Conformal / Omnidirectional Differential Sectioned Aperture

Abstract

The radio frequency (RF) aperture includes an array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a curved aperture surface, such as a semi-cylindrical aperture surface, or a cylindrical aperture surface (which may be configured as two semi-circular aperture surfaces arranged relative to one another to define the cylindrical aperture surface). The RF aperture may further include a top array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a top aperture surface. The top aperture surface may be planar, and the cylinder axis of the cylindrical aperture surface may be perpendicular to the plane of the planar aperture surface. The RF aperture may further include a ballast mounted on at least one printed circuit board, the ballast having a balanced port electrically connected to two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions of the array and further having an unbalanced port.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 839,122, filed April 26, 2019, and entitled “CONFORMAL / OMNI-DIRECTIONAL DIFFERENTIAL SEGMENTED APERTURE,” which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] (background) The following relates to radio frequency (RF) technology areas, RF transmitter technology areas, RF receiver technology areas, RF transceiver technology areas, broadband RF transmitters, receivers, and / or transceivers technology areas, RF communications technology areas, and related technology areas.

[0003] No. 7,420,522 to Steinbrecher, entitled "Electromagnetic Radiation Interface System and Method," discloses a broadband RF aperture as follows: "An electromagnetic radiation interface suitable for use with radio frequencies is provided. A surface includes a plurality of metallic conical bristle bodies. A corresponding plurality of termination sections are provided such that each bristle body is terminated with the termination section. The termination sections may include an electrical resistance to capture substantially all electromagnetic energy received by each individual bristle body, thereby preventing reflections from the surface of the interface. Each termination section may also include an analog-to-digital converter for converting energy from each bristle body into a digital word. The bristle bodies may be mounted on a ground plane having a plurality of holes therethrough. A plurality of coaxial transmission lines may extend through the ground plane to interconnect the plurality of bristle bodies to the plurality of termination sections."

[0004] Several improvements are disclosed herein. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent No. 7,420,522 Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] (Brief summary) According to some illustrative embodiments, the radio frequency (RF) aperture comprises an array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a curved aperture surface. In some embodiments, the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a semi-cylindrical aperture surface. In some embodiments, the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface. In these latter embodiments, the array of conductive tapered protrusions may include a first array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a first semi-cylindrical aperture surface and a second array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a second semi-cylindrical aperture surface, the first and second semi-cylindrical aperture surfaces being mutually arranged to define the cylindrical aperture surface. In some embodiments employing a cylindrical aperture surface, the RF aperture further comprises an upper array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a top aperture surface. In some such embodiments, the top aperture surface is a planar top aperture surface, and in some more specific embodiments, the cylindrical axis of the cylindrical aperture surface is perpendicular to the plane of the planar top aperture surface.

[0007] According to some illustrative embodiments disclosed herein, the RF aperture comprises an array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a curved aperture surface, at least one printed circuit board, baluns mounted on the at least one printed circuit board, each balun having a balanced port electrically connected to two neighboring conductive tapered protrusions of the array of conductive tapered protrusions and further having an unbalanced port, and RF circuitry disposed on the at least one printed circuit board and electrically connected to the unbalanced port of the balun. In some embodiments, the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a semi-cylindrical aperture surface. In some embodiments, the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface.

[0008] Some embodiments of the RF aperture of the immediately preceding paragraph in which the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface are constructed as follows: The array of conductive tapered protrusions includes a first array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a first semi-cylindrical aperture surface, and a second array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a second semi-cylindrical aperture surface, the first and second semi-cylindrical aperture surfaces being mutually arranged to define the cylindrical aperture surface. In some such embodiments, the at least one printed circuit board includes a first at least one printed circuit board carrying a first subset of baluns whose balanced ports are electrically connected to the first array of conductive tapered protrusions, and a second at least one printed circuit board carrying a second subset of baluns whose balanced ports are electrically connected to the second array of conductive tapered protrusions. In some such embodiments, the first at least one printed circuit board is planar and the balanced ports of a first subset of the baluns are electrically connected to the first array of conductive tapered protrusions by coaxial cables, and the second at least one printed circuit board is planar and the balanced ports of a second subset of the baluns are electrically connected to the second array of conductive tapered protrusions by coaxial cables.

[0009] In an embodiment of any one of the two immediately preceding paragraphs in which the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface, the RF aperture may optionally further comprise an upper array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define an upper aperture surface, at least one upper printed circuit board, and a balun mounted on the at least one upper printed circuit board, each balun having a balanced port electrically connected to two neighboring conductive tapered protrusions of the upper array of conductive tapered protrusions and further having an unbalanced port. In some such embodiments, the upper aperture surface is a planar upper aperture surface, and optionally a cylindrical axis of the cylindrical aperture surface is perpendicular to the plane of the planar upper aperture surface.

[0010] According to some illustrative embodiments disclosed herein, the RF aperture comprises an array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a curved aperture surface, at least one printed circuit board, and RF circuitry disposed on the at least one printed circuit board and electrically connected to the conductive tapered protrusions. In some such embodiments, the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface. Some such embodiments implementing the cylindrical aperture further comprise a cylindrical support supporting the array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface, the at least one printed circuit board comprising a plurality of printed circuit boards disposed inside the cylindrical support. In some embodiments, the plurality of printed circuit boards comprise vertical printed circuit boards each having an edge proximate to the inner surface of the cylindrical support and each perpendicular to the cylindrical support at the edge proximate to the cylindrical support. In some embodiments, the plurality of printed circuit boards comprise circular printed circuit boards concentrically disposed inside the cylindrical support and having a circular periphery proximate to the inner surface of the cylindrical support. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] Any quantitative dimensions shown in the drawings shall be understood as non-limiting illustrative examples. Unless otherwise indicated, the drawings are not to scale and any aspect of the drawings may be shown as being to scale, and the scales shown shall be understood as non-limiting illustrative examples.

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 and 2 diagrammatically illustrate front and side cross-sectional views, respectively, of an illustrative differential compartmentalized aperture (DSA). [Diagram 2]1 and 2 diagrammatically illustrate front and side cross-sectional views, respectively, of an illustrative differential compartmentalized aperture (DSA).

[0013] [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 shows diagrammatically a block diagram of a single QUAD subassembly of the DSA of FIGS. 1-4.

[0014] [Figure 4] FIG. 4 diagrammatically illustrates a front view of the interface printed circuit board (i-PCB) of the DSA of FIGS. 1-3, including vias and mounting holes, and diagrammatically indicating the locations of the balun and resistor pads.

[0015] [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 diagrammatically illustrates a rear view of the enclosure of the DSA of FIGS. 1-4, including diagrammatically shown RF connections, controls, and power connectors.

[0016] [Figure 6] FIG. 6 diagrammatically illustrates a side cross-sectional view of one embodiment of a conductive tapered protrusion, along with a diagrammatic representation of a connection of a balanced port of a chip balun between two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions.

[0017] [Figure 7] 7-10 diagrammatically illustrate additional embodiments of conductive tapered protrusions. [Figure 8] 7-10 diagrammatically illustrate additional embodiments of conductive tapered protrusions. [Figure 9] 7-10 diagrammatically illustrate additional embodiments of conductive tapered protrusions. [Figure 10] 7-10 diagrammatically illustrate additional embodiments of conductive tapered protrusions.

[0018] [Figure 11] FIG. 11 shows a perspective view of an omnidirectional DSA according to a further embodiment.

[0019] [Figure 12] FIG. 12 shows a perspective view of the omnidirectional DSA of FIG. 11 with the outer housing omitted to reveal a cylindrical array of conductive tapered protrusions for low elevation angle coupling (CA DSA) and a top array of conductive tapered protrusions for high elevation angle coupling (TA DSA).

[0020] [Figure 13] FIG. 13 shows a schematic top view of the CADSA (with the TADSA omitted).

[0021] [Figure 14] FIG. 14 shows a side view of one semi-cylindrical section of the CADSA.

[0022] [Figure 15] FIG. 15 shows a top view of the TADSA.

[0023] [Figure 16] FIG. 16 shows a more detailed schematic top view of one semi-cylindrical section of CADS A (TADSA omitted) with a detailed inset.

[0024] [Figure 17] FIG. 17 shows a more detailed schematic side view of the TADSA.

[0025] [Figure 18] FIG. 18 shows another embodiment of a CADSA.

[0026] [Figure 19] FIG. 19 shows another embodiment of a CADSA. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0027] (Detailed Description) 1 and 2, front and side cross-sectional views are shown of an illustrative radio frequency (RF) aperture including an interface printed circuit board (i-PCB) 10 having a front side 12 and a back side 14, respectively, and an array of conductive tapered protrusions 20 having a base 22 disposed on and extending away from the front side 12 of the i-PCB 10. Although the illustrative i-PCB 10 is shown in FIG. 1 as having dimensions of 5 inches by 5 inches, this is merely a non-limiting illustrative example of a small RF aperture. FIG. 1 shows a front view of the RF aperture with an inset at the top left showing a perspective view of one conductive tapered protrusion 20. This illustrative embodiment of conductive tapered protrusion 20 has a square cross-section with a larger square base 22 and an apex that does not extend to a full tip, but rather terminates at a flat apex 24 (in other words, the conductive tapered protrusion 20 in the inset has a frusto-conical shape). This is merely an illustrative example, and more generally, the conductive tapered protrusion 20 can have any type of cross-section (e.g., square, as in the inset, or circular, or hexagonal, or octagonal, etc.). The apex 24 can be flat, as in the inset example, or can reach a sharp point, or can be rounded, or have some other apex geometry. The rate of tapering as a function of height (i.e., the distance "above" base 22 with apex 24 at its maximum "high") can be constant, as in the inset example, or the rate of tapering can be variable with height, e.g., the rate of tapering can increase with increasing height to form protrusions with rounded tops, or decrease with increasing height to form protrusions with more pointed tips. Similarly, as shown in most detail in FIG. 1, the illustrative array of conductive tapered protrusions 20 is a rectilinear array with regular rows and orthogonal regular columns, however, the array may have other symmetries, e.g., hexagonal symmetry, octagonal symmetry, etc.In the illustrative embodiment of the inset, a square base 22 and square apex 24 lead to a conductive tapered protrusion 20 having four flat sloping sidewalls 26, however, other sidewall shapes are contemplated, for example, if the base and apex are circular (or the base is circular and the apex reaches a point), the sidewalls would be a sloping or tapered cylinder, for a hexagonal base and hexagonal or pointed apex, there would be six sloping sidewalls, etc.

[0028] 1 and 2, and with further reference to FIG. 3, the RF aperture further comprises RF circuitry including a chip balun 30 that, in an illustrative embodiment, is mounted on the backside 14 of the i-PCB 10. Alternatively, the balun 30 may be implemented differently, for example as a balun inscribed within the i-PCB 10. In another approach, the signal chain driving the RF aperture may be a fully differential signal chain, in which case the balun may be omitted. Each chip balun 30 is connected to a balanced port P that is electrically connected to two neighboring conductive tapered protrusions of the array of conductive tapered protrusions via electrical feedthroughs 32 that pass through the i-PCB 10.B (See FIGS. 3 and 6 ). Each chip balun 30 further includes an unbalanced port P U (See FIGS. 3 and 6 ). The exemplary RF network further includes an unbalanced port P U As can be seen in FIG. 3, an exemplary electrical configuration of the RF circuitry includes an unbalanced port P U A first level 1×2 RF power divider / combiner 40 that combines the pair of 1 and a first level RF power divider / combiner 40 1 A second level 1×2 RF power divider / combiner 40 that combines the outputs of the pair of 2 This is merely an illustrative approach, and other configurations are contemplated, such as using 1×3 (combining three lines), 1×4 (combining four lines), or higher combined RF power dividers / combiners, or various combinations thereof. The illustrative RF circuitry further includes a 1×10 GHz balanced power supply for each unbalanced port P U and the first level 1x2 power divider 40 1 The signal conditioning circuitry 42 coupled to each unbalanced port includes an RF transmit amplifier T, an RF receive amplifier R, and RF switching circuitry including a switch RFS configured to switch between a transmit mode that operably connects the RF transmit amplifier T to the unbalanced port and a receive mode that operably connects the RF receive amplifier R to the unbalanced port.

[0029] With continuing reference to FIGS. 1-3 and with further reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, a compact design (e.g., 3 inch depth in the non-limiting illustrative example of FIG. 3) is achieved in part by employing one or more printed circuit boards (PCBs), including at least the i-PCB 10. In the illustrative example shown in FIG. 3, a chip balun 30 is mounted on the backside 14 of the i-PCB 10. Optionally, other electronic components may also be mounted on the backside of the i-PCB 10, which has the array of conductive tapered protrusions 20 disposed on its front side 12. However, there may be insufficient footprint on the i-PCB 10 to mount all of the electronics of the RF circuitry. In the illustrative embodiment, this is addressed by providing a second printed circuit board 50, which is disposed in parallel with the i-PCB 10 and faces the backside 14 of the i-PCB 10. In other words, the second printed circuit board 50 is disposed on the (back) side 14 of the i-PCB 10 opposite the (front) side 12 of the i-PCB 10 on which the conductive tapered protrusions 20 are disposed. The RF circuitry comprises electronic components mounted on the second printed circuit board 50, which may also be referred to herein as a signal conditioning PCB or SC-PCB 50, and additionally or alternatively comprises electronic components mounted on the i-PCB 10 (typically on the back side 14 of the i-PCB, although it is also contemplated (not shown) to mount the RF circuitry components on the front side of the i-PCB in the field space between the conductive tapered protrusions 20). If an SC-PCB 50 is provided, it is suitably secured in parallel to the i-PCB 10 by standoffs 54, as shown in FIG. 2, and a single-ended feedthrough 52 is provided to electrically interconnect the i-PCB 10 and the SC-PCB 50 (see FIG. 3). If the RF circuitry cannot fit onto the footprint of two PCBs 10, 50, a third (and optionally a fourth, and further) PCBs may be added (not shown) to accommodate the RF circuitry components.

[0030] FIG. 4 shows a front view of the i-PCB 10, including the vias and mounting holes, and diagrammatically indicates the location of the balun 30 and resistor pads, as indicated in the legend shown in FIG. 4. (The resistors are used to terminate the unused sides of the pyramids to help lower the radar cross section.)

[0031] 2 and with further reference to FIG. 5, the illustrative RF aperture, in an illustrative embodiment, has an enclosure 58 affixed to the periphery of the i-PCB 10 such that the periphery encloses the RF circuitry. This is just one illustrative arrangement and other designs are contemplated, for example, both PCBs 10, 50 may be disposed inside an enclosure (although such an enclosure should not include an RF shield extending forward so as to block the area of ​​the RF aperture). 5 diagrammatically illustrates a rear view of an RF aperture enclosure 58 showing a diagrammatically represented RF connector (or port) 60 (also shown or depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3), control electronics 62 (e.g., illustrative phased array beamsteering electronics 63, shown as a non-limiting illustration, which may be mounted external to the enclosure 58 and / or located inside the enclosure 58 to provide beneficial RF shielding), and a power connector 64 for providing power to operate the active components of the RF circuitry (e.g., operating power for the active RF transmit amplifiers T, and the active RF receive amplifiers R, and the switch RFS). The particular arrangement of the various components 60, 62, 63, 64 across the rear area of ​​the enclosure may vary widely from that shown in FIG. 5, and these components may be located elsewhere, e.g., the RF connector 60 may alternatively be located at the edge of the RF aperture, etc. It should also be understood that the RF aperture may be integrally constructed with some other component or system, for example, if the RF aperture is used as an RF transmitting and / or receiving element in a mobile ground station, maritime radio, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), etc., the enclosure 58 may be replaced by having an RF aperture built into the housing of the mobile ground station, maritime radio, UAV airframe, etc. In such a case, the RF connector 60 may also be replaced by a wired connection to the mobile ground station, maritime radio, UAV electronics, etc.

[0032] With particular reference to Figure 3, an example electrical configuration for an example RF network is shown. In this non-limiting example, the array of conductive tapered protrusions 20 is assumed to be a 5 x 5 array of conductive tapered protrusions 20, as shown in Figures 1 and 4. The balanced port P B connects adjacent (i.e., nearby) pairs of conductive tapered protrusions 20 of the array to receive a differential RF signal between two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions 20 (in a receive mode, or alternatively, to apply a differential RF signal between two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions 20 in a transmit mode). As detailed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,420,522 to Steinbrecher (incorporated herein by reference in its entirety), the tapering of the conductive tapered protrusions 20 presents a separation between the two conductive tapered protrusions 20 that varies with "height", i.e., with the distance "above" the base 22 of the conductive tapered protrusions 20. This provides broadband RF capture, since a range of RF wavelengths can be captured, corresponding to the range of separation between adjacent conductive tapered protrusions 20 introduced by the tapering. The RF aperture is thus a differentially sectioned aperture (DSA) with differential RF receiving (or RF transmitting) elements corresponding to adjacent pairs of conductive tapered protrusions 20. These differential RF receiving (or transmitting) elements are referred to herein as aperture pixels. For an illustrative rectilinear 5×5 array of adjacent conductive tapered protrusions 20, this means that there are four aperture pixels along each row (or column) of five conductive tapered protrusions 20. More generally, for a linear array of protrusions having rows (or columns) of N conductive tapered protrusions 20, there will be corresponding N−1 pixels along the row (or column). FIG. 3 shows a QUAD subassembly, which is the interconnection of four pixel rows (or columns). Since there are four rows and four columns, this leads to 4×4 or 16 such QUAD subassemblies. Resistor pads are used as terminations for the unused edges of the surrounding pyramids to prevent unwanted reflections. Without the resistors mounted via the resistor pads, those surfaces would be left floating and could re-radiate the incident RF energy, causing an enhanced radar cross section.

[0033] In the illustrative embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a second level 1×2 RF power divider / combiner 40 in each QUAD subassembly 2 connects with an RF connector 60 at the back side of the enclosure 58. Thus, as seen in FIG. 5, there are eight RF connectors for the eight QUAD subassemblies shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, such as row QUAD subassemblies N1, N2, N3, N4 and column QUAD subassemblies M1, M2, M3, M4. Gnd(N) row and Gnd(M) column are circuit grounds to allow a common path for current flow from the captured RF energy along the perimeter side of the pyramid. The use of QUAD subassemblies allows for a high level of flexibility in RF coupling to the RF aperture. For example, the illustrative phased array beamsteering electronics 63 selects the appropriate phase shifts for the row QUAD subassemblies N1, N2, N3, N4.

number

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[0034] The described electronics, employing PCBs 10, 50, chip baluns 30, and active signal conditioning components (e.g., active transmit and receive amplifiers T and R), advantageously allow the RF aperture to be made small and lightweight. As will now be described, embodiments of the conductive tapered protrusion 20 further facilitate providing a small and lightweight broadband RF aperture.

[0035] FIG. 6 shows a side cross-sectional view of one illustrative embodiment in which each conductive tapered protrusion 20 is fabricated as a dielectric tapered protrusion 70 with a conductive layer 72 disposed on a surface of the dielectric tapered protrusion 70. The dielectric tapered protrusion may be made of an electrically insulating plastic or ceramic material, such as, for example, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polycarbonate, etc., and may be manufactured by injection molding, three-dimensional (3D) printing, or other suitable techniques. The conductive layer 72 may be any suitable conductive material, such as copper, copper alloy, silver, silver alloy, gold, gold alloy, aluminum, aluminum alloy, etc., or may include a layered stack of different conductive materials, and may be coated on the dielectric tapered protrusion 70 by vacuum evaporation, RF sputtering, or any other vacuum deposition technique. FIG. 6 shows an example in which solder points 74 are used to electrically connect the conductive layer 72 of each dielectric tapered protrusion 20 to its corresponding electrical feedthrough 32 passing through the i-PCB 10. FIG. 6 also illustrates a balanced port P of one chip balun 30 between two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions 20 via solder points 76. B Illustrative connections are also shown.

[0036] 7 and 8 show exploded side cross-sectional and perspective views, respectively, of an embodiment in which the dielectric tapered protrusions 70 are integrally contained within a dielectric plate 80. A conductive layer 72 coats each dielectric tapered protrusion 70 but has insulating gaps 82 that provide galvanic isolation between neighboring dielectric tapered protrusions 20. The insulating gaps 82 can be formed after coating the conductive layer 72 by etching the coating away from the plate 80 between the conductive tapered protrusions 20 after coating, galvanically isolating the conductive tapered protrusions from one another. Alternatively, the insulating gaps 82 can be defined before coating by depositing a mask material (not shown) on the plate 80 between the conductive tapered protrusions 20 such that the coating does not coat the plate in the conductive tapered protrusion-to-conductive tapered protrusion insulating gaps 82, thereby galvanically isolating the conductive tapered protrusions from one another. As can be seen in the perspective view of FIG. 8, the result is that the dielectric plate 80 covers (and therefore occludes) the surface of the i-PCB 10, with the conductive tapered protrusions 20 extending away from the dielectric plate 80.

[0037] With particular reference to Figure 7, in one approach for electrical interconnection, through-holes 82 pass through the illustrative plate 80 and the underlying i-PCB 10, and rivets, screws, or other conductive fasteners 32' pass through the through-holes 82 (note that Figure 7 is an exploded view), thus forming electrical feedthroughs 32' that pass through the i-PCB 10 when placed. (Note that the perspective view of Figure 8 is simplified and does not depict the fasteners 32'.) The use of a dielectric plate 80 with an integral dielectric tapered protrusion 70 and combined fastener / feedthrough 32' advantageously allows the conductive tapered protrusions 20 to be placed with precision positioning and without soldering.

[0038] 6-8, a conductive coating 72 is disposed on the outer surface of the dielectric tapered protrusion 70. In this case, the dielectric tapered protrusion 70 may be either hollow or solid.

[0039] 9 and 10, since the dielectric material is substantially transparent to RF radiation, the conductive coating 72 may instead be coated on the inner surface of the (hollow) dielectric tapered protrusion 70. FIG. 9 shows a side cross-sectional view of such an embodiment, while FIG. 10 shows a perspective view. The embodiment of FIGS. 9 and 10 again employs a dielectric plate 80 including a dielectric tapered protrusion 70. As seen in FIG. 10, by coating the conductive coating 72 on the inner surface of the hollow dielectric tapered protrusion 70, this allows the conductive coating 72 to be protected from external contact by the dielectric plate 80 including the integral dielectric tapered protrusion 70. This may be useful in environments where weather may be an issue.

[0040] It should be understood that the various disclosed aspects are illustrative examples, and that the disclosed features may be variously combined or omitted in specific embodiments. For example, one of the illustrative examples of the conductive tapered protrusion 20 or a variant thereof may be employed without the QUAD subassembly network configuration of FIG. 2-5. Conversely, the QUAD subassembly network configuration of FIG. 2-5 or a variant thereof may be employed without the dielectric / coating configuration for the conductive tapered protrusion 20. Similarly, the chip balun 30 may or may not be used in specific embodiments, etc.

[0041] The RF aperture design of Fig. 1-10 employs an exemplary planar i-PCB 10. The design is generally limited to an angular field of view (FOV) of about 180° (solid) or less. To obtain a wider (solid) angular FOV, two or more such planar RF apertures may be arranged in different directions, e.g., three planar DSAs oriented at 120° azimuth intervals could potentially provide up to 360° angular coverage. Similarly, four planar DSAs at 90° azimuth angles (e.g., forming a square) could also cover 360°. However, such an approach may have difficulties at high elevation angles. In addition, it is expected that these arrangements may be bulky and the coverage quality may exhibit non-uniform behavior in the overlap between the FOVs of neighboring planar DSAs at angles.

[0042] With reference to Figures 11-17, a compact omnidirectional DSA 100 is described. The illustrative omnidirectional DSA 100 has non-limiting illustrative dimensions shown, which are merely examples, and the omnidirectional DSA 100 can have any aspect ratio and size more generally. Figure 11 shows a perspective view of the omnidirectional DSA 100 housed within a cosmetic and / or protective housing or enclosure 101. The DSA 100 includes a cylindrical array of conductive tapered protrusions (CADSA) 102 for low elevation angle coupling and a top array of conductive tapered protrusions (TADSA) 104 for high elevation angle coupling. Figure 11 also illustrates a mounting support (e.g., a pole) 106 and an external port 108 for enabling polarization independent operation and / or multiple input / multiple output (MIMO) RF transmission and / or reception operation. Figure 12 shows a perspective view of the DSA 100 of Figure 11 with the housing or enclosure 101 omitted to reveal the cylindrical RF coupling surface of the CADSA 102 and the planar RF coupling surface of the TADSA 104. These surfaces include an array of conductive tapered protrusions 20, embodiments of which have been previously described herein.

