Effect of Radar Calibration Settings on Vehicle ACC Performance in a Controlled Environment

With the rapid deployment of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), accurate sensor calibration is increasingly important for reliable functional performance. This study investigates how different geometric calibration settings of the front radar are associated with the behavior of a production adaptive cruise control (ACC) system. Static radar calibration was repeatedly performed on a Volkswagen e-Golf using different vertical and horizontal orientation settings. Vehicle tests were conducted at the ZalaZONE automotive proving ground under controlled conditions at 50 and 100 km/h with different ACC following-distance settings, while inter-vehicle distance was independently measured using a 2D LiDAR sensor. At 50 km/h, three repeated runs per evaluated configuration showed only small changes in steady-state following distance, with a maximum mean deviation of approximately 1.04% for following-distance setting No. 1 and mean differences within approximately ±0.25% for setting No. 3. At 100 km/h, no statistically significant difference was found among the evaluated calibration settings, although larger between-run variability occurred for the horizontally offset configurations. More pronounced differences were observed during transient phases. Overall, the results indicate limited and system-specific sensitivity of steady-state ACC following behavior to the tested geometric radar calibration deviations.