Active receiving antenna

• US 5,905,471 A
• Filed: 07/14/1997
• Issued: 05/18/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Daimler AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Original Assignee: Daimler-Benz AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Inventors: Biebl, Erwin, Luy, Johann-Friedrich
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Don
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ho, Tan
• Application Number:
  US08/891,824
• Time in Patent Office: 673 Days
• Field of Search: 343/769, 343/767, 343/771, 343/789, 343/711, 343/712, 343/713, 343/700 MS
• US Class Current: 343/769
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/3275 mounted on a horizontal surface of the vehicle, e.g. on roof, hood, trunk
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/10 Resonant slot antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 23/00 Antennas with active circuits or circuit elements integrated within them or attached to them

Abstract

An active receiving antenna for vehicles, including a slot-shaped antenna cut into the metallic vehicle body, and having small-depth cavity filled with a dielectric material which closes off the antenna toward the back or interior of the vehicle. A low-noise preamplifier, which is integrated into the dielectric material, is connected to the antenna via two feed lines of different length. The desired polarizations of the received signals are set via this preamplifier, which can be changed over and be switched off.

Claims

1. A slot antenna arrangement which is used as a receiving antenna for differently polarized waves comprising:

a slot shaped recess formed in a metal surface which defined one wall of a shallow cavity disposed at and closing off a rear of the slot-shaped recess;

a dielectric material filling the cavity;

a low noise preamplifier;

a pair of feed lines (L₁, L₂) for coupling the slot-shaped recess in-phase to the low-noise preamplifier, with the pair of feed lines having different lengths to set a specific phase position of the waves received by the antenna; and

the preamplifier and the feed lines are disposed in the dielectric material within the cavity.

2. A slot antenna arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the metal surface is part of a vehicle body.

3. A slot antenna arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the slot antenna is configured as annular slot.

4. A slot antenna arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the respective feed lines (L₁, L₂) are microstrip lines.

5. A slot antenna arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the respective feed lines (L₁, L₂) are coaxial lines.

6. A slot antenna arrangement according to claim 1, whereinthe cross sectional surface of the cavity is configured according to the shape of the slot-shaped recess antenna and that the cavity has a depth of approximately 1 mm.

7. A slot-antenna arrangement as defined in claim 6 wherein the slot antenna is configured as an annular slot and wherein the cavity has a square cross section.

8. A slot antenna arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the metal surface is part of a vehicle body and further comprising a layer of paint covering the outer surface of the vehicle body including the slot-shaped recess.