Assembly-type antenna

Abstract

[Problem] To provide an antenna capable of maintaining the strength of a radio wave reflector even under various environments. [Solution] This antenna is provided with a paraboloid-shaped radio wave reflector, and the radio wave reflector is composed of a woven fabric body woven with an expanding and contracting conductive wire in which a band-shaped conductor is spirally wound. The conductive wire can be formed by spirally winding the band-shaped conductor around the stretchable thread-like body. Further, the material of the stretchable thread-like body can be a metallic wire material. Furthermore, the antenna according to the present invention has a plurality of the conductive wires, and the plurality of conductive wires can be arranged in a mesh shape in an intersecting manner.

Description

Assembled Antenna

[0001] The present invention relates to an antenna used in a weather radar device for observing meteorological conditions on Earth and in a spacecraft such as an artificial satellite, and in particular to an assembly-type antenna (hereinafter, the assembly-type antenna may be simply referred to as an antenna).

[0002] Conventionally, antennas that can be stored compactly and deployed have been known as antenna devices mounted on spacecraft such as artificial satellites. However, even if the main reflector can be folded during travel or when not in use, the secondary reflector supported by a support mechanism cannot be folded, which limits how compact the entire antenna device can be stored. Therefore, an antenna device that can be deployed from a more compact stored state has been proposed.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an antenna device including a main reflector configured to reflect radio waves and radiate them to the outside, a subreflector arranged opposite the main reflector and configured so that at least a portion of the subreflector can be housed inside the main body of the spacecraft, a radiator arranged opposite the subreflector and configured to radiate the radio waves in the direction of the subreflector, and a transmission device connected to the subreflector and configured to reflect the radio waves radiated from the radiator to the main reflector and transmit them from the subreflector, at least a portion of which is housed in the main body of the spacecraft, until the radio waves reach a position where they can be radiated to the outside from the main reflector.

[0004] International Publication No. 2020 / 213135

[0005] However, although the antenna device of Patent Document 1 is designed to be housed more compactly, it does not take into consideration improvements to the strength of the radio wave reflector, and therefore further improvements in the strength of the radio wave reflector are desired.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its main object to provide an antenna that can maintain the strength of its radio wave reflector even under various environments.

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides, as a first aspect, an antenna comprising a parabolic radio wave reflector, the radio wave reflector being made of a woven material woven from an expandable conducting wire in which a strip-shaped conductor is wound in a spiral shape.

[0008] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the conductor may be formed by spirally winding the band-shaped conductor around a stretchable filament.

[0009] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the stretchable filament may be made of a metal wire.

[0010] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the conductor may be formed by winding the strip-shaped conductor in a spiral shape around a filament.

[0011] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the filament may include a water-soluble polymer.

[0012] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the water-soluble polymer may be polyvinyl alcohol.

[0013] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the woven material may have a plurality of the conductor wires, and the plurality of conductor wires may be arranged crossing each other in a mesh pattern.

[0014] In the antenna according to the first aspect of the present invention, the intersection may be substantially orthogonal.

[0015] In the antenna of the first aspect of the present invention, the conductor may be formed by winding another layer of additional strip conductor spirally around the surface side of the strip conductor in a direction opposite to the winding direction of the strip conductor.

[0016] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides, as a second aspect, an antenna including a parabolic radio wave reflector, the radio wave reflector including a woven material made of a conductor, the conductor being formed by spirally winding an elastic and / or stretchable conductor. Note that the conductor may be a strip-shaped conductor (the same applies hereinafter).

[0017] In the antenna according to the second aspect of the present invention, the conductive wire may be formed by winding the conductor spirally around a filament made of a water-soluble polymer and then removing the filament.

[0018] In the antenna according to the second aspect of the present invention, the water-soluble polymer may be polyvinyl alcohol.

[0019] In the antenna according to the second aspect of the present invention, the woven material may have a plurality of the conductor wires, and each of the plurality of conductor wires may be arranged in a mesh pattern by crossing each other.

[0020] In the antenna according to the second aspect of the present invention, the intersection may be substantially orthogonal.

[0021] In the antenna according to the second aspect of the present invention, the conducting wire may be formed by winding another layer of additional conductor spirally on the surface side of the conductor in a direction opposite to the winding direction of the conductor.

[0022] According to the antenna of the present invention, the strength of the radio wave reflector can be maintained even in various environments. Note that the effects described here are not necessarily limited to this range, and may be any of the effects described in this specification.

[0023] Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an antenna according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of braiding of a woven material constituting a radio wave reflecting mirror according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram showing another example of braiding of a woven material constituting a radio wave reflecting mirror according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a conductor forming a woven material according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a conductor forming a woven material according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] Preferred embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below are examples of typical embodiments of the present invention, and do not limit the scope of the present invention, and various combinations, modifications, and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

[0025] An antenna according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. FIG.

[0026] <First embodiment> <1-1. Antenna configuration> First, an antenna 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the antenna 1 according to this embodiment. The antenna 1 is, for example, a deployable antenna that can be stored and deployed. Note that the antenna 1 may also be an assembly-type antenna (assembly antenna).

