Uavs

Naval Postgraduate School
Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Monterey, California
Overview of Antennas for UAVs
Prof. David Jenn 833 Dyer Road, Room 437 Monterey, CA 93943 (831) 656-2254 jenn@nps.navy.mil http://web.nps.navy.mil/~jenn
Antenna Systems for UAVs

Antennas are required for a wide variety of UAV systems Antenna requirements depend on the specific platform and mission: > Radar/Electronic Warfare > Communications > Data links > GPS/geolocation > Other sensors (biological, UAV OBSTRUCTIONS chemical, etc.) Ground station antennas not addressed here
GROUND STATION
RANGE
UAV Antenna Issues

For airborne applications: > Size, weight, power consumption > Power handling > Location on platform and required field of view (many systems compete for limited real estate) > Many systems operating over a wide frequency spectrum > Isolation and interference > Reliability and maintainability > Radomes (antenna enclosures or covers) Accommodate as many systems as possible to avoid operational restrictions Signatures must be controlled: radar cross section (RCS), infrared (IR), acoustic, and visible (camouflage) New architectures and technologies are being applied to UAVs
3
Antenna Performance Measures

Gain, rule of thumb: G = 4Ae / 2 > A = area, = wavelength > e = efficiency (0 < e < 1) Field of view or beamwidth > usually half power, HPBW, B Polarization Sidelobe level > maximum > average Antenna noise temperature, TA Operating bandwidth > instantaneous > tunable Radar cross section > in band > out of band
SCAN ANGLE
PEAK GAIN
3 dB HPBW
GAIN (dB)
MAXIMUM SIDELOBE LEVEL
PATTERN ANGLE
New Antenna Technologies for UAV Applications

Some new concepts have been around since the 1960s, but have only recently become practical due to advances in computers and micro devices New technologies and architectures include: > Solid state (active antennas) > Adaptive > Conformal > Reconfigureable > Smart antennas > Multiple beams (smart skins or living skins) > Photonics > Superconductivity > Digital beamforming > Genetic algorithms > Fractal antennas > Wide band (shared apertures) > Frequency selective devices and surfaces > New and exotic materials
Note: Most of these terms are not precisely defined and they are not mutually exclusive. An antenna can fall into multiple categories. 5
Antenna Installation Options

AIRCRAFT SKIN EXTERNALLY MOUNTED ANTENNA
CONFORMAL ANTENNA MOUNTED ON THE SURFACE
FREQUENCY SELECTIVE SURFACE
SHIELDED ANTENNA
The choice may limit operation of the system or degrade its performance Externally mounted > structural/environmental stress > if non-retractable, always in view > if retracted, system unusable Conformal surface mounted > aerodynamic (low profile) > curvature complicates design and manufacture Radome enclosures > controlled environment > inefficient use of volume > radome loss > wider field of view (FOV) > includes pods 6
Motivation for Wide Bandwidth

Bandwidth is the range of frequencies Definitions (not standardized) > narrow band: < 2% over which the antenna has acceptable > wide band: 2-10% performance > ultra wide band: > 10% Trend is toward wide band wave forms > low probability of intercept > frequency hopping > multiple channels (i.e., orthogonal Gmin frequency division multiplexing) 2 G~ > high resolution and data rates Shared aperture (multi-mission) antenna: a single antenna used for all EM sensors (radar, EW, comms, etc.) f Bandwidth, B = f H f L Center frequency, f o = ( f H + f L ) / 2
7
f L fo f H
Wide Bandwidth Approaches

Single radiating structure that operates over the entire frequency band
BI-CONE
d min
SPIRAL
d max
d max >
FEED POINT
> d min
d min
d max
WIRES
Collection of nested or integrated narrow band antennas

BROADBAND INPUT SIGNAL FREQUENCY MULTIPLEXER 1 2
f1 f2
TOTAL SYSTEM BANDWIDTH
BANDWIDTH OF AN INDIVIDUAL ANTENNA
f1 f2 f N f
8
f N
Frequency Selective Surfaces (FSS)

REFLECTON COEFFICIENT
Example of a FSS element (tripoles)
Band-stop frequency characteristic

1
FSS 2
FSS 1
Applications: > stealth -- shield antennas at high out of band frequencies > antennas -- reflector antennas; array ground planes (below)
DIPOLE LENGTH AT LOW FREQUENCIES DIPOLE ARM FSS 1 FSS 2 /4 AT LOW FREQUENCIES HIGH FREQUENCY FEED POINTS DIPOLE LENGTH AT HIGH FREQUENCIES /4 AT HIGH FREQUENCIES
LOW FREQUENCY FEED POINT
Multiple Beams
Multiple beams share the same aperture (they exist simultaneously) Cover large spatial volumes quickly Receiver on each beam (increases the system bandwidth) Beam coupling losses LENS Increased complexity
0 -5 -10 RELATIVE POWER, dB -15 -20 -25 -30 -35 -40 -30
25 dB Taylor N = 30 d = 0.4 s = 2.3
REFLECTOR BLASS
BUTLER
-20
-10 0 10 PATTERN ANGLE, DEGREES
20
30
10
Active vs. Passive Antenna

Receive architecture
LNA
1 2 3 1 2 3
TO DISPLAY
CONVENTIONAL (LNA PER BEAM) SIGNAL PROCESSOR M BEAMS N RADIATING ELEMENTS TO DISPLAY ACTIVE (LNA PER RADIATING ELEMENT)
APERTURE
1 2 3
BEAM FORMER LNA

1 2 3
RECEIVER
Can be applied to transmit antennas using power amplifiers Transmit and receive channels are packaged together to form T/R modules
11
Digital Beamforming (DBF)

1 2 3 N RADIATING ELEMENT SYNCHRONOUS DETECTOR I Q I Q I Q I Q TWO CHANNEL ANALOG-TODIGITAL CONVERTER s1 (t ) s 2 (t ) SIGNAL PROCESSOR (COMPUTER) OUTPUT , y( t ) s N (t )
y (t ) = wn sn (t )
n =1
The complex signal (I and Q, or equivalently, amplitude and phase) are measured and fed to the computer Element responses become array storage locations in the computer The weights are added and the sums computed to find the array response In principle any desired beam characteristic can be achieved, including multiple beams
12
Digital Beamforming (DBF)

Direct conversion to baseband is preferred, but high speed A/Ds are a problem Receive channel: (down conversion using two mixing stages)
ANTENNA ELEMENT LNA LO 1 BPF IF AMP A/D LPF VIDEO AMP A/D LPF VIDEO AMP
Transmit channel (up conversion using one mixing stage)

BPF POWER AMP D/A COMPUTER ANTENNA ELEMENT D/A
LO 2
Complex received signal to signal processor
I LO
13
Conformal Antennas
ANTENNA APERTURE INTERNAL PRINTED CIRCUIT BEAMFORMING NETWORK
AIRCRAFT BODY
OUTPUT/INPUT
Conformal antenna apertures conform to the shape of the platform Typically applied to composite surfaces; the antenna beamforming network and circuitry are interlaced with the platform structure and skin Can be active antennas with processing embedded (i.e., adaptive or smart) Self-calibrating and fault isolation (errors and failures detected and compensated for or corrected) Can be re-configurable (portion of the aperture that is active can be changed) Infrared (IR) and other sensors can be integrated into the antenna
14
Mutual Coupling
Elements in an array interact with each other (patterns of edge elements deviate from those in the center) Example: 10 element array (element 1 is at edge; element 5 at center)
Individual dipole element H-plane patterns (infinite ground plane )
10 5 RELATIVE POWER, dB 0 -5 -10 -15 -20 -25 -30 -80 -60 -40 -20 0 20 THETA, DEG 40 60 80
RELATIVE POWER, dB 0 -5 -10 -15 -20 -25 -30 -35 -40 INFINITE GROUND PLANE FINITE GROUND PLANE
Infinite vs. finite ground plane
ELEMENT 1 ELEMENT 2 ELEMENT 3 ELEMENT 4 ELEMENT 5
-80
-60
-40
-20
0 20 THETA, DEG
40
60
80
15
Conformal Shapes
Curvature must be considered in the design process, or pattern distortion occurs Example below: finite ground plane, mutual coupling included
0 CURVED GP (12.7 dB) FLAT GP (14.4 dB)
FLAT GROUND PLANE

Relative Power (dB)
-5
-10
CURVED GROUND PLANE
-15
-20
-25
-80
-60
-40
-20
20
40
60
80
Theta (degrees)
16
Patch Antennas
Lend themselves to printed circuit fabrication techniques Low profile - ideal for conformal antennas Circular or linear polarization determined by feed configuration Difficult to increase bandwidth beyond several percent Substrates support surface waves Lossy TOP VIEW Feeding methods: PROXIMITY
COUPLING
PATCH SUBSTRATE
SURFACE LINE FEED THROUGH LINE
GROUND PLANE
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True Time Delay for Wide Band Scanning

For wideband scanning the phase shifter must provide true time delay
BEAM SCANNING USING CABLES TO PROVIDE "TRUE TIME DELAY" BEAM SCANNING WITH PHASE SHIFTERS GIVES A PHASE THAT IS CONSTANT WITH FREQUENCY
k = 2 / = 2 f / c
WAVE FRONT WAVE FRONT
d 1
N k d sin
N k d sin TEM CABLES

N
d 1
PHASE SHIFTERS
... N
... ... ... ...
... ...
18
Fiber Optic Beamforming

Fiber optic beamforming architecture and T/R module Conversion loss from microwaves to light > 20 dB (as of 1998)
Element Microwave
T/R Module Fiber Optios Switch T/R module Osc
Circulator Power Amplifier Limiter Low Noise Amplifier Photo Diode Diode Laser
Receiver
Transmitter Light 19
Photonic Time Delay Phase Shifters

4 3
INPUT
OUTPUT
SWITCH
TIME DELAY FIBERS
IS A TIME DELAY BIT
INPUT
OUTPUT
20
Photonics for Reconfigurable Arrays

Low conductivity semiconductor ~ 10-2 S/m Becomes high conductivity region ~ 104 S/m LASER
High energy beams are used to produce conducting antenna-shaped regions (left) Laser excitation of the switch activates a particular portion of the aperture (below)
ARRAY ELEMENTS
LASER OPTO-ELECTRONIC SWITCH
OUTPUT 21
MMIC
Monolilthic microwave integrated circuit (MIMIC): All active and passive circuit elements, components, and interconnections are formed into the bulk or onto the surface, of a semi-insulating substrate by some deposition method (epitaxy, ion implantation, sputtering, evaporation, or diffusion) Technology developed in late 70s and 80s is now common manufacturing technique Advantages: > Potential low cost > Improved reliability and reproducibility > Compact and lightweight > Potentially broadband > Design flexibility and multiple functions on a chip Disadvantages: > Unfavorable device/chip area ratios > Circuit tuning not possible > Troubleshooting is a problem > Coupling/EMC problems > Difficulty in integrating high power sources 22
Smart Antennas
Antennas with built-in multi-function capabilities and processing are often called smart antennas If they are conformal as well, they are known as smart skins Functions include: > Self calibrating: adjust for changes in the physical environment (i.e., temperature) > Self-diagnostic (built-in test, BIT): sense when and where faults or failures have occurred Tests can be run continuously (time scheduled with other system functions) or run periodically If problems are diagnosed, actions include: > Limit operation or shutdown the system > Adapt to new conditions when processing, or reconfigure the antenna
23
T/R Module Concept

