Antenna Housing Profile Element for Wind Load Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile radio antennas face increasing wind loads due to their complexity and larger size, which can lead to higher air resistance and structural issues, especially when replacing antennas, necessitating a solution that reduces wind load without compromising transmission properties.
Innovation Solution
An antenna housing with a profile element that channels airflow, reducing wind load by minimizing the wake area and air resistance through strategic placement and design, including shapes like concave, convex, and oval profiles, and through-openings to create a Laval nozzle effect, thereby reducing dynamic pressure and promoting earlier airflow detachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If antenna housing size is increased to accommodate more complex mobile radio equipment, then transmission functionality is improved, but wind load and air resistance increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies curved profile elements with specific radii (e.g., R1, R2, R3) to the antenna housing corners and edges. These curved transitions replace sharp angles, allowing airflow to follow the housing contour more smoothly and reducing flow separation. This curvature modification directly addresses the wind load issue while preserving the enlarged housing dimensions needed for complex transmission equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent modifies geometric parameters of the antenna housing, specifically adding profile elements with defined dimensions (height h1, width b1, radius R1) to the housing structure. These parameter changes create optimized airflow patterns that reduce the wake area and pressure drag, thereby reducing wind load on the larger antenna housing.
2Productivity
If antenna housing dimensions are enlarged to support higher data rate equipment, then transmission capacity is improved, but air resistance increases
Solution Approach 1:
The curved profile elements with specific radii (R1, R2, R3) create gradual transitions at housing corners and edges, enabling airflow to remain attached longer and reducing the size of the wake area behind the housing. This reduces pressure drag and air resistance, allowing larger housings to support high-capacity equipment without excessive wind load penalties.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the housing into distinct zones with different profile element configurations (front area with first profile elements, side areas with second profile elements, rear area with third profile elements). This segmentation allows optimized airflow control at different locations, reducing overall air resistance while maintaining the enlarged housing volume needed for high-capacity transmission equipment.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If profile elements are added to reduce wind load, then air resistance decreases, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The profile elements are designed as simple curved geometric forms with defined radii (R1, R2, R3) that can be integrated into the housing structure using standard manufacturing processes. These curved elements provide effective flow control without requiring complex active systems, maintaining relatively simple device architecture while reducing air resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies profile elements selectively at specific locations where flow separation is most problematic (corners and edges), rather than modifying the entire housing surface. This localized approach reduces wind load effectively while minimizing the addition of structural complexity to the overall housing design.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces wind load on antenna housings by minimizing air resistance and wake area, ensuring stable operation and maintaining transmission properties, as validated through wind tunnel testing.
Implementation Method 1
through-openings to create a Laval nozzle effect, thereby reducing dynamic pressure and promoting earlier airflow detachment
Implementation Method 2
shaped in such a way that it channels any airflow striking the antenna housing so that some of the airflow is channelled between the profile element and the antenna housing
Implementation Method 3
The profile element reduces the wind load that is generated by the airflow striking the antenna housing both in the main flow direction at angle of 0 degrees
Data Source
AI summary
What is proposed is an antenna housing comprising at least one profile element fastened on an area of the antenna housing at a distance from said housing and shaped so that it channels an airstream striking the antenna housing so that a part of the airflow is channelled between the profile element and the antenna housing.