How Does a Speed Radar Detector Work?
( principal)
A speed radar detector is a specialized electronic gadget used by certain motorists to detect whether
law enforcement or police are monitoring their speed using a radar gun. The radar detector allows the
drivers to reduce their speed, and avoid getting a ticket for over speeding. The development of radar
detectors proves that law bending has become prevalent and widely accepted. Introduced in the 70s,
radar detectors have gained popularity, and become a must–have accessory for most speed junkies.
Certain countries have outlawed the processing or use of radar detectors or jammers. Drivers caught
using such devices face traffic ticket violations and fines, seizure of the gadgets, or both. The premise for
prohibition is that a driver who uses the device is more likely to over speed, thus posing a greater risk to
other motorists and pedestrians, than a driver who does not use the device. However, a 2001 research
conducted by Ipsos MORI, a market research organization based in the UK, suggested that users of the
radar detector posed a 28 percent lower possibility of accident.
How a Speed Radar Detector Works
The first step in understanding how a radar detector works is by knowing what exactly the device
detects, i.e., radar. The basic speed gun used by law enforcement is a combination of a radio receiver
and transmitter in one unit. The transmitter fluctuates an electrical current upwards and downwards at
a certain frequency, generating electromagnetic energy that travels through the air as a wave. It also has
an amplifier that enhances the intensity of the energy, as well as an antenna that broadcasts the energy
into the air. On the other hand, the receiver performs the opposite, by picking up electromagnetic
waves using the antenna, and converting them into an electrical current.
Radar uses radio waves to detect and monitor objects, and give an indication of how far away an object
is, by emitting a concentrated wave and listening for the echo. Radio waves move through the air at the
speed of light; therefore, a radar device can calculate how far an object is, based on the duration it takes
for the signal to return.
When it comes to measuring speed, radar technology uses the Doppler shift. Radio waves have a certain
frequency, just like sound waves. When the car and the radar gun are both still, the original signal and
the echo have the same frequency, with each section of the reflected signal mirroring the original signal;
however, when the car is moving, the signal frequency changes, thus, the reflected signal creates
different wave patterns, based on the direction and speed the car is travelling.
The radar gun can calculate the velocity of a car that is moving away from it or towards it, based on the
frequency changes. Sometimes, police use a radar gun while inside a moving police car. In this case, the
speed of the police car must factor in the calculation. For example, if the gun detects that the other car
is moving away at 30 miles an hour and the police car is moving at 50 miles an hour, then the target
must be moving at 80 miles an hour.
A speed radar detector is able to detect a radar gun based on the radio waves it emits. In simple terms, a
radar detector acts as a radio receiver, and picks up specific radar device frequencies. Since police radar
guns cast a wide radio wave net while tracking a single target, other motorists with radio detectors in
their cars can detect radar radio waves before they come within range of the police car.
How a radar speed detector works
A radar speed gun, also known as a radar gun, speed gun, or speed trap gun, is a device used to measure
the speed of moving objects. It is commonly used by police to check the speed of moving vehicles while
conducting traffic enforcement, and in professional sports to measure speeds such as those of baseball
pitches,[1] tennis serves, and cricket bowls.[2]
Microdigicam Laser radar gun in use in Brazil
Handheld radar speed gun
A radar speed gun is a Doppler radar unit that may be handheld, vehicle-mounted, or static. It measures
the speed of the objects at which it is pointed by detecting a change in frequency of the returned radar
signal caused by the Doppler effect, whereby the frequency of the returned signal is increased in
proportion to the object's speed of approach if the object is approaching, and lowered if the object is
receding.[3] Such devices are frequently used for speed limit enforcement, although more modern
LIDAR speed gun instruments, which use pulsed laser light instead of radar, began to replace radar guns
during the first decade of the twenty-first century, because of limitations associated with small radar
systems
A radar speed gun, also known as a radar gun, speed gun, or speed trap gun, is a device used to measure
the speed of moving objects. It is commonly used by police to check the speed of moving vehicles while
conducting traffic enforcement, and in professional sports to measure speeds such as those of baseball
pitches,[1] tennis serves, and cricket bowls.[2]
Microdigicam Laser radar gun in use in Brazil
Handheld radar speed gun
A radar speed gun is a Doppler radar unit that may be handheld, vehicle-mounted, or static. It measures
the speed of the objects at which it is pointed by detecting a change in frequency of the returned radar
signal caused by the Doppler effect, whereby the frequency of the returned signal is increased in
proportion to the object's speed of approach if the object is approaching, and lowered if the object is
receding.[3] Such devices are frequently used for speed limit enforcement, although more modern
LIDAR speed gun instruments, which use pulsed laser light instead of radar, began to replace radar guns
during the first decade of the twenty-first century, because of limitations associated with small radar
systemsPrinciple of a laser speed detector
How a laser speed detector works
A radar speed gun, also known as a radar gun, speed gun, or speed trap gun, is a device used to measure
the speed of moving objects. It is commonly used by police to check the speed of moving vehicles while
conducting traffic enforcement, and in professional sports to measure speeds such as those of baseball
pitches,[1] tennis serves, and cricket bowls.[2]
Microdigicam Laser radar gun in use in Brazil
Handheld radar speed gun
A radar speed gun is a Doppler radar unit that may be handheld, vehicle-mounted, or static. It measures
the speed of the objects at which it is pointed by detecting a change in frequency of the returned radar
signal caused by the Doppler effect, whereby the frequency of the returned signal is increased in
proportion to the object's speed of approach if the object is approaching, and lowered if the object is
receding.[3] Such devices are frequently used for speed limit enforcement, although more modern
LIDAR speed gun instruments, which use pulsed laser light instead of radar, began to replace radar guns
during the first decade of the twenty-first century, because of limitations associated with small radar
systems
