source 1009 according to the configuration parameter generated by the processor 1016 and the feedback signal of the VCO signal source 1009, so as to control the frequency and the phase of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source 1009.
The ADC module 1015 is connected between the processor 1016 and the mixer 1012, and is configured to perform acquisition processing on the output signal of the mixer 1012 and upload the output signal to the processor 1016.
The ADC in fig. 6 refers to the ADC module 1015; the peripheral circuits of the microwave transceiver chip 1002 may be integrally integrated on the microwave transceiver chip 1002.
As can be seen, the frequency of the intermediate frequency signal is low, and thus the sampling rate requirement of the intermediate frequency signal for subsequent circuitry or devices of the compact radar level gauge, i.e. the ADC module 1015, is low.
Illustratively, when the control voltage is a dc voltage, the phase locked loop 1014 adjusts the frequency of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source 1009 according to the amplitude of the dc voltage; when the control voltage is a sinusoidal voltage, the VCO signal source 1009 is a frequency modulated oscillator; when the control voltage is a sawtooth voltage, the VCO signal source 1009 is a swept-frequency oscillator; it is understood that in the embodiment of the present invention, the VCO signal source 1009 preferably generates a microwave signal with a regular frequency variation.
As can be seen, the ADC module 1015 is configured to collect and process the output signal of the mixer 1012 and upload the signal to the processor 1016, that is, the ADC module 1015 collects the output signal of the mixer 1012, converts the signal type of the output signal of the mixer 1012 from an analog signal to a discrete digital signal, and uploads the signal to the processor 1016. Based on this, the output signal of the ADC module 1015 refers to the output signal of the mixer 1012, which is a discrete digital signal.
In addition, the phase-locked loop 1014 adjusts the amplitude and the voltage type of the control voltage output to the VCO signal source 1009 according to the configuration parameters, such as the starting frequency, the bandwidth, the sampling point, and the sampling rate, generated by the processor 1016 and the feedback signal of the VCO signal source 1009, so as to achieve the purpose of controlling the frequency and the phase of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source 1009, and enable the microwave transceiver chip 1002 to generate the microwave transmitting signal with the frequency range of 60GHz to 300GHz.
As can be appreciated, processor 1016 may be implemented as a single chip or system on a chip; the external power supply may be a mains supply, and the multi-stage operating voltages may include voltage levels of 3.3V, 5V, ± 12V, ± 15V or 24V, for example, to ensure steady-state operation of the processor 1016, the communication module 1017, the display module 1018, the microwave transceiver chip 1002, the ADC module 1015 and the phase-locked loop 1014, thereby maintaining normal operation of the entire compact radar level gauge; the communication mode of the communication module 1017 may be wired communication and/or wireless communication, such as bluetooth, wiFi, 4G/5G or ZigBee.
Illustratively, the display module 1018 may be composed of a screen (e.g., a CRT display screen, an LCD display screen, an LED display screen, etc.) and keys; when the user adjusts the sampling start frequency of the ADC module 1015 through a button, the display module 1018 uploads the adjusted sampling start frequency of the ADC module 1015 to the processor 1016 through the communication module 1017, and the processor 1016 adaptively adjusts the sampling start frequency of the ADC module 1015 according to the user's requirement.
In some embodiments, voice interaction by display module 1018 may be achieved by: the display module 1018 collects and records the user voice audio and uploads the user voice audio to the processor 1016 through the communication module 1017; the processor 1016 samples and encodes the user speech audio and converts the user speech audio into text information; the processor 1016 extracts the adjusted start frequency sampled by the ADC module 1015 contained in the text message; the processor 1016 adaptively adjusts the sampling start frequency of the ADC module 1015 according to the user's requirement; display module 1018 refreshes and displays output information from processor 1016.
