Software defined antenna

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A software defined antenna (SDA), following and exploiting the concept of software-defined radio (SDR), is an idea for an antenna system that can be adjusted in such way that similar characteristics can be maintained for any frequency. Once installed, SDA could be used to support any radio-based telecommunication system in any band, with the same level of performance, e.g., GSM 900 MHz, then UMTS after migration to 2100 MHz followed by LTE in 2600 MHz band.

The first mathematical research on SDA began in the late 1950s (U.S. Patent 3,202,990)[1] and focused on steering the side lobes of radar receivers to be less susceptible to jamming, but rapid developments in SDR technology are causing manufacturers to pay more attention to this subject in general.

Digital tuner

A prototype software defined antenna was developed by Syntonics, a small U.S. company located in Columbia, Maryland working with researchers at the ElectroScience Laboratory of Ohio State University (B2 U.S. Patent 7,561,109 B2).[2] This prototype SDA uses small movable pixel elements to selectively form reconfigurable microwave transmission lines and radiating patch elements. Under software control, changes to the size, shape, orientation and number of the radiating elements alter the frequency, polarization, gain and beam angle of the SDA based on external data input.[3] Starting in 2004, the U.S. Department of Defense funded a series of feasibility and prototyping contracts to develop this SDA concept.[4]

Measurements of this early prototype hardware, built with super sized pixels about 6 mm wide, have demonstrated tunable patch antenna structures operating at microwave frequencies. A pair of these patch elements was formed along with microstrip transmission lines to interconnect and feed the patches. Software defined variations in the feed lines created relative phase differences between the patches, thus steering the beam.[5]

Large, conformal surfaces of this type could be easily reconfigured in near real time to provide beam steering of high gain antenna patterns. The ability to rapidly change frequency could also be advantageous for software defined radios that hop across large parts of the radio spectrum. SDAs could be used as multifunctional apertures connecting to different radios as the need arises.

It appears that one of the Scandinavia-based telecommunication companies is also working on an operational prototype [citation needed].

References

  1. ↑ , US Patent 3202990, Filed May 4, 1959.
  2. ↑ , US Patent 7,561,109 B2, Issued July 14, 2009, Reconfigurable antenna using addressable pixel pistons.
  3. ↑ , The Software Defined Antenna; Prototype and Programming, 30th Annual AMTA Symposium, Boston, MA, 2008.
  4. ↑ SBIR MDA04-063, Phase I, Electronically Steerable Antenna for Kill Vehicle and Space Platforms, contract W9113M-04-P-0061; SBIR N06-040, Phase I, Ultra-Wide band Antenna (UWBA) for Electronic Attack Aircraft, contract N68936-06-C-0052; SBIR N06-040, Phase II, Ultra-Wide band Antenna (UWBA) for Electronic Attack Aircraft, contract N68936-07-C-0051; SBIR N06-117, Phase I, Low Cost Conformal Transmit/Receive SATCOM Antenna for Military Patrol Aircraft, contract N68335-07-C-0059; SBIR N06-117, Phase II, Low Cost Conformal Transmit/Receive SATCOM Antenna for Military Patrol Aircraft, contract N68335-08-C-0115; SBIR AF083-050, Phase I, Communications-On-The-Move (COTM) Antenna Pointing and Stabilization System, contract FA8750-09-C-0117.
  5. ↑ , The Software Defined Antenna; Measurement and Simulation of a Two Element Array, Antennas and Propagation Society International Symposium, 2009. APSURSI '09.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.