[0043] 13 diagrammatically illustrates a top view of the CADSA 102 (with the TADSA 104 omitted). For ease of manufacturability, the illustrative cylindrical CADSA 102 is made up of two semi-cylindrical sections 102 joined together by a longitudinal joint 110 (also shown in FIG. 11 by a dashed line). H The exemplary joint 110 includes a spacer element, although it is contemplated that the joint may be an adhesive joint, a clip, or other fastener, etc. FIG. 14 illustrates one half-cylindrical section 102 of the CADSA 102. H 15 shows a side view of the TADSA 104. The omnidirectional DSA 100 is made up of three sections, namely two semi-cylindrical sections 102, which can be connected as shown to form the CADSA 102, providing a full (360°) azimuth omnidirectional RF aperture. H and an upper circular TADSA 104 for high elevation angle (i.e., high altitude) RF aperture coverage that extends upward to the zenith. The illustrative TADSA 104 is a planar DSA in which the cylindrical axis of the CADSA 102 is perpendicular to the plane of the TADSA 104 (i.e., the cylindrical axis of the CADSA 102 is parallel to the surface normal of the plane of the TADSA 104). Although perpendicularity provides an advantageous design symmetry, some deviations from perpendicularity are contemplated.

[0044] In one variant embodiment, the TADSA 104 is omitted and the resulting DSA is made up of two semi-cylindrical sections 102 that are connected to form the CADSA 102. H When mounted vertically (i.e., the cylindrical axis of the CADSA 102 is oriented vertically), the present DSA provides a full (360°) azimuth omnidirectional RF aperture, but with reduced or eliminated sensitivity at higher elevation angles (e.g., zenith) due to the omission of the TADSA 104. Such a design omitting the TADSA 104 may be appropriate if the application is not expected to involve receiving and / or transmitting RF signals from and / or to high elevation angle sources and / or targets.

[0045] In further variants (not shown), the planar TADSA 104 may be replaced by an equivalent component with a curved, e.g., hemispherical, surface that supports the upper array of conductive tapered protrusions 20. However, the illustrative planar TADSA 104 is advantageously convenient for manufacturing and providing an acceptable high elevation angle RF aperture for most applications. It should also be noted that while the illustrative upper array of conductive tapered protrusions 20 has a rectilinear array with a square perimeter (see FIG. 15), other array configurations may also be employed.

[0046] FIG. 16 shows one semi-cylindrical section 102 of the CADSA 102 (TADSA omitted). H 16 shows a more detailed schematic top view of the conductive tapered protrusions 20. Inset A shows a perspective view of one of the conductive tapered protrusions 20 (which in this example is conical tapering towards a tip, but could more generally take on any of the other conductive tapered protrusion designs disclosed herein). As shown in the main drawing of FIG. 16, in an illustrative embodiment, the conductive tapered protrusions 20 are mounted within a semicircular hollow shell 120 with the base of the protrusion 20 affixed to an inner circumferential surface 122 and the apex of the protrusion 20 affixed to an outer circumferential surface 124. However, other mounting configurations are also contemplated, for example, the apex may be freestanding (i.e., unsupported) in some alternative embodiments, or the conductive tapered protrusions 20 may be solid elements that engage threaded openings in the base, are mounted by their bases using screws or other fasteners, or the conductive tapered protrusions 20 may be mounted on a dielectric formation, employ a conductive plate, etc. Illustrative semi-cylindrical section 102 H 1-10 insofar as it supports the chip balun 130. However, unlike the case of the i-PCB 10, the planar printed circuit board 126 does not support the conductive tapered protrusion 20 (which is instead supported here by the hollow shell 120). Thus, a coaxial cable 132 is extended from the terminal of the balanced port of the chip balun 130 to the conductive tapered protrusion 20 to provide an electrical connection between the balanced port of the chip balun 130 and the conductive tapered protrusion 20. Inset B shows a schematic diagram of one coaxial cable 132 having a first differential connector 134 connecting with the unbalanced port of the chip balun 130 and an opposite second differential connector 136 connecting two adjacent sides 138 (see inset C) of two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions 20. The second differential connector 136 may thus be seen to serve a function similar to, for example, the pair of feedthroughs 32 shown in the embodiment of FIG. 6. In the illustrative design, the second differential connector 136 connects between adjacent sides 138 of two adjacent spurs 20, and the coaxial shields of the coaxial cables 132 are not connected to either spur (or to the differential connectors 136). More generally, other RF shielded electrical cable configurations are also contemplated. The illustrative coaxial cables 132 are all of the same length, however, this is not required and it is alternatively contemplated to use shorter cables for connections closer to the junction between the semi-cylindrical shell 120 and the printed circuit board 126 (if the distance to be spanned by the cable is shorter).

[0047] The illustrative printed circuit board 126 is planar, such that a coaxial cable 132 is provided to span the distance between the chip balun 130 on the printed circuit board 126 and the protrusion 20 mounted within the semi-cylindrical shell 120. However, other configurations are contemplated, such as employing a flexible printed circuit board positioned inside the shell 120 and conforming to its inner surface 122, on which the chip balun is then mounted in close proximity to the connected protrusion.

[0048] With continued reference to FIG. 16, an illustrative semi-cylindrical section 102 H 16 further includes a second printed circuit board 140 that provides additional footprint for mounting additional electronics. Thus, the second printed circuit board 140 is understood to perform a role similar to the SC-PCB 50 shown in FIG. 2. As already discussed, if the main PCB 126 has a sufficient footprint, the second PCB 140 may be optionally omitted, and conversely, if the two PCBs are insufficient, it is contemplated to add a third (or additional) PCB (not shown) to provide additional footprint. In the illustrative example of FIG. 16, the semi-cylindrical shell 120 separates the two PCBs 126, 140, thus providing a standoff that serves the role of the standoff 54 of the embodiment of FIG. 2. Other assembly configurations are also contemplated. The various electronics 144 may be similar to those of the embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3, for example.

[0049] FIG. 17 shows a more detailed schematic side view of the TADSA 104. The electronics are housed in a semi-cylindrical section 102. H 1 and includes two PCBs 126, 140, a chip balun 130 on the first PCB 126 that connects to the protrusions 20 via a differential connector 136 and a differential connector 134 that connects to a balanced port on the balun 130, and various other electronics 144. Due to the close proximity of the protrusions 20 of the planar array of conductive tapered protrusions 20 of the TADSA 104, the semi-cylindrical section 102 H The coaxial cable 132 may be replaced by a feedthrough 142 (e.g., a differential feedthrough or a mated single-ended feedthrough). The electronics and protrusion 20 are optionally enclosed within a housing or enclosure 150. The semi-cylindrical section 102 shown in FIG. H 17, advantageously facilitates manufacturability through the use of many of the same components (e.g., connectors 134, 136, potentially the same circuit boards 126 and / or 140, etc.). However, it is alternatively conceivable to build the TADSA 104 using a physical design similar to that of the embodiment of FIG. 2 (e.g., with a planar array of the TADSA's conductive tapered protrusions 20 mounted directly on a circuit board that also has a chip balun mounted on its back side).

[0050] In the following, some principles regarding the RF design of the omnidirectional DSA 100 of FIGS. 11-17 are explained.

[0051] A square flat aperture plane, such as that of the embodiment of Figures 1-10, results in a beam pattern that is inherently directional. An estimate of the beamwidth (in radians) of a square flat aperture DSA is given by the following equation:

number

[0052] RF modeling shows that the curved (e.g., cylindrical) aperture plane of CADSA 102, together with TADSA 104, provides hemispherical (omnidirectional in azimuth and high elevation angles up to zenith coverage) transceiver functionality. Typically, over low line-of-sight angles (terrestrial links), the dominant mode of propagation is vertically polarized electric fields, since horizontally polarized electric fields tend to decay more rapidly depending on the ground electrical properties. In that case, the vertical dimension requires additional pyramidal sensing elements and may be primary polarized. However, pyramidal sensing elements may also be connected across the horizontal direction for cross-polarized implementations. More generally, the semi-cylindrical section 102 of CADSA 102 H provides the option to implement both polarizations, with higher sensitivity allocated to the orthogonal polarization. The upper section (i.e., TADSA 104) is configured in the illustrative embodiment as a square DSA that accommodates both orthogonal polarizations and is therefore polarization independent. This section provides high elevation angle and overhead (near zenith) coverage.

[0053] As mentioned above, the TADSA 104 may be omitted for applications where high elevation coverage is less important. Similarly, only one semi-cylindrical section 102 (with or without TADSA) may be used for applications where wide azimuth angles (but less than 360°) are desired. H It is contemplated to use a surface curvature of 0.1 mm. Also, while the illustrative CADSA 102 is cylindrical with a circular cross-section, in other embodiments, the curvature of the surface may differ from a circular cross-section. For example, the surface curvature of the section 102 may be 0.1 mm. H The curved surface may be fabricated to conform to the curved surface of an aircraft or unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) airframe, or to conform to the hull of an ocean-going ship or submarine, or to conform to the surface of a rounded or cylindrical orbiting satellite, etc. Also, as noted above, although an omnidirectional RF aperture has been described, the design may be similarly applied to acoustic or magnetic apertures.

[0054] 18, another conductive tapered protrusion cylindrical array (CADSA) embodiment is shown. In this embodiment, the conductive tapered protrusions 20 are mounted on a cylindrical support 160 (e.g., a dielectric cylinder made from plastic or another non-conductive material) that forms structural support for the RF aperture. The illustrative protrusions 20 are free-standing in this embodiment, with their bases mounted on the cylindrical support 160. For example, the conductive tapered protrusions 20 may be solid protrusions with threaded openings in their bases that are secured to the cylindrical support 160 by screws or other suitable threaded fasteners, or the conductive tapered protrusions 20 may be hollow protrusions that are secured via a central post inside the hollow protrusion, or the conductive tapered protrusions 20 may be hollow protrusions whose bases are defined by a base edge that is soldered or otherwise secured to the cylindrical support 160, etc. This is merely an illustrative example of a suitable cylindrical support; as another example, the cylindrical support may be a counterpart of a semicircular hollow shell 120 in which the protrusions 20 are supported between an inner circumferential surface 122 and an outer circumferential surface 124 of the shell 120, as described above with reference to FIG. 16.

[0055] In the embodiment of FIG. 18, the planar printed circuit boards 126, 140 of the embodiment of FIG. 16 are replaced by a set of radially oriented vertical printed circuit boards 162 whose planes are oriented parallel to a radial line extending outward from the cylindrical axis of the cylindrical support 160. One edge of each radially oriented printed circuit board 162 is adjacent to the inner surface of the cylindrical support 160 and, in some embodiments, is fixed thereto. Each radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 is oriented perpendicular to the cylindrical support 160 at the edge adjacent to the cylindrical support 160. A collector printed circuit board 164 is disposed inside the cylindrical support 160 and is electrically coupled to the radially oriented vertical printed circuit boards 162. In a receive mode, RF signals captured by the protrusion 20 are transmitted to the collector printed circuit board 164 via an RF network disposed on the radially oriented vertical printed circuit boards 162, where they are ported from the RF aperture. In the transmission mode, the RF signal to be transmitted is delivered from the collector printed circuit board 164 through the radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 to the protrusion 20. (It should be understood that a given RF aperture according to the design of FIG. 18 may be configured to operate as an RF receiver, or as an RF transmitter, or as an RF transceiver capable of both receiving and transmitting functionality.) The electrical connection between the radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 and the collector board 164 may be via a coaxial cable (such as the coaxial cable 132 described above with reference to FIG. 16), or by an electrical connector or the like. It should also be understood that there may be one, two, or more collector boards 164, with more than one collector board being employed if needed to accommodate the RF circuitry. Furthermore, the radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 may be optionally bonded with the collector board 164 to improve structural support, and having more than one collector board 164 may be beneficial for improved structural support.Although not shown in FIG. 18, the top array of conductive tapered protrusions (TADSA) 104 of FIG. 17 may optionally be used in conjunction with the embodiment of FIG. 18 for high elevation angle coupling.

[0056] One advantage of the design of FIG. 18 is that the radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 is oriented perpendicular to the cylindrical support 160 on which the conductive tapered protrusion 20 is disposed. It is recognized herein that this configuration has the following advantages: A printed circuit board that supports RF circuitry typically includes a ground plane, i.e., a conductive sheet (e.g., a copper sheet) disposed inside or on the bottom of the printed circuit board. It is well known that such a ground plane has substantial benefits for RF circuitry performance. However, it is recognized herein that if the ground plane is on an underlying layer of the conductive tapered protrusion 20, for example, by being oriented parallel or near-parallel to the cylindrical support 160, the ground plane may produce undesirable RF reflections that may interfere with the performance of the RF aperture. By arranging the radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 perpendicular to the cylindrical support 160, the ground plane of the radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 is not on an underlying layer of the protrusion 20. An additional benefit of the arrangement of Figure 18 is that, as seen in Figure 18, the edge of each radially oriented vertical printed circuit board 162 that contacts the cylindrical support 160 is positioned between two adjacent rows of conductive tapered protrusions 20. This facilitates electrically connecting two adjacent protrusions 20 in a differential manner (e.g., using the balanced ports of the balun 30, as shown in cross section SS of Figure 18) without using a very long coaxial cable 132 as used in the embodiment of Figure 16.

[0057] Referring to FIG. 19, another conductive tapered protrusion cylindrical array (CADSA) embodiment employing vertical printed circuit boards is shown. The embodiment of FIG. 19 includes conductive tapered protrusions 20 mounted on a cylindrical support 160 as previously described with reference to FIG. 18. However, in the embodiment of FIG. 19, the radially oriented vertical printed circuit boards 162 and collector substrate 164 of the embodiment of FIG. 18 are replaced by a set of vertical circular printed circuit boards 172 having a circular perimeter 174 (i.e., a circular edge 174, see views VV of FIG. 19) concentrically disposed inside the cylindrical support 160 and adjacent to, and in some embodiments, bonded to, the inner surface of the cylindrical support 160. The cylindrical axis of the cylindrical support 160 is perpendicular to the circular printed circuit boards 172. This allows the vertical circular printed circuit boards 172 to contact the inner surface of the cylindrical support 160 around nearly a 360° circular perimeter, which promotes structural robustness. Also, the circular periphery of each vertical circular printed circuit board 172 is oriented perpendicular to the cylindrical support 160 at the contact point, again reducing the potential for the ground plane of the vertical circular printed circuit board 172 to introduce RF reflections that could potentially produce RF interference during operation of the RF aperture of FIG. 19. By positioning each vertical circular printed circuit board 172 between two rings of protrusions 20 as seen in FIG. 19, differential electrical connection of two adjacent protrusions 20 is again facilitated, for example, using balanced ports of the balun 30 (schematically shown in view VV of FIG. 19). This again avoids the use of very long coaxial cables 132 as used in the embodiment of FIG. 16. Although not shown in FIG. 19, the top array of conductive tapered protrusions (TADSA) 104 of FIG. 17 may be optionally used in conjunction with the embodiment of FIG. 19 for high elevation angle coupling.

[0058] Preferred embodiments have been illustrated and described. Obvious, modifications and alterations will occur to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the foregoing detailed description. It is intended that the present invention be construed as including all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.

[0059] (Item 1) A radio frequency (RF) aperture, comprising: An RF aperture comprising an array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a curved aperture surface. (Item 2) Item 2. The RF aperture of item 1, wherein the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a semi-cylindrical aperture surface. (Item 3) Item 2. The RF aperture of item 1, wherein the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface. (Item 4) The array of conductive tapered protrusions comprises: a first array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a first semi-cylindrical aperture surface; a second array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a second semi-cylindrical aperture surface; and Including, Item 4. The RF aperture of item 3, wherein the first and second semi-cylindrical aperture surfaces are mutually arranged to define the cylindrical aperture surface. (Item 5) 5. The RF aperture of any one of claims 3-4, further comprising an upper array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define an upper aperture surface. (Item 6) Item 6. The RF aperture of item 5, wherein the upper aperture surface is a planar upper aperture surface. (Item 7) 7. The RF aperture of claim 6, wherein a cylindrical axis of the cylindrical aperture surface is perpendicular to the plane of the planar top aperture surface. (Item 8) 2. The RF aperture of claim 1, wherein the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a curved aperture surface that conforms to the curved surface of an aircraft or unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) body, or the curved surface of a ship or submarine hull, or the curved surface of a satellite. (Item 9) at least one printed circuit board; RF circuitry disposed on the at least one printed circuit board and electrically connected to the conductive tapered protrusion; 9. The RF aperture of any one of claims 1-8, comprising: (Item 10) Item 10. The RF aperture of item 9, wherein the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a semi-cylindrical aperture surface. (Item 11) Item 10. The RF aperture of item 9, wherein the array of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface. (Item 12) The array of conductive tapered protrusions comprises: a first array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a first semi-cylindrical aperture surface; a second array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a second semi-cylindrical aperture surface; and Including, Item 12. The RF aperture of item 11, wherein the first and second semi-cylindrical aperture surfaces are mutually arranged to define the cylindrical aperture surface. (Item 13) a cylindrical support supporting the array of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define the cylindrical aperture surface; 13. The RF aperture of any one of claims 11-12, wherein the at least one printed circuit board comprises a plurality of printed circuit boards disposed inside the cylindrical support. (Item 14) Item 14. The RF aperture of item 13, wherein the plurality of printed circuit boards comprise vertical printed circuit boards, each having an edge proximate an inner surface of the cylindrical support, and each perpendicular to the cylindrical support at the edge proximate the cylindrical support. (Item 15) Item 15. The RF aperture of item 14, wherein the vertical printed circuit board is a radially oriented vertical printed circuit board. (Item 16) Item 16. The RF aperture of item 15, wherein the edge of each radially oriented vertical printed circuit board adjacent to an inner surface of the cylindrical support is bonded to the inner surface of the cylindrical support. (Item 17) 17. The RF aperture of any one of items 15-16, wherein an edge of each radially oriented vertical printed circuit board adjacent to the cylindrical support is positioned between two adjacent rows of adjacent conductive tapered protrusions. (Item 18) Item 14. The RF aperture of item 13, wherein the plurality of printed circuit boards comprises a circular printed circuit board concentrically disposed inside the cylindrical support and having a circular periphery adjacent an inner surface of the cylindrical support. (Item 19) Item 19. The RF aperture of item 18, wherein a cylindrical axis of the cylindrical support is perpendicular to the circular printed circuit board. (Item 20) 20. The RF aperture of any one of claims 18-19, wherein the circular periphery of the circular printed circuit board is secured to an inner surface of the cylindrical support. (Item 21) 21. The RF aperture of any one of claims 18-20, wherein the circular printed circuit board is positioned between adjacent rings of conductive tapered protrusions. (Item 22) and further comprising baluns mounted on the at least one printed circuit board, each balun having a balanced port electrically connected to two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions of the array of conductive tapered protrusions and an unbalanced port; 22. The RF aperture of any one of claims 9-21, wherein the RF circuitry disposed on the at least one printed circuit board is electrically connected to an unbalanced port of the balun. (Item 23) The at least one printed circuit board comprises: a first at least one printed circuit board carrying a first subset of the baluns, the balanced ports of which are electrically connected to the first array of conductive tapered protrusions; a second at least one printed circuit board carrying a second subset of the baluns, the balanced ports of which are electrically connected to the second array of conductive tapered protrusions; 23. The RF aperture of item 22, comprising: (Item 24) the first at least one printed circuit board is planar, and balanced ports of the first subset of baluns are electrically connected to the first array of conductive tapered protrusions by coaxial cables; 24. The RF aperture of claim 23, wherein the second at least one printed circuit board is planar and the balanced ports of the second subset of baluns are electrically connected to the second array of conductive tapered protrusions by coaxial cables. (Item 25) The array of conductive tapered protrusions comprises: a dielectric tapered protrusion; a conductive layer disposed on a surface of the dielectric tapered protrusion; Item 25. The RF aperture of any one of items 1-24, comprising: (Item 26) Item 25. The RF aperture of any one of items 1-24, wherein the conductive tapered protrusion is hollow. (Item 27) Item 25. The RF aperture of any one of items 1-24, wherein the conductive tapered protrusion is solid.

