Lightweight Foam Antenna Sub-Array for Marine Radar Mass Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing radar antennas for marine vessels are heavy due to integrated RF equipment, posing stability, installation, and maintenance challenges, with prior art techniques limited in reducing mass from the antenna housing.
Innovation Solution
The use of lightweight foam materials with predefined dielectric properties for support structures and integrally formed striplines, along with a modular design of sub-arrays that can be assembled and cooled, reduces the overall mass and allows for flexible antenna array configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If RF equipment is integrated within the antenna housing, then functional capability is improved, but mass increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the antenna system into separate functional modules: the antenna array (radiating elements) is separated from the RF equipment (transmitters, receivers, duplexers, filters). This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - the antenna can be made lightweight while the RF equipment is housed separately, resolving the contradiction between functional integration and weight reduction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a three-dimensional integrated housing to a two-dimensional planar antenna array structure. The radiating elements are arranged in a flat configuration with a ground plane, eliminating the need for a bulky three-dimensional housing that would contain RF equipment, thus reducing mass while maintaining functionality.
2Weight of moving object
If antenna mass is reduced from the housing, then weight is improved, but structural stability worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs thin film structures including a ground plane and protective coatings that provide structural integrity without adding significant mass. These thin films maintain the antenna's structural stability while keeping the overall mass low, as they offer sufficient mechanical support and environmental protection without requiring thick or heavy materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes composite material structures combining conductive materials for radiating elements with lightweight support structures. This composite approach provides the necessary structural stability and electrical performance without the mass penalty of traditional homogeneous metal housings, resolving the contradiction between weight reduction and structural integrity.
3Reliability
If complex rotating joints are used for signal transmission, then electrical continuity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the RF equipment from the rotating antenna assembly and houses it in a separate stationary location. This eliminates the need for complex rotating joints and slip rings that would be required to maintain electrical continuity during rotation. The antenna array can rotate freely while the RF equipment remains stationary, connected via fixed wiring, thus removing the complexity of rotating electrical connections.
4Area of stationary object
If antenna is positioned high on mast, then range coverage is improved, but installation and maintenance difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the antenna system into a lightweight antenna array that can be mounted high on the mast and a separate RF equipment housing that can be located lower down. The lightweight design of the antenna array (achieved through the planar structure and separation from heavy RF equipment) makes it easier to install and maintain at elevated positions, while the RF equipment can be accessed more easily at lower heights.
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
This approach results in significantly lighter radar antennas with improved stability and maintenance, enabling flexible design and performance adjustments without re-designing the entire system, while maintaining optimal RF signal transmission.
Implementation Method 1
forcing a cooling fluid into the channel via a first aperture, such that the cooling fluid passes through the channel and is exhausted at a second aperture
Implementation Method 2
the first support structure comprises a foam material having predefined dielectric properties
Data Source
Figure 1a~1b
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
Disclosed is antenna sub-array for use in an antenna array comprising a plurality of such sub-arrays, comprising: a stripline for signal distribution, the stripline defining a plurality of signal pathways from a common feed point to a plurality of radiating elements, wherein the stripline is housed in a first support structure located a distance away from a first surface of a ground plane structure. Also disclosed is a method of manufacture and a method of cooling