Transmit and receive channels for each element are side by side Depth is a disadvantage, but module replacement easy F-15 radar
RADIATING ELEMENT EDGE ACTS AS GROUND PLANE
FEED LINE
MODULE (PHASE SHIFTER, LNA, ETC)
24
T/R Tile Concept

RADIATOR FEED LINE GROUND PLANE OTHER DEVICE LAYERS
Low profile A point failure requires that the entire tile be replaced
From paper by Gouker, Delisle and Duffy, IEEE Trans on MTT, vol 44, no. 11, Nov. 1996
25
Radomes
GIMBAL MOUNT SCANNED ANTENNA TRANSMITTED RAYS REFRACTED
AIRCRAFT BODY REFLECTIONS
LOW LOSS DIELECTRIC RADOME
Radome must be transparent in the operating band Protects the antenna from the environment The antenna pattern with a radome will always be different than that without a radome Radome effects on the antenna pattern: 1. beam pointing error from refraction by the radome wall 2. gain loss due to loss in the radome material and multiple reflections 3. increased sidelobe level from multiple reflections
26
Superconductivity
Reduces loss in feed lines (as much as 25 dB for a 16 element array operating at 60 GHz)
PROXIMITY COUPLED ARRAY ELEMENTS
VACUUM ENCLOSURE (RADOME) CRYOCOOLER
POWER DIVIDER
INPUT
SUPERCONDUCTING TRANSMISSION LINES
Makes possible super-directive arrays > gain much higher than expected for the given array area > requires some feed lines to have very high current, and therefore I2R losses are prohibitive in conventional conductors
27
Antenna Temperature
Antenna noise temperature is specified in degrees Kelvin Indication of the noise power out of the antenna when no signal is present Depends on background radiation Especially important when very low signal power is expected
SKY BACKGROUND SIDELOBE MAINBEAM
Pr
EMITTED
REFLECTED
EARTH BACKGROUND
28
Example: Mini- and Micro-SAR

MicroSAR
MiniSAR MiniSAR installed
http://www.imicrosensors.com/
29
Vertical Takeoff UAV

USN VTUAV has multiple missions Use EM simulation codes to study > antenna placement > effect of nearby structure on patterns > interference with other systems VTUAV mesh model Pitch, roll, and yaw patterns
30
JSOW Captive Carry

Problems similar to a UAV Gain specification > blockage (dashed) > radome losses HPBW contour of captive antenna (solid)
ELEVATION
AZIMUTH
POD WITH AFT LOOKING ANTENNA
31

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Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Overview of Antennas for UAVs

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Antenna Systems for UAVs

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

UAV Antenna Issues

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Antenna Performance Measures

MAXIMUM SIDELOBE LEVEL

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

New Antenna Technologies for UAV Applications

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Antenna Installation Options

CONFORMAL ANTENNA MOUNTED ON THE SURFACE

FREQUENCY SELECTIVE SURFACE

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Motivation for Wide Bandwidth

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Wide Bandwidth Approaches

Collection of nested or integrated narrow band antennas

TOTAL SYSTEM BANDWIDTH

BANDWIDTH OF AN INDIVIDUAL ANTENNA

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Frequency Selective Surfaces (FSS)

Example of a FSS element (tripoles)

Band-stop frequency characteristic

LOW FREQUENCY FEED POINT

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

25 dB Taylor N = 30 d = 0.4 s = 2.3

-10 0 10 PATTERN ANGLE, DEGREES

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Active vs. Passive Antenna

BEAM FORMER LNA

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Digital Beamforming (DBF)

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Digital Beamforming (DBF)

Transmit channel (up conversion using one mixing stage)

Complex received signal to signal processor

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

Infinite vs. finite ground plane

ELEMENT 1 ELEMENT 2 ELEMENT 3 ELEMENT 4 ELEMENT 5

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering

FLAT GROUND PLANE

CURVED GROUND PLANE

Naval Postgraduate School

Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering