Transreflector antenna for wireless communication system
First Claim
1. An antenna for use in a wireless communication system, the antenna comprising:
- a housing having a dome shaped exterior portion thereof;
a focusing transreflector consisting of a conductive grating disposed along a surface of the dome and further defining an axis for the antenna, the orientation of the conductive grating such that radiation having a particular polarization passes through the conductive grating and radiation of other polarizations is reflected by the conductive grating; and
a twist reflector substantially centered along the axis and located at a distance away from the transreflector such that the twist reflector reflects received radiation back towards the focusing transreflector and imparts a polarization to the received radiation thereby reflected so that the focusing transreflector causes the reflected and polarized radiation to be focused along the axis.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A compact lightweight antenna for receiving microwave direct line of sight wireless data signals used in services such as Local Multipoint Distribution Services (LMDS). The antenna provides for precise control over isolation of polarized signals. The antenna consists of an external parabolically shaped dome formed of a suitably resilient material such as thermoplastic. A polarizing conductive grating is formed on the interior surface of the dome and serves as a transreflector for initially passing received radiation having a vertical polarization. A twist reflector disposed at a point along an axis defined by the conductive grating reflects the received radiation, back in the direction of the transreflector with a different polarization. The now differently polarized energy is reflected by the parabolically shaped conductive grating at a feed point located in the center of the twist plate. The transreflecting element may be manufactured by providing a substrate that has been printed and etched and/or a film nonconductive substrate which has been silk screened with a conductive ink. In each of these cases in a preferred embodiment, the substrate or carrier film becomes an integral part of the mold in the resulting article.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. An antenna for use in a wireless communication system, the antenna comprising:
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a housing having a dome shaped exterior portion thereof; a focusing transreflector consisting of a conductive grating disposed along a surface of the dome and further defining an axis for the antenna, the orientation of the conductive grating such that radiation having a particular polarization passes through the conductive grating and radiation of other polarizations is reflected by the conductive grating; and a twist reflector substantially centered along the axis and located at a distance away from the transreflector such that the twist reflector reflects received radiation back towards the focusing transreflector and imparts a polarization to the received radiation thereby reflected so that the focusing transreflector causes the reflected and polarized radiation to be focused along the axis. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A radio unit for use in a wireless communication system using microwave radio carrier frequencies, the radio unit comprising:
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an antenna additionally including; a housing having a dome shaped exterior portion thereof; a focusing transreflector consisting of a conductive grating disposed along a surface of the dome and further defining an axis for the antenna, the orientation of the conductive grating such that radiation having a particular polarization passes through the conductive grating and radiation of other polarizations is reflected by the conductive grating; a twist reflector substantially centered along the axis and located at a distance away from the transreflector such that the twist reflector reflects received radiation back towards the focusing transreflector and imparts a polarization to the received radiation thereby reflected so that the focusing transreflector causes the reflected and polarized radiation to be focused along the axis; a feed point disposed at the twist reflector along the axis, and arranged to couple transmit energy to the antenna and to couple receive energy from the antenna; a microwave transceiver, arranged to couple microwave modulated transmit signals and receive signals to the antenna through the feed point; and a modem, arranged to provide modulated data signals to the transceiver, and to provide demodulated data signals at an output thereof. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A method for making an antenna for use in a wireless communication system, the antenna comprising:
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a housing having a dome-shaped exterior portion thereof; a focusing transreflector consisting of a conductive grating disposed along a surface of the dome and further defining an axis for the antenna, the orientation of the conductive grating such that radiation having a particular polarization passes through the conductive grating and radiation of other polarizations is reflected by the conductive grating; and a twist reflector substantially centered along the axis and located at a distance away from the transreflector such that the twist reflector reflects received radiation back towards the focusing transreflector and imparts a polarization to the received radiation thereby reflected so that the focusing transreflector causes the reflected and polarized radiation to be focused along the axis; wherein the method for making such a transreflector comprising the steps of; (a) forming on one surface of a synthetic resin carrier film a series of spaced parallel patterns of a conductive material; (b) placing said film on the surface of a mold defining the desired concave internal curve for the transreflector; and (c) assembling over said film in said spaced relationship a second mold half having the desired convex external curve for the transreflector, said housing providing a mold cavity. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification