Beam forming network

• US 4,503,436 A
• Filed: 12/10/1982
• Issued: 03/05/1985
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/1982
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: United States Of America As Represented By The Administrator Of The National Aeronautics And Space Administration
• Original Assignee: United States Of America As Represented By The Administrator Of The National Aeronautics And Space Administration
• Inventors: Cramer, Paul W. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US06/448,441
• Time in Patent Office: 816 Days
• Field of Search: 343/754, 343/853, 343/876, 455/73
• US Class Current: 343/876
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/065 Patch antenna array
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 25/00 Antennas or antenna systems providing at least two radiating patterns arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern H01Q3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0237 High frequency adaptations H05K1/0216 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/144 Stacked arrangements of planar printed circuit boards

Abstract

A feed element-to-beam interconnection network is provided for an antenna that transmits and receives a large number of beams, such as 87 contiguous narrow beams that cover the United States. The network, which is connected to a layer of 134 feed elements that transmit and receive microwaves, consists of a pair of circuit boards (160c, 162c in FIG. 7) parallel to the feed element layer. One of the two boards has 87 dividers (e.g. 51td, FIG. 5) that each divide a signal to be transmitted into seven portions, and the other board has 134 combiners (e.g. 38tc) that each collect seven transmit signal portions and deliver the sum to one of the feed elements. A similar arrangement is used to handle received signals, with 134 receive signal dividers (e.g. 38rd) on the one board, and 87 receive signal combiners (e.g. 51rc) on the other board. The large number of interconnections are made by printed circuit conductors radiating from each of the numerous dividers and combiners, and by providing interconnection pins (166) that interconnect the ends of pairs of conductors lying on the two boards. The printed circuit conductors (e.g. 38a, 51b) extend in undulating paths that provide maximum separation of conductors to minimize cross talk.

Claims

1. In an electromagnetic communication system which includes a network of feed elements that operate in groups so that each feed element can receive separate portions of a transmit signal and form therefrom a combined electromagnetic transmit beam, the improvement including:

first and second substantially planar circuits lying in closely spaced parallel planes;

a plurality of transmit dividers mounted on said second circuit, each divider having an input for receiving a transmit signal and a plurality of output lines;

a plurality of transmit combiners mounted on a first circuit, each combiner having a plurality of input lines, so that each combiner can receive a portion of several signals from several corresponding divider output lines, each combiner having an output coupled to one of said feed elements;

a plurality of the output lines of each divider extending in the plane of the second circuit, each output line extending at least one-fourth of the distance towards the lateral position of a transmit combiner and having an output line end;

a plurality of the input lines of each combiner extending in the plane of the first circuit, each input line extending at least one-fourth of the distance towards the lateral position of a divider and having an output line end lying at the same lateral position as a corresponding divider output line end; and

a plurality of interboard connectors, each extending perpendicular to the planes of said circuits and each connecting the end of a divider output line to the end of the combiner input line that lies at the same lateral position.

2. A microwave transceiver comprising:

an antenna structure which includes a feed element support and a matrix of feed elements mounted on said support;

first and second substantially planar circuits lying in closely spaced and parallel planes, with said first circuit closest to said feed element support and said second circuit lying on a side of said first circuit which is opposite said feed element support;

a plurality of diplex means coupled to said feed elements, each having a transmit signal input and a receive signal output, for delivering and receiving signals;

said first circuit including a plurality of transmit combiners each having input leads in the plane of said first circuit and an output connected to the transmit input of a diplexer, and a plurality of receive dividers interspersed with said combiners and with each receive divider having an input connected to the receive output of said diplexer and having a plurality of output leads in the plane of said first circuit and in nonoverlapping relationship with said transmit combiner output leads;

said second circuit including a plurality of transmit dividers each having an input for receiving a transmit signal and a plurality of output leads in the plane of said second circuit, and said second circuit including a plurality of receive combiners interspersed with said transmit dividers and with each receive combiner having an output for delivering a receive signal and a plurality of input leads lying in the plane of said second circuit and in nonoverlapping relationship with said transmit divider leads; and

means for connecting the ends of transmit combiner input leads at said first circuit to the ends of transmit divider output leads of said second circuit, and for connecting the ends of receiver divider output leads of said first circuit to the ends of receiver combiner input leads of said second circuit.

3. The transceiver described in claim 2 wherein:

a plurality of input leads of each transmit combiner extend in undulating paths that generally radiate from the combiner and that have outer ends radially spaced from the combiner;

a plurality of output leads of each receiver divider extend in undulating paths that generally radiate from the divider and that have outer ends radially spaced from the divider;

alternate radiating leads of each transmit combiner having outer ends lying between a pair of receiver divider leads, at a location close to the corresponding receiver divider.

4. In a microwave transceiver which includes network elements including transmit dividers and combiners and receiver dividers and combiners, the improvement wherein:

a plurality of dividers and combiners lie on the same circuit in substantially the same plane and are interspersed, with each divider having a plurality of output leads lying in a circuit plane and each combiner having a plurality of input leads lying substantially in said circuit plane in nonoverlapping relationship to said divider output leads;

said output and input leads extending in largely sine wave paths that extend generally radially away from, respectively, the divider and combiner;

at least some of said output leads having ends that lie between a pair of input leads, and at least some of said input leads having ends that lie between a pair of output leads.

5. The improvement described in claim 4 including:

a second circuit having a plurality of dividers and combiners on the same circuit and interspersed, and with leads from each lying in a second circuit plane parallel to said first named plane and radiating in a manner similar to those in said first circuit plane;

the ends of transmit divider and combiner leads on the two circuit planes lying at the same lateral position and interconnected; and

the ends of receiver divider and combiner leads on the two circuit planes lying at the same lateral position and interconnected.

6. In an electromagnetic communication system which includes a network of feed elements that operate in groups so that each feed element can receive separate portions of a transmit signal and form therefrom a combined electromagnetic transmit beam, and so each feed element can receive a portion of a beam and form such portions into a combined received signal, the improvement including:

first and second substantially planar circuits lying in closely spaced parallel planes;

a plurality of transmit dividers mounted on said second circuit, each divider having an input for receiving a transmit signal and a plurality of output lines;

a plurality of receive combiners mounted on said second circuit and interspersed with said transmit dividers on said second circuit, each receive combiner having a plurality of input lines lying in the same plane as said transmit divider output lines, and each receive combiner also having an output line;

a plurality of transmit combiners mounted on said first circuit, each combiner having a plurality of input lines, so that each combiner can receive a portion of several signals from several corresponding transmit divider output lines, each combiner having an output coupled to one of said feed elements;

a plurality of receive dividers mounted on said first circuit and interspersed with said transmit combiners on said circuit, each receive divider having an input conncted to one of said feed elements, and a plurality of output lines lying in the same plane as said transmit combiner input lines;

a plurality of the output lines of each divider extending in the plane of its circuit, each output line extending part of the distance towards the lateral position of a corresponding combiner and having an output line end;

a plurality of the input lines of each combiner extending in the plane of its circuit, each output line extending part of the distance towards the lateral position of a corresponding combiner and having an output line end;

a plurality of interboard connectors, each extending perpendicular to the planes of said circuits and each connecting the end of a divider output line to the end of a combiner input line that lies at the same lateral position.

7. The improvement described in claim 6 wherein:

the patterns of said transmit and receive divider output lines and combiner input lines form substantially the pattern shown in FIG. 5.