Drive Thru Vehicle Detection and Monitoring with Radar

Restaurant drive thru applications require reliable vehicle detection in harsh outdoor environments including wind, falling rain and snow, and fog. In this application, the sensor must detect vehicles and alert employees to a customer’s presence.  Learn how a radar sensor can solve this application and reliably detect vehicles even in challenging weather conditions.

Banner’s R-Gage Q130R radar sensor is ideal for drive thru vehicle detection and monitoring because it uses Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) radar to reliably detect moving or stationary vehicles regardless of environmental conditions. Unlike competing sensing solutions, radar detection is immune to snow, fog, falling rain, and strong winds, ensuring reliable outdoor sensing. The radar sensor's rugged IP67 housing withstands harsh environments, protecting the sensor from extreme weather conditions.

In addition to vehicle detection, the Q130R also enables real-time monitoring and indication. As vehicles approach the drive-through window, the Q130R can be used to signal a light inside the restaurant’s work station to turn red, alerting workers that a customer is approaching the window. The Q130R provides reliable vehicle detection to assist in counting the number of cars passing through and monitor time spent at the window.

The vehicle detection, monitoring and indication help restaurants efficiently respond to drive-thru customers and manage drive-thru operations more effectively.