Subsurface radio

• US 10,284,353 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2016
• Issued: 05/07/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sandia Research Corporation
• Original Assignee: Sandia Research Corporation
• Inventors: Shope, Steven Michael, Jorgenson, Paul Raymond
• Primary Examiner(s): Han, Jessica
• Assistant Examiner(s): Salih, Awat M
• Application Number:
  US15/338,207
• Publication Number:
  US 20180123232A1
• Time in Patent Office: 921 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/04 Adaptation for subterranean or subaqueous use
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/30 Means for trailing antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/006 Quality of the received signal, e.g. BER, SNR, water filling

Abstract

A method for subsurface radio communication includes transmitting voice data through a subsurface environment, by a transmitter of a radio transceiver. The voice data is received through the subsurface environment, by a receiver of the radio transceiver. A transceiver frequency of the radio transceiver is changed to an optimal transceiver frequency in response to a change to the subsurface environment. The transceiver frequency is one of a transmit frequency of the transmitter and a receive frequency of the receiver. A first impedance of a subwavelength antenna is matched to a second impedance of the transceiver in response to a difference between the first impedance and the second impedance exceeding an impedance mismatch value. The subwavelength antenna has a radiating length less than a transceiver wavelength of the radio transceiver operating in free-space at a maximum of the transceiver frequency.

Claims

1. A subsurface radio comprising:

a radio transceiver including a transmitter configured to transmit a voice data through a subsurface environment, and a receiver configured to receive the voice data through the subsurface environment;

a subwavelength antenna coupled to the radio transceiver and configured to radiate an electromagnetic (EM) wave modulating the voice data, the subwavelength antenna having a radiating length less than a transceiver wavelength of the radio transceiver operating in free-space at a maximum of a transceiver frequency, wherein the transceiver frequency is one of a transmit frequency of the transmitter and a receive frequency of the receiver;

a slave radio transceiver configured to transmit and the radio transceiver configured to receive, for each of a plurality of transceiver frequencies, a respective SNR and a respective signal strength;

a control unit configured to change the transceiver frequency to an optimal transceiver frequency in response to a change to the subsurface environment; and

an impedance matching circuit configured to match a first impedance of the subwavelength antenna to a second impedance of the transceiver in response to a difference between the first impedance and the second impedance exceeding an impedance mismatch value.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the transceiver frequency is greater than or equal to 2 Mhz, and less than or equal to 150 Mhz.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the radiating length of the subwavelength antenna is greater than one tenth of one percent of a freespace wavelength of the radio transceiver.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein a power output of the radio transceiver is equal to or less than 100 Watts.

5. The device of claim 1 further comprising a portable pack including the radio transceiver, the portable pack configured for removable attachment to a person and having a trailing antenna extending therefrom.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein the radio transceiver is configured as a base station.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein the subsurface environment is a subterranean environment.

8. The device of claim 1 wherein the subsurface environment is an aqueous environment.

9. The device of claim 1 wherein the subsurface environment is an interior of a building.

10. The device of claim 1 wherein the control unit detects a change to the subsurface environment by periodically measuring a signal to noise ratio (SNR) from a transmission between a second radio transceiver and the radio transceiver, the control unit modifying the transceiver frequency of the radio transceiver to maximize the SNR.

11. A method for subsurface radio communication comprising:

transmitting a voice data through a subsurface environment, by a transmitter of a radio transceiver;

receiving the voice data through the subsurface environment, by a receiver of the radio transceiver;

transmitting by a slave radio transceiver and receiving by the radio transceiver, for each of a plurality of transceiver frequencies, a respective SNR and a respective signal strength;

changing a transceiver frequency of the radio transceiver to an optimal transceiver frequency in response to a change to the subsurface environment, wherein the transceiver frequency is one of a transmit frequency of the transmitter and a receive frequency of the receiver; and

matching a first impedance of a subwavelength antenna to a second impedance of the transceiver in response to a difference between the first impedance and the second impedance exceeding an impedance mismatch value, the subwavelength antenna having a radiating length less than a transceiver wavelength of the radio transceiver operating in free-space at a maximum of the transceiver frequency.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

