Communications: radio wave antennas – Antennas – Microstrip
Reexamination Certificate
2001-05-31
2002-11-12
Ho, Tan (Department: 2821)
Communications: radio wave antennas
Antennas
Microstrip
C343S744000, C343S742000, C343S867000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06480158
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention pertains to meander line loaded antennas and more particularly to such an antenna that operates simultaneously in two different modes and two different frequency bands.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the past efficient antennas have typically required structures with minimum dimensions on the order of a quarter wavelength of the radiating frequency. These dimensions allowed the antenna to be excited easily and to be operated at or near a resonance, limiting the energy dissipated in resistive losses and maximizing the transmitted energy. However, these antennas tended to be large in size at the resonant wavelength. Further, as frequency decreased, the antenna dimensions increased in proportion.
As the demand for smaller communication devices has surged, there is a growing need for compact antenna designs. Furthermore, there is a strong interest in antennas that operate in multiple frequency bands.
In order to address some of the shortcomings of traditional antenna design and functionality, the meander line loaded antenna (MLA) was developed. One MLA is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,790,080, for MEANDER LINE LOADED ANTENNA that is hereby incorporated by reference. An example of a MLA, sometimes labeled as a varied impedance transmission line antenna, is shown therein. The antenna consists of two vertical conductors and a horizontal conductor. The vertical and horizontal conductors are separated by gaps that use meander lines, which are connected between the vertical and horizontal conductors at the gaps.
The meander line is designed to adjust the electrical length of the antenna. In addition, the design of the meander slow wave structure permits lengths of the meander line to be switched in or out of the circuit quickly and with negligible loss, in order to change the effective electrical length of the antenna. This switching is possible because the active switching devices are always located in the high impedance sections of the meander line. This keeps the current through the switching devices low and results in very low dissipation losses in the switch, thereby maintaining high antenna efficiency.
The basic antenna of the aforesaid patent can be operated in a loop mode that provides a “figure eight” coverage pattern. Horizontal polarization, loop mode, is obtained when the antenna is operated at a frequency such that the electrical length of the entire line, including the meander lines, is a multiple of full wavelength. The antenna can also be operated in a vertically polarized, monopole mode, by adjusting the electrical length to an odd multiple of a half wavelength at the operating frequency. The meander lines can be tuned using electrical or mechanical switches to change the mode of operation at a given frequency, or to switch frequency using a given mode.
The invention of the meander line loaded antenna significantly reduces the dimensions of the unit, while maintaining an electrical length that is still a multiple of a quarter wavelength of the operating frequency. Antennas and radiating structures of this type operate in the region where the limitations on their fundamental performance is governed by the Chu-Harrington relation:
Efficiency=
FV
2
Q
where:
Q=Quality Factor
V
2
=Volume of the structure in cubic wavelengths
F=Geometric Form Factor (F=64 for a cube or a sphere)
Meander line loaded antennas achieve the efficiency limit of the Chu-Harrington relation while allowing the antenna size to be much less than a wavelength at the frequency of operation. Height reductions of 10 to 1 can be achieved over quarter wave monopole antennas while achieving comparable gain.
Existing MLAs are narrow band antennas, with the switchable meander line allowing the antennas to cover wide frequency bands. However, the instantaneous bandwidth is always narrow. For many military applications and for commercial applications where signals can appear unexpectedly over a wide frequency range, the existing MLA antenna would not be satisfactory.
Discussion of the Related Art
The aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,790,080 describes an antenna that includes one or more conductive elements for acting as radiating antenna elements, and a slow wave meander line adapted to couple electrical signals between the conductive elements. The slow wave meander line has an effective electrical length that affects the electrical length and operating characteristics of the antenna. The electrical length and operating mode of the antenna may be readily controlled and manipulated via switching.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,034,637 for DOUBLE RESONANT WIDEBAND PATCH ANTENNA AND METHOD OF FORMING SAME, describes a double resonant wideband patch antenna that includes a planar resonator forming a substantially trapezoidal shape having a non-parallel edge for providing a wide bandwidth. A feed line extends parallel to the non-parallel edge for coupling while a ground plane extends beneath the planar resonator for increasing radiation efficiency.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,008,762 for FOLDED QUARTER WAVE PATCH ANTENNA, describes a folded quarter-wave patch antenna which includes a conductor plate having first and second spaced apart arms. A ground plane is separated from the conductor plate by a dielectric substrate and is approximately parallel to the conductor plate. The ground plane is electrically connected to the first arm at one end and a signal unit is electrically coupled to the first arm. The signal unit transmits and/or receives signals having a selected frequency band. The folded quarter-wave patch antenna can also act as a dual frequency band antenna. In dual frequency band operation, the signal unit provides the antenna with a first signal of a first frequency band and a second signal of a second frequency band.
A DUAL BAND BOWTIE/MEANDER ANTENNA is described in PCT Patent International Application number WO 01/3464. This invention discloses dipole radiating elements and a ground plane on opposing sides of a dielectric material.
Despite the advances of the prior art designs, there continues to be a need to an efficient dual band antenna to address the problems addressed herein. There is a need for an antenna structure suitable for use in dual bands, such as a cellular phone and as a global positioning system (GPS) antenna. In this particular application, however, the cellular phone antenna must provide vertical polarization while the GPS antenna must have circular polarization.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention there is provided a dual-band, meander line loaded antenna (MLA) which utilizes a crossed pair of MLA elements to provide an antenna operable in two discrete frequency bands and having either vertical or circular polarization.
It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide a dual-band, offset-tuned, meander line loaded antenna (MLA) constructed as a crossed pair of MLA elements.
It is another object of the invention to provide a dual band MLA wherein at least one of the MLA elements is equipped with a capacitive flap to reduce its resonant frequency.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dual-band MLA selectively operable with either vertical or circular polarization.
One object of the invention that is distinguishable from the prior art, is the use of capacitive flaps for changing the resonant frequency and to stagger or offset tune the phase of the monopole mode. The capacitive flaps are added to the basic MLA loop design so as to lower the monopole resonant frequency of the structure. By using a crossed pair of offset-tuned MLA elements, a dual frequency antenna may be constructed. In addition, the crossed arrangement allows for operation as either a vertically or a circularly polarized antenna.
It is an additional object of the invention to provide a dual-band MLA adapted for combined cellular phone and GPS service.
On object of the invention is a dual-band antenna for simultaneous operation in two frequency bands, comprising a ground plane, a first meander line loaded antenna element tuned to a
Asmus Scott J.
BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration Inc.
Ho Tan
Maine & Asmus
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