Antenna apparatus and method
First Claim
1. An antenna apparatus, comprising:
- a module core having a waveguide input and an output, said input receiving electromagnetic wave energy fed into said waveguide input and directing said energy to said output;
an electromagnetic wave chip carrier component supported in thermal communication with said module core for receiving said electromagnetic wave energy and generating electrical signals;
said module core further operating to draw heat away from said chip carrier component; and
a plurality of antenna radiating elements supported at an end of said module core opposite to that of said waveguide input and adjacent said chip carrier component for receiving said electrical signals and radiating electromagnetic wave signals.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A phased array antenna module for use in the gigahertz bandwidth. The module includes a metallic core with a pair of chip carrier assemblies secured to opposite sides of the core. The core has an internal waveguide with a signal splitter for directing electromagnetic wave energy evenly to the two chip carrier assemblies. A flexible, cylindrical connector assembly electrically couples the chip carrier assemblies to an aperture board. The aperture board includes a plurality of dipole antenna radiating elements. The module core is coupled directly to a cold plate. A direct thermal path is created between the chip carrier assemblies, the module core and the cold plate for highly efficient cooling of the electronic components on the chip carrier assemblies.
49 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An antenna apparatus, comprising:
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a module core having a waveguide input and an output, said input receiving electromagnetic wave energy fed into said waveguide input and directing said energy to said output;
an electromagnetic wave chip carrier component supported in thermal communication with said module core for receiving said electromagnetic wave energy and generating electrical signals;
said module core further operating to draw heat away from said chip carrier component; and
a plurality of antenna radiating elements supported at an end of said module core opposite to that of said waveguide input and adjacent said chip carrier component for receiving said electrical signals and radiating electromagnetic wave signals. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. An antenna apparatus comprising:
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a metallic core structure having a waveguide input at a first end, a pair of output ports at an intermediate position and a waveguide splitter disposed between the output ports for dividing electromagnetic wave energy fed into said input through said output ports;
first and second chip carrier signal distribution panels for receiving portions of said electromagnetic wave energy from said output ports and generating first and second pluralities of electrical signals;
first and second groups of antenna radiating elements supported on said core structure at a second end of said core structure opposite to said first end; and
a deformable electrical connector supported adjacent said signal distribution panels and said antenna radiating elements for electrically coupling said first signal distribution panels with said antenna radiating elements. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An apparatus comprising:
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a metallic core structure having a waveguide input at a first end, a pair of output ports at an intermediate position and a waveguide splitter disposed between the output ports for dividing electromagnetic wave energy fed into said input through said output ports;
first and second signal chip carrier distribution panels in thermal contact with said metallic core structure for receiving portions of said electromagnetic wave energy from said output ports and generating first and second pluralities of electrical signals;
a plurality of antenna radiating elements electrically coupled with said distribution panels and being supported on said core structure at a second end of said core structure opposite to said first end; and
a heat sink thermally coupled to said first end of said core structure for dissipating heat generated by said distribution panels. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for forming an antenna comprising:
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using a metallic core structure having an internally formed waveguide for supporting at least one chip carrier signal distribution panel and for channeling electromagnetic wave energy fed into said waveguide to said signal distribution panel;
supporting a plurality of antenna radiating elements from said metallic core structure;
electrically coupling said antenna radiating elements with said signal distribution panel;
using said antenna radiating elements to radiate electromagnetic wave signals in accordance with output signals from said signal distribution panel; and
using said metallic core as a heat sink to draw heat from said chip carrier signal distribution panel. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification