Active phased-array antenna high-temperature aging test device and test method

Abstract

The invention provides an active phased-array antenna high-temperature aging test device and a test method aiming at the defects that a traditional active phased-array antenna high-temperature aging system is complex in system design, high in cost, long in aging test time and the like. High-temperature aging systems of all single machines are integrated into a unified phased-array antenna high-temperature aging test system, and the aging systems are simplified, easy to operate, low in cost and high in efficiency. The high-temperature aging of the antenna is carried out after the antenna active subarray is integrated, the aging is carried out by taking the antenna module as a basic unit, and the high-temperature aging of all single machines on the antenna module can be simultaneously completed through one test. Compared with a traditional single-machine respective aging method, the aging system is greatly simplified, the cost is reduced, and the aging efficiency is greatly improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of antennas, and in particular relates to a high temperature aging test device and a test method for an active phased array antenna. Background Art

[0002] High temperature aging test refers to the continuous application of certain electrical stress to components (single machine) for a long time at a certain ambient temperature. Through the combined effect of electrical and thermal stress, various potential defects and unstable factors inside are exposed early, eliminating early failures. With the development of technology, the integration of electronic equipment is getting higher and higher, and users' requirements for product quality are also greatly improved. As an important means to improve product reliability, high temperature aging has become an indispensable test link in the product development process.

[0003] Active phased array antennas are composed of multiple radiating units, each of which is equipped with an independent transceiver channel (T / R component). The beam is scanned by controlling the amplitude and phase of each unit. Active phased array antennas have been widely used in radar, communications, electronic warfare and other fields, and are currently developing in the direction of high frequency band, large scale, and high integration. Active phased array antennas are a complex electronic system that includes multiple functional modules such as radio frequency, control, and power management. As the scale of the array expands, the number of components increases significantly, and the signal interconnection becomes more complex. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the reliability of the system while ensuring performance. High temperature aging is an important solution to eliminate early failures in components, processes, etc. during the development of active phased array antennas.

[0004] Traditional active phased array antennas use a "brick" or "tile" architecture. Based on the modular concept, the phased array antenna is divided into independent units such as antenna units, T / R components, delay amplifier components, control units, feed networks, and power supplies. The units are interconnected through high- and low-frequency cables. The high-temperature aging of the phased array antenna is carried out after the active units (T / R components, delay amplifier components, control units, power supplies, etc.) are integrated. Each unit is built with a separate high-temperature aging test system, which can realize the control, performance testing, temperature control and other functions of the unit. After the early failed units are eliminated through aging, the system integration of the active phased array antenna is carried out. Building multiple sets of different unit aging systems will consume a lot of cost and time. At the same time, the unit interfaces of different products are different, and unified design is more difficult. The construction cost of the high-temperature aging test system has become an important part of the development cost of active phased array antennas.

[0005] For new high-density integrated active phased array antennas, such as Figure 1In the new "plate-type" antenna architecture shown in the figure, the T / R components adopt SIP system-level packaging, and the integrated network integrates the RF power distribution network, control network, power supply network and antenna feed layer. The antenna unit, integrated network and chip-based T / R components are integrated by welding (called active sub-array after integration), and the delay amplifier component, control unit, power supply and integrated layer are interconnected by blind plugging. The test of chip-based T / R components requires the use of dedicated test fixtures, which is relatively expensive. At the same time, the number of T / R components in high-density phased array antennas is large, and the construction cost of its high-temperature aging system will be much higher than that of traditional phased array antennas, and the high-temperature aging time is longer. Therefore, in the development of high-density integrated active phased array antennas, it is urgent to reduce the construction cost of the high-temperature aging test system and improve the aging efficiency. Summary of the invention

[0006] In view of the shortcomings of traditional active phased array antenna high temperature aging systems, such as complex system design, high cost, and long aging test time, the present invention proposes an active phased array antenna high temperature aging test device and test method, which integrates the high temperature aging systems of each stand-alone unit into a unified phased array antenna high temperature aging test system, thereby achieving system simplification, simple operation, low cost and high efficiency of the aging system.

[0007] The high temperature aging of the antenna is carried out after the active antenna sub-array is integrated, and the delay amplifier components, control units, power supplies, etc. corresponding to the sub-array are combined into antenna modules through structural tooling, power dividers, cables, etc. The antenna module is used as the basic unit for aging, and the high temperature aging of all units on the antenna module can be completed at the same time in one test. Compared with the traditional single-unit aging method, this method greatly simplifies the aging system, reduces costs, and greatly improves aging efficiency.

[0008] The high temperature aging test device of the present invention is composed of a temperature box, an absorbing load, a power supply system, a power-on enabling system, an antenna control system, a temperature monitoring system, a radio frequency system, a control computer, software, etc. Figure 2 .

[0009] During high-temperature aging, the antenna module is installed in a temperature box. The temperature box has temperature control capabilities and provides the required ambient temperature for antenna aging. An absorbing load needs to be arranged in front of the antenna to absorb the electromagnetic wave signal radiated by the antenna module in space during aging.

[0010] The power supply system consists of an instrument power supply and a power supply cable, which provides the primary power required by the antenna module during aging. The control computer reads the voltage and current of the instrument power supply at a certain time interval and starts protection measures when the set safety threshold is exceeded.

[0011] The power-on enabling system consists of a power-on box and an enabling control cable. The control computer sends a power-on command or a power-off command to the power supply in the antenna module, which is converted into a power-on / power-off signal by the power-on box and transmitted to the power supply through the cable to complete the power-on and power-off of the power supply. The power supply of the phased array antenna outputs multiple voltage varieties, and the order of power-on and power-off is guaranteed by program control.

[0012] The antenna control system consists of a controller and a control cable. The control computer sends the control instructions of the antenna module to the controller, which converts them into serial data instructions and the antenna's transmit and receive timing signals, and distributes them to the control unit of the antenna module through the control cable to realize the working state control of the antenna.

[0013] The temperature monitoring system consists of a data acquisition card, a thermocouple and corresponding cables. The thermocouple is arranged at a specified position in the antenna module and is used to monitor the temperature of the integrated network, T / R components, delay amplifier components, power supply and control unit in real time during the aging process. The data acquisition card converts the voltage of the thermocouple into a temperature value and transmits it to the control computer.

[0014] The RF system consists of a vector network analyzer, RF amplifier, switch matrix, power distribution and synthesis network, and RF cable. When the antenna is working, the RF excitation signal emitted by the vector network analyzer is amplified by the amplifier and distributed to the RF main port of each antenna module through the power division network, so that the antenna module works under the specified excitation. At the same time, the signal of the calibration coupling port of each antenna module is synthesized by the power division network and returned to the receiving port of the vector network analyzer through the switch matrix. In addition to providing excitation to the antenna, the RF system also has the calibration test capability of a single T / R channel in the antenna.

[0015] When multiple antenna modules are aged at the same time, in order to implement a single T / R channel test, it is necessary to generate the same number of control signal paths as the number of antenna modules. The number of serial signal paths generated by the network adapter is limited. To solve the problem of insufficient control paths, the present invention uses a switch matrix for block testing, such as Figure 3 As shown. For m×n antenna modules, the controller generates m different control signals, and each control signal is sent to n antenna modules (a row in the figure) at the same time. Every m antenna modules (corresponding to a column in the figure) are synthesized and enter the switch matrix. During single-channel testing, the i-th signal sent by the controller is a single T / R channel operation, so that the corresponding T / R channel in each antenna module in the i-th row works, and the switch matrix selects the j-th channel to work, so only the calibration signal of the single T / R channel of the i-th row and j-th column antenna module enters the vector network, realizing single-channel testing. The single-channel test of all T / R channels of all antenna modules can be realized through the loop traversal of the control signal and the switch matrix.

[0016] All instruments and equipment are connected to the control computer. The control and task scheduling of the burn-in system are completed through the desktop software. The software mainly realizes the following functions: 1. Complete the control and data collection of all instruments and equipment; 2. Complete the power-on and power-off of all power supplies according to the burn-in task; 3. Realize the state control of the antenna module, including full array on, full array off, and single T / R channel on; 4. During the burn-in process, the duty cycle of the antenna transmission is adjusted through the PID algorithm to keep the antenna working at the preset burn-in temperature; 5. During the burn-in process, the single T / R channel test is inserted regularly to complete the channel RF performance monitoring; 6. Protection function: when the instrument power supply is overvoltage, overcurrent protection and the antenna module is overheated, the burn-in is stopped; 7. Data recording function: burn-in log, temperature, test data recording.

[0017] The workflow of the phased array antenna high temperature aging test system is as follows: Figure 4 Start the software interface, connect the instrument, and after all the instruments are connected normally, you can start the high temperature aging test of the antenna. The steps are as follows:

[0018] 1. Set parameters, including the total time of high temperature aging, target temperature, temperature monitoring point, initial duty cycle, PID parameters, test time interval, test frequency and frequency points, etc.

