Leaky coaxial cable with high radiation efficiency

• US 7,956,818 B1
• Filed: 09/17/2008
• Issued: 06/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HRL Laboratories LLC (The Boeing Co.)
• Original Assignee: HRL Laboratories LLC (The Boeing Co.)
• Inventors: Hsu, Tsung-Yuan, Schaffner, James H
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho; Tan
• Application Number:
  US12/211,983
• Time in Patent Office: 993 Days
• Field of Search: 343/895, 343/897
• US Class Current: 343/895
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/203 Leaky coaxial lines

Abstract

An leaky coaxial cable antenna with high radiation efficiency and low insertion loss is described. The outer shield of the coaxial cable is constructed to facilitate energy transfer between the bifilar mode and the monofilar mode by constructing the outer conductor of a first conductive strip wrapped in a spiral about the dielectric and a plurality of second conductive strips wrapped in a counter spiral about the first but spaced serially along the length of the coaxial cable such that portions of the cable are wrapped by a single spiral and the other portions are wrapped by two spirals.

Claims

1. A leaky coaxial cable antenna comprising:

a center conductor with a length;

a dielectric surrounding the center conductor for the length;

a first conductive strip of a first width wrapped about the dielectric and coaxial with the center conductor;

a second conductive strip of a second width wrapped about the dielectric and first conductive strip, in electrical contact with the first conductive strip, and coaxial with the center conductor;

wherein the first conductor is wrapped in a spiral in a first direction along the length at a first pitch; and

wherein the second conductor is wrapped at a second pitch in a second direction along a portion of the length; and

wherein the first pitch, second pitch, first width and second width vary with the length.

2. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 1 wherein the first width is constant.

3. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 1 wherein the first pitch is constant.

4. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 1 wherein the first width, first pitch, second width and second pitch are constant.

5. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 1 wherein the first spiral direction reverses one or more times along the length.

6. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 1 wherein the second spiral direction reverses one or more times along the length.

7. A leaky coaxial cable antenna comprising:

a center conductor with a length;

a dielectric surrounding the center conductor for the length;

a first conductive strip of a first width wrapped about the dielectric at a first pitch in a first spiral direction and coaxial with the center conductor; and

a plurality of second conductive strips of a second width wrapped about the dielectric at a second pitch in a second spiral direction, coaxial with the center conductor, and;

wherein the plurality of second conductive strips are in electrical contact with the first conductive strip and distributed serially along the length of the dielectric.

8. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the plurality of second conductive strips are uniformly distributed along the length.

9. The leaky coaxial cable of claim 7 further comprising an impedance matching section at an end of the coaxial cable antenna.

10. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the antenna is integrated into a wearable garment.

11. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the length is less than or equal to 100 centimeters.

12. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the first pitch is substantially not equal to the second pitch.

13. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the first spiral direction is substantially not equal to the second spiral direction.

14. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the first width, first pitch, second width and second pitch vary with the length of the antenna.

15. The leaky coaxial cable antenna of claim 7 wherein the first spiral direction reverses one or more times along the length.

16. Radiating coaxial cable antenna having high radiation efficiency and low return loss comprising:

center conductor means for carrying electromagnetic signals;

surrounding said center conductor means, first dielectric means for electrically insulating said center conductor means;

superjacent said first dielectric means, means for distributing electromagnetic radiation with low return loss comprising;

first outer conductor means wrapped around said first dielectric means in a first direction with a first pitch;

plurality of second outer conductor means wrapped around said first dielectric and said first outer conductor means in a second direction with a second pitch wherein the plurality of second outer conductor means are in electrical contact with said first outer conductor means and distributed serially along the length of the first dielectric means.

17. The radiating coaxial cable antenna of claim 16 wherein the first direction is substantially not equal to the second direction.

18. The radiating coaxial cable antenna of claim 16 wherein the first pitch is substantially not equal to the second pitch.

19. The radiating coaxial cable antenna of claim 16 wherein the plurality of second outer conductor means are distributed uniformly along the length of the first dielectric means.

20. A method of constructing a leaky coaxial cable antenna comprising:

extending a center conductor with a length;

disposing a dielectric coaxially along the length of the center conductor;

wrapping a first conductive strip of a first width at a first pitch around the dielectric in a first spiral direction along the length;

wrapping a plurality of second conductive strips of a second width at a second pitch around the dielectric and first conductive strip in a second spiral direction wherein the second conductive strips are in electrical contact with the first conductive strip and distributed serially along the length.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the second conductive strips are distributed substantially uniformly along the length of the dielectric.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the first pitch is substantially not equal to the second pitch.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the first spiral direction is substantially not equal to the second spiral direction.