KRISS develops world-class ultrahigh-precision robotic system for electromagnetic wave measurement

The Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS, President Dr. Lee Ho Seong) has developed a robot-based ultrahigh-precision electromagnetic wave measurement system using its own system design and control technologies. The system can be applied in key fields such as defense, next-generation communications, and semiconductors.

The electromagnetic frequency bands used in next-generation communication components, antennas embedded in semiconductor packages, and aircraft radar systems are becoming increasingly diverse. In particular, high-frequency bands above several tens of gigahertz (GHz) have short wavelengths, meaning that even slight positional deviations of the measurement target can significantly affect measurement results. This makes precision measurement technology essential.

To address this challenge, the KRISS research team introduced robotic technology that can flexibly and precisely control the positions of both the electromagnetic wave measurement instrument and the target. Going beyond the simple use of commercial robots, the team developed core measurement technologies in-house, ranging from system design and control software to position correction technology, ultimately establishing an ultrahigh-precision electromagnetic wave measurement platform.

The system can measure electromagnetic waves across a wide frequency range of up to 750 GHz by using six-degree-of-freedom (6DoF) robotic technology, which enables movement and rotation along multiple axes, together with various scan geometries. In particular, by applying position measurement and correction technology, the team controlled antenna alignment errors to within 10 micrometers (10 μm), or one hundred-thousandth of a meter, a world-class level of precision. This is about one-seventh the thickness of a human hair, improving measurement reliability in high-frequency bands that are highly sensitive to even minute errors.

The system also overcomes the spatial and cost limitations of conventional testing environments by taking advantage of the robot’s flexible mobility. While conventional large-scale electromagnetic test facilities require extensive space and substantial construction costs, the KRISS system uses a method in which the robot precisely moves around the target and performs scans. This allows repeated high-precision testing to be carried out in a smaller space and at lower cost.

These advantages are particularly significant for the evaluation of weapon systems in the defense sector. When assessing the electromagnetic scattering characteristics of scaled models during the development of weapon systems, even small errors in shape or position can have a major impact when converted to full scale. KRISS’s ultrahigh-precision control technology can minimize errors in electromagnetic measurements of scaled models, helping improve the maturity and reliability of defense technologies.

Because both the system design and control software were developed using KRISS’s own technologies, the system can also be equipped with control and monitoring software, as well as measurement configurations, optimized for targets in a wide range of industrial fields. It can be flexibly applied according to the characteristics of each measurement target, including complex aircraft radar systems, phased array antenna modules that require ultrahigh-precision control, and semiconductor antennas.

“This achievement represents an electromagnetic wave measurement system that overcomes the limitations of conventional fixed measurement methods by combining the flexible mobility of robots with precision control technology developed in-house by KRISS,” said Dr. Kwon Jae-Yong, Principal Research Scientist at the Electromagnetic Wave Metrology Group of KRISS. “Moving forward, we plan to further advance electromagnetic wave measurement technology for national strategic technology sectors, including defense, semiconductors, and next-generation communications, by incorporating AI.”

This research was supported by national R&D programs of the Ministry of Science and ICT and KRISS’s basic research programs. The results were published in the international journal Composites Communications last October and received the Best Antenna Measurement Paper Award at ISAP 2024, one of the leading international conferences in the field of antennas and propagation.