[0019] 2. Power on the antenna. Power on all antenna modules through the power-on box. Power on follows the power-on sequence of the antenna and is done in groups to prevent excessive surge current.

[0020] 3. When the aging starts, the software cyclically reads the temperature of the temperature monitoring point on the antenna, the voltage and current of the instrument power supply and other parameters to determine whether there is overvoltage, overcurrent or overtemperature. If the parameters are abnormal, the working cycle is exited and the aging is ended. If the parameters are normal, the duty cycle of the aging system is adjusted through the PID algorithm to make the temperature of the aging system gradually reach the set aging temperature. After the test time interval is reached, the system switches to the test mode, completes the test of all T / R channels, and then returns to the aging working state.

[0021] 4. When the burn-in time reaches the set time, the burn-in ends, the software controls the antenna to switch to the load state, and then the power-on control box groups the antenna modules in the order of power-off to complete the power-off. At this point, the burn-in test of the phased array antenna is completed. You can also view the parameters and test data records during the burn-in process.

[0022] The beneficial effects of the present invention are

[0023] 1. The present invention changes the previous method of aging each unit separately in the development of phased array antennas, and completes the aging test of all units as a whole at one time, which reduces the complexity of the aging system, saves the time of aging test, and improves work efficiency.

[0024] 2. The present invention can monitor the performance of a single T / R channel during the aging process and can obtain the working status of each single machine in real time.

[0025] 3. The duty cycle of the antenna transmission is adjusted in real time through the PID algorithm, and the heat consumption of the antenna is changed, so that the temperature can be accurately controlled during the aging process without the need for an external water cooling system to control the temperature.

[0026] 4. The aging system has safety protection functions such as over-temperature and over-current.

[0027] 5. The aging test system is universal and scalable, and is compatible with the same type of phased array antenna products. It only requires a one-time cost investment, and the aging of new products only requires adaptive changes to some cables. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Figure 1 This is a typical architecture diagram of an active phased array antenna.

[0029] Figure 2 This is a block diagram of the high temperature aging system.

[0030] Figure 3 This is the control topology diagram of the antenna in the high temperature aging system.

[0031] Figure 4 This is the working flow chart of the high temperature aging system.

[0032] Figure 5 Distribution diagram of temperature measurement points on the back of the antenna module

[0033] Figure 6 This is the distribution diagram of temperature measurement points on the front side (radiating surface) of the antenna module.

[0034] Figure 7 This is a graph showing how the antenna duty cycle varies with time.

[0035] Figure 8 The temperature of each unit changes with time. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention are described clearly and completely below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of them. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0037] For a module of an active phased array antenna, a high temperature aging test system was built according to the technical solution of the present invention. The main components of the phased array antenna are active sub-arrays (radiating units, T / R components, integrated network integration), delay components, wave control units and secondary power supplies. Each unit is installed on the mounting plate to form an antenna module for aging. Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, thermocouples are attached to each stand-alone machine as temperature monitoring points. The control software of the aging system is developed according to the requirements of the technical solution of the present invention.

[0038] The antenna aging temperature is set to 45°C, and the high temperature aging test of the antenna is started after the PID control is turned on. The changes in duty cycle and single unit temperature during the aging process are shown in Figure 7 and Figure 8 , the figure only shows the changes within 1 hour after the start of aging. After thermal equilibrium, the temperature and duty cycle of the single machine tend to be stable. After the start of aging, each single machine starts to work, the temperature rises, and the duty cycle also changes with the PID algorithm. After about 20 minutes, the temperature of the single machine gradually stabilizes near the set 45℃ aging temperature: 46℃ for the active sub-array, 44℃ for the secondary power supply and delay components, and 40℃ for the wave control unit. This temperature state can be maintained until the end of aging. If the temperature of the incubator drifts during the aging process, the algorithm will adjust the duty cycle to keep the temperature near the set 45℃.

[0039] The system sets the test interval to 10 minutes. Every 10 minutes, the burn-in system switches to the test mode and completes the single-channel test traversal. By comparing the test data at different times, it is possible to count whether there is a channel failure in the burn-in test and the time of failure.