Claims

1. A radio frequency (RF) aperture, the RF aperture comprising: an array of a plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a curved aperture surface; at least one printed circuit board; RF circuitry electrically connected to the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions to receive or apply a differential RF signal between adjacent pairs of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions; a plurality of baluns mounted on the at least one printed circuit board, each balun having a balanced port electrically connected to two adjacent conductive tapered protrusions of the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions, each balun further having an unbalanced port; Equipped with The RF network disposed on the at least one printed circuit board is electrically connected to a plurality of unbalanced ports of the plurality of baluns.

2. The RF aperture of claim 1 , wherein the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a semi-cylindrical aperture surface.

3. The RF aperture of claim 1 , wherein the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface.

4. The array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions comprises: a first array of a plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a first semi-cylindrical aperture surface; a second array of a plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a second semi-cylindrical opening surface; Including, The RF aperture of claim 3 , wherein the first semi-cylindrical aperture surface and the second semi-cylindrical aperture surface are mutually aligned to define the cylindrical aperture surface.

5. The RF opening of claim 3, further comprising an upper array of a plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define an upper opening surface.

6. The RF aperture of claim 5 , wherein the upper aperture surface is a planar upper aperture surface.

7. The RF opening of claim 6, wherein the cylindrical axis of the cylindrical opening surface is perpendicular to the plane of the planar upper opening surface.

8. 10. The RF aperture of claim 1, wherein the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a curved aperture surface, the curved aperture surface conforming to the curved surface of an aircraft or unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) body, or the curved surface of a ship or submarine hull, or the curved surface of a satellite.

9. The RF aperture of claim 1 , wherein the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a semi-cylindrical aperture surface.

10. The RF aperture of claim 1 , wherein the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions is arranged to define a cylindrical aperture surface.

11. The array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions comprises: a first array of a plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a first semi-cylindrical aperture surface; a second array of a plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define a second semi-cylindrical opening surface; Including, The RF aperture of claim 10 , wherein the first semi-cylindrical aperture surface and the second semi-cylindrical aperture surface are mutually aligned to define the cylindrical aperture surface.

12. The RF aperture further comprises a cylindrical support supporting the array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions arranged to define the cylindrical aperture surface; The RF aperture of claim 10 , wherein the at least one printed circuit board comprises a plurality of printed circuit boards disposed inside the cylindrical support.

13. 13. The RF aperture of claim 12, wherein the plurality of printed circuit boards comprises a plurality of vertical printed circuit boards, each of the plurality of vertical printed circuit boards having an edge proximate an inner surface of the cylindrical support, and each of the plurality of vertical printed circuit boards is perpendicular to the cylindrical support at the edge proximate the cylindrical support.

14. The RF aperture of claim 13 , wherein the plurality of vertical printed circuit boards are radially oriented vertical printed circuit boards.

15. The RF aperture of claim 14 , wherein an edge of each radially oriented vertical printed circuit board adjacent an inner surface of the cylindrical support is affixed to the inner surface of the cylindrical support.

16. 15. The RF aperture of claim 14, wherein each radially oriented vertical printed circuit board edge proximate the cylindrical support is positioned between two adjacent rows of adjacent conductive tapered protrusions.

17. 13. The RF aperture of claim 12, wherein the plurality of printed circuit boards comprises a plurality of circular printed circuit boards concentrically disposed inside the cylindrical support and having a circular perimeter proximate an inner surface of the cylindrical support.

18. The RF aperture of claim 17 , wherein a cylindrical axis of the cylindrical support is perpendicular to the plurality of circular printed circuit boards.

19. The RF aperture of claim 17 , wherein a circular perimeter of the plurality of circular printed circuit boards is affixed to the inner surface of the cylindrical support.

20. The RF aperture of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of circular printed circuit boards are positioned between adjacent rings of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions.

21. The at least one printed circuit board comprises: a first at least one printed circuit board carrying a first subset of the plurality of baluns, the balanced ports of the first subset of the plurality of baluns being electrically connected to the first array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions; a second at least one printed circuit board carrying a second subset of the plurality of baluns, the balanced ports of the second subset of the plurality of baluns being electrically connected to the second array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions; The RF aperture of claim 1 , comprising:

22. the first at least one printed circuit board is planar, and the balanced ports of the first subset of the plurality of baluns are electrically connected to the first array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions by coaxial cables; 22. The RF aperture of claim 21, wherein the second at least one printed circuit board is planar and the balanced ports of the second subset of the plurality of baluns are electrically connected to the second array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions by coaxial cables.

23. The array of the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions comprises: a plurality of dielectric tapered protrusions; a conductive layer disposed on a surface of the plurality of dielectric tapered protrusions; The RF aperture of claim 1 , comprising:

24. The RF aperture of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions are hollow.

25. The RF aperture of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of conductive tapered protrusions are solid.

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