[0027] 1, the deployable antenna 1 comprises a radio wave reflector 2 having a radio wave reflecting surface that forms a paraboloid of revolution when deployed, a disk-shaped center hub 3 disposed at the center of the radio wave reflector 2, a number of back ribs 4 that support the back surface of the radio wave reflector 2, and a deployment mechanism 5 that stores and deploys the many back ribs 4 in an umbrella shape. The radio wave reflector 2 is composed of a woven material 6 woven from conductor wires 10, which will be described later.

[0028] <1-2. Configuration of radio wave reflecting mirror> Next, an example of the braiding of the woven material 6 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 2 and Fig. 3. Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the braiding of the woven material 6 constituting the radio wave reflecting mirror 2 according to this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing another example of the braiding of the woven material 6 constituting the radio wave reflecting mirror 2 according to this embodiment.

[0029] 2, the woven fabric 6 has a plurality of conductors 10, which are arranged in a mesh-like pattern, crossing each other. In this case, the conductors 10 may cross at any angle as long as they do not overlap each other.

[0030] In each of the plurality of conductors 10 shown in Fig. 2 , conductors 10 in which a conductor (e.g., an elastic and / or stretchable conductor, a strip-shaped conductor 12 described later) is spirally wound clockwise and conductors 10 in which a conductor (e.g., an elastic and / or stretchable conductor, a strip-shaped conductor 12 described later) is spirally wound counterclockwise may be alternately arranged adjacent to each other to form the woven material 6 shown in Fig. 2 . In this case, the woven material 6 shown in Fig. 2 has a lighter weight effect. Furthermore, the woven material 6 shown in Fig. 2 does not have an inductance effect, thereby improving the radio wave radiation effect of the antenna.

[0031] 3, the woven material 6 is an example different from that shown in FIG. 2, in which a plurality of conductor wires 10 are arranged in a mesh pattern crossing each other at right angles. In this case, compared to the braid shown in FIG. 2, the effect is that the woven material 6 is substantially the same for all planes of polarization.

[0032] In each of the plurality of conductors 10 shown in Fig. 3 , conductors 10 in which a conductor (e.g., an elastic and / or stretchable conductor, a strip-shaped conductor 12 described later) is spirally wound clockwise and conductors 10 in which a conductor (e.g., an elastic and / or stretchable conductor, a strip-shaped conductor 12 described later) is spirally wound counterclockwise may be alternately arranged adjacent to each other to form the woven material 6 shown in Fig. 3 . In this case, the woven material 6 shown in Fig. 3 has a lighter weight effect. Furthermore, the woven material 6 shown in Fig. 3 does not have an inductance effect, thereby improving the radio wave radiation effect of the antenna.

[0033] Next, the conductor 10 forming the woven material 6 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the conductor 10 forming the woven material 6 according to this embodiment.

[0034] As shown in Figure 4, the conductor 10 is formed from an elastic filament 11 extending in the longitudinal direction as a central material, and a strip-shaped conductor 12 wound spirally around the surface of the elastic filament 11.

[0035] The stretchable filament 11 is made of a metal wire, but may also be made of rubber or a polymer. That is, the stretchable filament 11 may be made of a metal wire, rubber, or a polymer. Alternatively, the stretchable conductor 10 may be formed by spirally winding only the strip conductor 12 without the stretchable filament 11. In this case, the strip conductor 12 may have spring properties (elasticity) and / or stretchability. Alternatively, a conductor having spring properties (elasticity) and / or stretchability may be used instead of the strip conductor 12.

[0036] A thread may be used instead of the stretchable thread 11. The thread may include or consist of a water-soluble polymer.

[0037] An example of a water-soluble polymer is polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) can be made soluble in cold water or warm water (e.g., about 60°C) by adjusting the degree of saponification, etc. To be soluble in cold water or warm water (e.g., about 60°C), for example, partially saponified polyvinyl alcohol having a degree of saponification of approximately a predetermined percentage or less may be used, or polyvinyl alcohol modified by introducing, for example, a carboxyl group or a sulfone group may be used.

[0038] An elastic and / or stretchable conductor (e.g., a strip-shaped conductor 12) may be formed by spirally winding an elastic and / or stretchable conductor around a filament made of, for example, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and then removing the filament made of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA).

[0039] For example, a rectangular electrical conductor can be used as the strip conductor 12. When the strip conductor 12 is wound, it is formed so that parts of it overlap each other.

[0040] According to the antenna 1 of this embodiment, the conductor 10 includes an elastic band-shaped conductor 12 wound spirally around the material of the radio wave reflector 2, so that the strength of the radio wave reflector 2 can be maintained even in various environments.

[0041] Furthermore, if the core material of the conductor 10 is a metallic wire material, or if no core material is provided, the strength of the radio wave reflecting mirror 2 can be further increased (i.e., if the core material is, for example, rubber (rubber-like material) or polymer, rubber (rubber-like material) or polymer will deteriorate due to the effects of radiation in space, but this deterioration will not occur), so the antenna 1 can be used even in harsh environments such as outer space.

[0042] Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a conductor 20 forming a woven fabric 6 according to this embodiment. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the configuration of the conductor. The configurations of the antenna other than the conductor are the same in the first and second embodiments.

[0043] As shown in Figure 5, the conductor 20 is formed from an elastic filament 11 extending in the longitudinal direction as a central material, a strip conductor 12 wound spirally around the surface of the elastic filament 11, and an additional strip conductor 21 wound spirally in another layer around the surface of the strip conductor 12 in the direction opposite to the winding direction of the strip conductor 12.

[0044] According to the antenna 1 using the conductor wire 20 of this embodiment, the inductance effect is eliminated compared to the antenna 1 of the first embodiment, and therefore the radio wave radiation effect of the antenna is improved.

[0045] The present invention may have the following configurations. (1) An antenna including a parabolic radio wave reflector, the radio wave reflector being composed of a woven material woven with an expandable conductor wire formed by spirally winding a strip-shaped conductor. (2) The antenna described in (1), wherein the conductor wire is formed by spirally winding the strip-shaped conductor around a stretchable filament. (3) The antenna described in (2), wherein the stretchable filament is made of a metallic wire. (4) The antenna described in (1), wherein the conductor wire is formed by spirally winding the strip-shaped conductor around a filament. (5) The antenna described in (4), wherein the filament contains a water-soluble polymer. (6) The antenna described in (5), wherein the water-soluble polymer is polyvinyl alcohol. (7) The antenna described in any one of (1) to (6), wherein the woven material has a plurality of the conductor wires, and the plurality of the conductor wires are arranged in a mesh pattern by crossing each other. (8) The antenna described in (7), wherein the crossings are approximately perpendicular. (9) An antenna according to any one of (1) to (8), wherein the conductor is formed by winding another layer of an additional strip conductor spirally around the surface side of the strip conductor in a direction opposite to the winding direction of the strip conductor.

[0046] (10) An antenna comprising a parabolic radio wave reflector, the radio wave reflector including a woven material woven with a conductor wire, the conductor wire being formed by spirally winding an elastic and / or stretchable conductor. (11) The antenna according to (10), wherein the conductor wire is formed by spirally winding the conductor around a filament made of a water-soluble polymer and then removing the filament. (12) The antenna according to (11), wherein the water-soluble polymer is polyvinyl alcohol. (13) The antenna according to any one of (10) to (12), wherein the woven material has a plurality of the conductor wires, the plurality of conductor wires being arranged in a mesh pattern with crossings. (14) The antenna according to (13), wherein the crossings are approximately perpendicular. (15) The antenna according to any one of (10) to (14), wherein the conductor wire is formed by spirally winding another layer of an additional conductor around the surface side of the conductor in a direction opposite to the winding direction of the conductor.

[0047] 1 Antenna, 2 Radio wave reflector, 3 Center hub, 4 Back rib, 5 Deployment mechanism, 6 Woven material, 10, 20 Conductor, 11 Elastic filament, 12, 21 Strip conductor.

Claims

1. An antenna having a parabolic radio wave reflector, the radio wave reflector being made of a woven material made of an expandable conducting wire with a strip conductor wound in a spiral shape.

2. The antenna according to claim 1, wherein said conductor is formed by spirally winding said strip-shaped conductor around a stretchable filament.

3. The antenna according to claim 2, wherein the material of the stretchable filament is a metallic wire.

4. The antenna according to claim 1, wherein said conductor wire is formed by spirally winding said strip conductor around a filament.

5. The antenna of claim 4, wherein said filaments comprise a water-soluble polymer.

6. The antenna of claim 5, wherein the water-soluble polymer is polyvinyl alcohol.

7. The antenna of claim 1, wherein said woven material has a plurality of said conductive wires, said plurality of conductive wires being arranged crosswise in a mesh pattern.

8. The antenna of claim 7, wherein said intersections are substantially orthogonal.

9. An antenna as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the conductor is formed by winding another layer of additional strip conductor spirally around the surface side of the strip conductor in the direction opposite to the winding direction of the strip conductor.

10. An antenna comprising a parabolic radio wave reflector, the radio wave reflector including a woven material made of a conductor, the conductor being formed by spirally winding an elastic and / or stretchable conductor.

11. The antenna of claim 10, wherein the conductor is formed by helically winding the conductor around a filament composed of a water-soluble polymer and then removing the filament.

12. The antenna of claim 11, wherein the water-soluble polymer is polyvinyl alcohol.

13. The antenna according to claim 10, wherein the woven material has a plurality of the conductors, each of the plurality of conductors being arranged in a cross-mesh pattern.

14. The antenna of claim 13, wherein the intersection is substantially orthogonal.

15. An antenna as claimed in any one of claims 10 to 14, wherein the conductor is formed by winding another layer of additional conductor spirally on the surface side of the conductor in a direction opposite to the winding direction of the conductor.

Images