initializing an underground optimal link establishment (UGOLE) operation by transmitting a UGOLE request from the radio transceiver to a slave radio transceiver tuned to a same transceiver frequency as the radio transceiver, and receiving from the slave radio transceiver a UGOLE reply, in response to the slave radio receiving the UGOLE request,

transmitting by the radio transceiver and receiving by the slave radio transceiver, for each of a plurality of transceiver frequencies, a continuous wave (CW) tone,

recording by the slave radio transceiver, for each of the plurality of transceiver frequencies, at least one of a respective signal to noise ratio (SNR) and a respective signal strength of the CW tone received by the slave radio transceiver,

transmitting by the slave radio transceiver and receiving by the radio transceiver, for each of the plurality of transceiver frequencies, the respective SNR and the respective signal strength,

transmitting by the slave radio transceiver and receiving by the radio transceiver, the CW tone for each of the plurality of transceiver frequencies,

recording by the radio transceiver, for each of the plurality of transceiver frequencies, at least one of the respective signal to noise ratio (SNR) and the respective signal strength of the CW tone received by the radio transceiver, and

determining the optimal transceiver frequency based on at least one of a respective maximum SNR and a respective maximum signal strength recorded from each of the transmissions from the radio transceiver to the slave radio transceiver and the transmissions from the slave radio transceiver to the radio transceiver.

13. The method claim 12 wherein the optimal transceiver frequency is determined as an average of a first maximum SNR from the transmissions from the radio transceiver to the slave radio transceiver and a second maximum SNR from the transmissions from the slave radio transceiver to the radio transceiver.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the radio transceiver records the respective SNR and the respective signal strength of the CW tone transmitted by the slave radio transceiver for one of the plurality of transceiver frequencies before changing to a new one of the plurality of transceiver frequencies.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

initiating an automatic channel control (ACC) operation by transmitting, by the radio transceiver, an ACC request to a slave radio transceiver on an old transceiver frequency,

changing the old transceiver frequency of the radio transceiver to a new transceiver frequency,

changing the old transceiver frequency of the slave radio to the new transceiver frequency in response to the slave radio receiving the ACC request,

receiving by the radio transceiver a handshake reply from the slave transceiver radio on the new transceiver frequency, in response to the slave transceiver radio receiving a handshake request from the radio transceiver on the new transceiver frequency,

changing the new transceiver frequency of the radio transceiver to the old transceiver frequency in response to the radio transceiver not receiving the handshake reply after a predetermined time, and

changing the new transceiver frequency of the slave radio transceiver to the old transceiver frequency in response to the slave radio transceiver not receiving the handshake request after the predetermined time.

16. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining the difference between the first impedance and the second impedance in response to the radio transceiver beginning transmission of the voice data, the transmission being interrupted when the difference exceeds the impedance mismatch value.

17. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining the difference between the first impedance and the second impedance from a voltage level and a phase of a reflected pulse from a slave radio transceiver, the reflected pulse reflected from the slave radio transceiver in response to a periodic pulse transmitted from the radio transceiver.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising disabling a circuit configured to determine the difference between the first impedance and the second impedance in response to the radio transceiver beginning transmission of the voice data.

19. The method of claim 11 wherein determining the difference between the first impedance and the second impedance is based on a prediction of previously stored differences between the first impedance and the second impedance.

20. A method for subsurface radio communication comprising:

transmitting a data through a subsurface environment, by a transmitter of a radio transceiver;

receiving the data through the subsurface environment, by a receiver of the radio transceiver;

changing a transceiver frequency of the radio transceiver to an optimal transceiver frequency in response to a change to the subsurface environment, wherein the transceiver frequency is one of a transmit frequency of the transmitter and a receive frequency of the receiver, the optimal transceiver frequency determined from a maximum signal to noise ratio (SNR) measured from a transmission between the radio transceiver and a slave radio transceiver; and

matching a first impedance of a subwavelength antenna to a second impedance of the transceiver in response to a difference between the first impedance and the second impedance exceeding an impedance mismatch value, the subwavelength antenna having a radiating length less than a wavelength of a transceiver wavelength of the radio transceiver operating in free-space at a maximum of the transceiver frequency.