In other embodiments, the somatosensory interaction of display module 1018 may be implemented by: the display module 1018 collects and inputs the posture information (e.g., body movements, gestures, and/or facial expressions) of the user, and uploads the posture information of the user to the processor 1016 through the communication module 1017; the processor 1016 converts the user's posture information into text information; the processor 1016 extracts the adjusted starting frequency sampled by the ADC module 1015 included in the text message; the processor 1016 adaptively adjusts the sampling start frequency of the ADC module 1015 according to the user's requirement; display module 1018 refreshes and displays output information from processor 1016.
The embodiment of the utility model provides an in, microwave transceiver chip self is integrated with antenna structure, need not to draw the antenna on PCB, and the circuit structure of having overcome current radar level meter is more complicated, and PCB's area is big on the contrary, and technological process tends to the redundant miscellaneous to and the too high problem of development cost, simplified radar level meter's circuit structure, reduced PCB's among the radar level meter area, retrencied radar level meter's technological process, reduced radar level meter's development cost.
In addition, the applicant also finds that in the existing radar level gauge, the microwave high-frequency chip needs to be configured with a large number of peripheral circuits to work normally, and the peripheral circuits greatly occupy the area of the PCB, so that the whole area of the PCB is larger. In view of this, the embodiment of the present invention can integrate the peripheral circuit of the microwave transceiver chip on the microwave transceiver chip, so that the peripheral circuit of the microwave transceiver chip no longer occupies the PCB, thereby solving the problem of the excessive area of the PCB in the existing radar level meter and further reducing the area of the PCB in the radar level meter.
It should be noted that the foregoing is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the technical principles applied. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described herein, but is capable of various obvious changes, rearrangements and substitutions as will now become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. Therefore, although the present invention has been described in greater detail with reference to the above embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and may include other equivalent embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention.
Claims (21)
1. A compact radar level gauge for measuring the level of a medium in a tank; the compact radar level gauge comprises:
the microwave transceiver chip is provided with an antenna structure;
the microwave transceiver chip generates a microwave transmitting signal and then emits the microwave transmitting signal through the antenna structure; and reflecting the microwave transmitting signal after reaching the surface of the medium in the tank to generate a microwave echo signal, wherein the microwave echo signal is received by the antenna structure of the microwave transceiving chip.
2. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 1, further comprising:
and the microwave transceiver chip is fixedly connected to the circuit board.
3. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 2, further comprising:
the center of the microwave convergence mechanism is over against the antenna structure and is used for converging the microwave transmitting signals emitted by the antenna structure so as to improve the energy of the microwave transmitting signals emitted by the antenna structure;
the microwave convergence mechanism comprises a waveguide, a lens or a conical horn structure, and a first port of the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure faces the antenna structure.
4. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 3, further comprising:
the first port of the horn antenna is connected with the second port of the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure, and the second port of the horn antenna is used for transmitting the microwave transmitting signal.
5. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 4, wherein the second port of said horn antenna is provided with an insulating shield.
6. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 5, wherein said insulating shield has a central lens structure for focusing said microwave transmission signal and concentrating the radiation energy of said microwave transmission signal for narrowing the beam of said microwave transmission signal.
7. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 5, wherein the bottom of said insulating shield is triangular or elliptical in shape.
8. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 5, wherein said insulating shield is made of plastic, wave-transparent sealing material or material of a corrosion-resistant nature.
9. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 3, further comprising:
the first end of the shielding shell is fixed on the circuit board connected with the microwave transceiver chip; and the second end of the shielding shell is connected with the first port of the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure and is connected with the waveguide, the lens or the conical horn structure into a whole so as to surround the microwave transceiver chip.
10. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 9, wherein said shielding shell has the shape of a cylinder, a cube or an ellipsoid.
11. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 9, wherein said shielding shell is made of metal or plastic.
12. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 9, wherein said first end of said shielding shell is fixedly connected to said circuit board by means of screws or pins.
13. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 12, wherein said number of screws or pins is at least two.
14. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 12, wherein said pin is cylindrical or cubical in shape.
15. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 2, further comprising:
the central shaft of the lens antenna is perpendicular to the microwave transceiver chip and the circuit board and is arranged right opposite to the microwave transceiver chip, and the lens antenna is used for converging the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal so as to improve the gains of the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal.
16. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 15, wherein said lens antenna is made of plastic or other material that is easily penetrated by microwaves.
17. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 1, wherein said microwave transmitting signal generated by said microwave transceiver chip has a frequency in the range of 60GHz to 300GHz.
18. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 1, wherein said microwave transceiver chip comprises:
the VCO signal source is used for generating different microwave signals according to different control voltages;
the power amplifier is connected between the VCO signal source and the antenna structure and used for amplifying the power of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source so as to generate the microwave transmitting signal;
the low-noise amplifier is connected with the antenna structure and is used for carrying out power amplification and noise suppression on the microwave echo signal;
the mixer is connected with the low-noise amplifier to access the microwave echo signal, and is connected with the antenna structure and the power amplifier to access the microwave transmitting signal; the frequency mixer is used for mixing the microwave transmitting signal and the microwave echo signal to obtain an intermediate frequency signal;
the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source is amplified by the power amplifier to form the microwave transmitting signal, and the microwave transmitting signal is transmitted to the mixer and the antenna structure and then emitted through the antenna structure on the microwave transceiver chip; the microwave transmitting signal is reflected by the surface of the medium in the tank to generate the microwave echo signal, the microwave echo signal is received by the antenna structure, and the low-noise amplifier performs power amplification and noise suppression so as to be transmitted to the mixer to be mixed with the microwave transmitting signal.
19. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 18, wherein said peripheral circuits of said microwave transceiver chip comprise a power supply module, a processor, a phase locked loop, an ADC module, a communication module and a display module;
the power supply module is connected with the microwave transceiver chip and the processor and used for receiving external power supply and converting the external power supply into multi-stage working voltage so as to maintain the normal work of the compact radar level gauge;
the processor is connected with the ADC module and the phase-locked loop and used for receiving the output signal of the ADC module and generating a level value and a level waveform curve based on the output signal of the ADC module; the VCO signal source is used for generating a microwave signal according to the microwave signal;
the communication module is connected between the processor and the display module and is used for realizing communication between the processor and the display module;
the display module is used for displaying the output information of the processor so that a user can debug and/or control the compact radar level gauge based on the output information of the processor displayed by the display module; wherein the output information of the processor comprises at least the level value or the level waveform profile;
the phase-locked loop is connected between the processor and the VCO signal source and used for adjusting the amplitude and the voltage type of the control voltage output to the VCO signal source according to the configuration parameters generated by the processor and the feedback signal of the VCO signal source so as to control the frequency and the phase of the microwave signal generated by the VCO signal source;
and the ADC module is connected between the processor and the frequency mixer and used for collecting and processing the output signal of the frequency mixer and then uploading the output signal to the processor.
20. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 1, wherein said antenna structure is a transceiver-integrated antenna or a transceiver-separate antenna.
21. The compact radar level gauge according to claim 1, wherein said antenna structure comprises a dipole antenna, a dipole antenna or a microstrip antenna.
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| CN202222633701.1U CN218097945U (en) | 2022-09-28 | 2022-09-28 | Compact radar level gauge |
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| CN202222633701.1U CN218097945U (en) | 2022-09-28 | 2022-09-28 | Compact radar level gauge |
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Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN116734952A (en) * | 2023-04-28 | 2023-09-12 | 河北华创测控技术有限公司 | High-precision radar level measurement and control system |
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Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN116734952A (en) * | 2023-04-28 | 2023-09-12 | 河北华创测控技术有限公司 | High-precision radar level measurement and control system |
| CN116734952B (en) * | 2023-04-28 | 2023-12-15 | 河北华创测控技术有限公司 | High-precision radar level measurement and control system |
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