AWR6843AOPEVM: What is the difference between the AWR6843AOPEVM and the AWR1843AOPEVM?

Daan van de Graaf

Part Number: AWR6843AOPEVM
Other Parts Discussed in Thread: AWR1843AOPEVM, AWR1642BOOST,

pretty simple question, I have some sensors here and I'd like the know the difference, mostly in application.

It's between the similar AWR6843AOPEVM and AWR1843AOPEVM, aswell as the AWR1642BOOST.

I'm trying to build a robot that autonomously operates in an outdoor envoirnment, using ROS.
For this project I figured that besides LiDAR, mmWave radar sensors would work great.
So now I have these 3 sensors, that all have similar specs, use similar example projects in CCS, and all should work the same in ROS?

so what's the difference and which one should I use?
the robot will perform in both daylight and nighttime, during sunshine and rain. behind a glass/plastic cover that it has to see through.

Thanks in advance for any explanations, tips, or advice given.

9 months ago

0 Josh Wyatt 9 months ago

TI__Guru* 91206 points

Dear Dann -

Here you can view the technical comparison/differences of the devices that are the heart of the EVMs.

https://www.ti.com/compare-products/?id=3559&type=GPT&partList=AWR1843AOP,AWR6843AOP,AWR1642&columnList=1507,994,993,906max,2115,1918,2098,1217,1219,1498,1192,3316,1130,498,2954,2955,-4

The EVMs are all similar in nature and the main difference between these devices is the frequency of operation, where the -6843AOP is targeted at applications that need to run in 57-64GHz band vs. 76-81GHz of the other two variants. You need to first check your local regulatory restrictions to choose your band or if it could be either, for your robot application.. Peripherals, memory and performance drive the price differences.

There is a radome design guide here for the AOP devices: https://www.ti.com/lit/an/swra705/swra705.pdf

+1 Kristien Everett 9 months ago

TI__Expert 7135 points

Hey Daan,

In addition to what Josh has shared already, I would also like to point out that TI has also put together a page in Radar Academy that gives an overview on frequency band regulations around the world and links to the respective communication regulation organizations: https://dev.ti.com/tirex/explore/node?node=A__AcDXMJLpUpVPFqK8.nwajw__RADAR-ACADEMY__GwxShWe__LATEST&placeholder=true

Additionally, I would recommend taking a quick look through our robotics pages in the Radar Toolbox which include example code for detecting and avoiding obstacles, classification of surfaces being traversed, and a ROS driver. https://dev.ti.com/tirex/explore/node?node=A__AADmvwTa5NEerQpNX45UAg__radar_toolbox__1AslXXD__LATEST&placeholder=true

Regards,

Kristien

0 Daan van de Graaf 9 months ago in reply to Kristien Everett

Prodigy 30 points

Hello Kristien,

Thanks for your quick and insightful response,
I'm thinking of using the AWR1642BOOST, and am currently following the toolbox steps for connecting this sensor to a ROS setup.
The step I am at now is flashing the device with the correct binaries.
However, the provided documents only state which file to flash for the xWR6843AOPEVM and xWR6843ISK/ODSEVM
(By the way, I couldn't find the suggested .bin files for these radars anyway?)

I find this weird as the AWR1642BOOST is specifically mentioned in the supported hardware for ROS drivers.
Can you maybe tell me which .bin file I need to flash on the AWR1642BOOST?

I would also be okay switching to the AWR6843AOPEVM, however,
could you then tell me how I can find the location for "MMWAVE_SDK3_INSTALL_DIR>/packages/ti/demo/xwr64xx/mmw/xwr64xxAOP_mmw_demo.bin"
Because it neither located in the Toolbox/Examples where all the other .bin files are, or anywhere on my Linux virtual machine
(My virtual Machine has mmwave_ti_ros package installed)

Thanks for any help that can be provided :)

0 Kristien Everett 9 months ago in reply to Daan van de Graaf

TI__Expert 7135 points

Hey Daan,

Under ros2_driver/src/ti_mmwave_rospkg/bin, there should be binaries for all supported demos and devices. The README file in that folder also lists out what is currently supported. In the case of the AWRL1642BOOST, you can flash the xwr16xx_mmw_demo.bin.

As for the location of the xwr64xxAOP_mmw_demo.bin, you can install the TI MMWAVE SDK (https://www.ti.com/tool/download/MMWAVE-SDK) which contains libraries and examples for 16xx, 18xx, 64xx, and 68xx devices, but the binary is also found in the previously mentioned bin folder.

Regards,

Kristien

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AWR6843AOPEVM: What is the difference between the AWR6843AOPEVM and the AWR1843AOPEVM?