More robust, simplified EMC radar testing with R&S®RadEsT

Your task

Modern automotive radar sensors need to be reliable even in the presence of strong electromagnetic fields. Advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) functions, such as adaptive cruise control (ACC), automatic emergency breaking (AEB) and blind spot detection (BSD) have become critical to vehicle safety. Radar systems must maintain accurate range, angle and Doppler measurements while remaining immune to external RF disturbances.

ISO 11452 defines electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and immunity requirements for automotive components, typically up to 100 V/m electric field strength. However, passing EMC limits is not enough to ensure proper radar detection. Strong RF fields can cause desensitization, reduced detection range, ghost targets or loss-of-object tracking – effects that have a direct impact on ADAS performance.

Typical challenge: At field strengths above 100 V/m, some radar sensors may momentarily lose targets or show degraded velocity accuracy – even though EMC immunity limits are met. Functional validation under EM stress is essential and sourcing test equipment for EMS testing chambers up to 200 V/m can be challenging.

The goal: ISO 11452 EMC compliance while validating true radar detection performance under electromagnetic stress conditions up to 200 V/m for reliable operation beyond normative EMC limits.

Rohde & Schwarz solution

The compact R&S®RadEsT radar essential tester closes the gap between classical EMC immunity testing and ADASrelevant radar performance evaluation. The tester can be directly integrated into existing EMC chambers, reverberation chambers or bulk current injection (BCI) environments without needing to modify electromagnetic (EM) field generation.

R&S®RadEsT provides:

• Full compatibility with EMC test setups with electric field strengths up to 200 V/m
• Real-time evaluation of radar sensor behavior while EM fields are applied
• EMC immunity and radar performance assessment in a unified workflow
• Accurate, non-intrusive radar performance measurements without impacting EMC-field generation
• Support for automotive radar frequency bands (76 GHz to 81 GHz)
• Scalable configuration for Tier 1 radar module testing and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) full-vehicle validation

Technical advantages of R&S®RadEsT

• Enhanced robustness testing: Operates alongside EMC systems up to 200 V/m
• High fidelity radar analysis: Simulates range, angle, Doppler and object tracking accuracy
• Real-time correlation: Links radar performance degradation with electric field strength
• Non-intrusive: Does not interfere with radar hardware, and EMC field distribution
• High repeatability: Provides consistent, traceable measurement results across facilities
• Scenario-based evaluation: Optional integration with CARLA to correlate virtual ADAS events with real radar behavior

Operational advantages of R&S®RadEsT

• Single workflow: EMC immunity and radar functional validation in one integrated setup
• Reduced complexity: Plug-in integration into existing EMC chambers
• System-agnostic: Works with any EMC amplifier, antenna or chamber configuration
• Vehicle-in-the-loop-ready: Supports vehicle-in-the-loop (VIL) workflows for system-level OEM testing
• Future-proof: Supports evolving ADAS requirements, wider radar bandwidths and higher sensor integration densities
• Scalable: Ideal for both component-level and full-vehicle system-level testing

Application

ISO 11452 – EMC testing for automotive radar sensors

ISO 11452 defines EMC immunity tests for automotive electronic subsystems, including radar sensors used in passenger and commercial vehicles.

Note: ISO 11452 validates EMC immunity but does not assess radar measurement accuracy. Radar functional performance must be evaluated in addition to EMC compliance.

Component-level testing (Tier 1)

• Validate radar sensor modules according to ISO 11452 requirements
• Assess radiated and conducted immunity and susceptibility, while ensuring radar performance with radar target simulation
• Monitor the full radar detection chain (range, velocity, angle, object tracking) under applied electromagnetic fields
• Accurately evaluate transmitted power and spectrum of the radar sensor under test
• Test in absorber chambers, BCI setups and reverberation chambers
• Combine EMC immunity with thermal or vibration profiles for enhanced reliability validation

Vehicle-level testing (OEM)

• Test radars integrated behind bumpers, grilles, fenders or vehicle corners
• Analyze interactions with other vehicle electronics: infotainment, keyless entry, electric vehicle (EV) inverters, domain controllers
• Conduct full-vehicle EMC tests in a reverberation chamber for emissions, immunity and crosstalk evaluations
• Validate ADAS system behavior – ACC, AEB, BSD, sensor fusion – under realistic EM exposure
• Ensure stable interaction with cameras and light detection and ranging (LiDAR) during electromagnetic stress

Summary

Radar sensors must remain fully functional under strong electromagnetic fields in ADAS vehicles. ISO 11452 compliance alone is not sufficient and engineers must validate real radar detection performance under EM stress to ensure safety and reliability.

The R&S®RadEsT is a powerful platform for comprehensive radar performance evaluation in EMC environments. R&S®RadEsT enables robust, reliable and future-ready radar systems with support for electric field strengths up to 200 V/m, real-time measurement of radar detection behavior and seamless integration into existing test chambers.