[0040] The present invention is not limited to the above specific implementations, and the present invention may have various modifications and variations. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made to the above implementations based on the technical essence of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A high temperature aging test device for active phased array antenna, characterized in that: Including temperature box, absorbing load, power supply system, power-on enabling system, antenna control system, temperature monitoring system, radio frequency system, control computer; During high-temperature aging, the antenna is installed in a temperature box, which has temperature control capability and provides the required ambient temperature for high-temperature aging. An absorbing load is arranged in front of the antenna module to absorb the electromagnetic wave signal radiated by the antenna module in space during aging. The power supply system consists of an instrument power supply and a power supply cable, which provides the antenna module with the primary power required during high-temperature aging through the power supply cable. The control computer reads the voltage and current of the instrument power supply at a certain time interval and starts the protection measures after exceeding the set safety threshold; The power-on enabling system is composed of a power-on box and an enabling control cable; the control computer sends a power-on instruction or a power-off instruction to the power supply in the antenna module, which is converted into a power-on / power-off signal by the power-on box and then transmitted to the instrument power supply through the enabling control cable to complete the power-on and power-off of the power supply; The antenna control system is composed of a controller and a control cable; the control computer sends the control instructions of the antenna module to the controller, and the controller converts them into serial data instructions and receiving and sending timing signals, which are distributed to the control unit of the antenna module through the control cable to realize the working state control of the antenna; The temperature monitoring system is composed of a data acquisition card, a thermocouple and corresponding cables; the thermocouple is arranged at a specified position in the antenna module and is used to monitor the temperature of the integrated network, T / R components, delay amplifier components, power supply and control unit in real time during the aging process. The data acquisition card converts the voltage of the thermocouple into a temperature value and transmits it to the control computer; The RF system consists of a vector network analyzer, an RF amplifier, a switch matrix, a power distribution and synthesis network, and an RF cable. When the antenna module is working, the RF excitation signal emitted by the vector network analyzer is amplified by the RF amplifier, and then distributed to the RF main port of each antenna module through the power distribution and synthesis network, so that the antenna module works under the specified excitation. At the same time, the signal of the calibration coupling port of each antenna module is synthesized by the power distribution and synthesis network, and then returned to the receiving port of the vector network analyzer through the switch matrix. In addition to providing excitation to the antenna, the RF system also has the calibration test capability of a single T / R channel in the antenna.

2. The high temperature aging test device for active phased array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The switch matrix is ​​used for block testing, and single-channel testing of all T / R channels of all antenna modules can be achieved through loop traversal of control signals and the switch matrix.

3. The high temperature aging test device for active phased array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: During the high-temperature aging process, the duty cycle of the antenna transmission is adjusted through the PID algorithm to keep the antenna working at a preset high-temperature aging temperature.

4. The high temperature aging test device for active phased array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: During the high-temperature aging process, single T / R channel testing is periodically inserted to complete channel RF performance monitoring.

5. The high temperature aging test device for active phased array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The test device has system protection function. When the instrument power supply is overvoltage, overcurrent protection and antenna module is overheated, high temperature aging will be stopped.

6. A high temperature aging test method for an active phased array antenna, applied to a high temperature aging test device for an active phased array antenna as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: High temperature aging is carried out after the active sub-array of the antenna is integrated, and the delay amplifier components, control unit, power supply corresponding to the active sub-array are combined with the structural tooling, power divider, and cable to form an antenna module. The antenna module is used as the basic unit for aging. One test can complete the high temperature aging of all units on the antenna module at the same time; specifically, the following steps are included:

1. Set parameters Set the total time, target temperature, temperature monitoring point, initial duty cycle, PID parameters, test time interval, test frequency and frequency point of high temperature aging; 2. Power up the antenna All antenna modules are powered on by the power-on box. The power-on sequence of the antennas is followed and the modules are powered on in groups to prevent excessive surge current.

3. High temperature aging start Cyclic reading of the temperature of the temperature monitoring point on the antenna module, the voltage and current parameters of the instrument power supply, to determine whether there is overvoltage, overcurrent or overtemperature. If the parameters are abnormal, the working cycle is exited and the high-temperature aging is ended; if the parameters are normal, the duty cycle of the high-temperature aging work is adjusted through the PID algorithm to gradually make the temperature of the high-temperature aging system reach the set temperature; after the test time interval is reached, switch to the test mode, complete the test of all T / R channels, and then return to the high-temperature aging working state; 4. When the time reaches the set time, the high temperature aging is completed, the antenna module is controlled to switch to the load state, and then the power-on control box is used to group the antenna modules in the power-off sequence to complete the power-off; The high temperature aging test of the antenna module is now completed; and the parameters and test data during the high temperature aging process can be viewed and recorded.

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