OPTIMIZED CONFORMAL-TO-METER ANTENNAS

• US 20140197999A1
• Filed: 03/14/2014
• Published: 07/17/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: World Products Inc. (eVance Processing, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: World Products Inc. (eVance Processing, Inc.)
• Inventors: Podduturi, Bharadvaj R.
• Granted Patent: US 9,525,202 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/702
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2233 used in consumption-meter devices, e.g. electricity, gas or water meters
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/38 formed by a conductive layer on an insulating support patch antennas H01Q9/0407; microstrip dipole antennas H01Q9/065; microstrip slot antennas H01Q13/106; transmission line microstrip antennas H01Q13/206; manufacturing reflecting surfaces using insulating material for supporting the reflecting surface H01Q15/142
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 5/371 Branching current paths
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/285 Planar dipole H01Q9/065 takes precedence; patch antenna H01Q9/0407

Abstract

A dual-dipole, multi-band conformal antenna for facilitating optimized wireless communications of a utility meter. The antenna includes an antenna backing, the backing adapted to conform to an inside surface of a utility meter and an antenna trace affixed to the antenna backing. The antenna trace is made of a conductive material and includes a symmetric low-band portion and an asymmetric high-band portion.

Claims

1. A method of optimizing performance of an asymmetrical conformal antenna in a utility meter having a meter housing and distributed electrical components, including:

vertically positioning the antenna including a low-band portion with left and right low-band arms and a high-band portion having left and right high-band arms inside the utility meter having the meter housing and the distributed electrical components forming a high component density area and a low component density area, such that at least a portion of the low-band portion is located above a plane formed by a top surface of the meter housing, and a portion of the high-band portion is located below the plane and adjacent the distributed electrical components;

radially positioning the antenna about the meter housing and electrical components such that the left high-band arm is adjacent the low electrical component density area and the right high-band arm is adjacent the high electrical component density area; and

causing the antenna to radiate the energy at either a low-band frequency or a high-band frequency.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein vertically positioning the antenna further includes positioning the antenna such that the portion of the low-band portion located above the plane comprises the entire low-band portion.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the plane formed by the top surface of the meter housing is above the distributed electrical components.

4. A method of optimizing performance of an asymmetrical conformal antenna in a utility meter having a meter housing and distributed electrical components, including:

vertically positioning the antenna including a low-band portion with left and right low-band arms and a high-band portion having left and right high-band arms inside the utility meter having the meter housing and the distributed electrical components forming a high component density area and a low component density area, such that at least a portion of the low-band portion is located above a plane above the distributed electrical components, and a portion of the high-band portion is located below the plane and adjacent the distributed electrical components; and

causing the antenna to radiate the energy at either a low-band frequency or a high-band frequency.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising radially positioning the antenna about the meter housing and electrical components such that the left high-band arm is adjacent the low electrical component density area and the right high-band arm is adjacent the high electrical component density area.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the left low-band arm and the right low-band arm are substantially the same such that the low-band portion is substantially symmetrical about a central axis of the antenna trace.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein vertically positioning the antenna further includes positioning the antenna such that the portion of the low-band portion located above the plane comprises the entire low-band portion.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein vertically positioning the antenna further includes positioning the antenna such that the portion of the high-band portion located below the plane formed comprises the entire high-band portion.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein a top of the meter housing is coplanar with the plane above the distributed electrical components.