Segmented GNSS Antenna Baseline for Stable Field Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional GNSS antenna alignment devices with long arms are prone to mechanical instability, wind shear effects, and cumbersome storage, leading to measurement errors and inconvenience in transporting to remote locations.
Innovation Solution
A tri-segmented baseline design for GNSS antenna alignment devices, utilizing two movable arms and a main housing, where each arm mounts a GNSS antenna, allowing adjustable baseline length and orientation, and enabling stable, compact storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If long arms with GNSS antennas are used to increase baseline, then measurement precision is improved, but stability deteriorates due to vulnerability to impact and wind shear effects
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the single long arm into two shorter arms that are movably connected to the main housing and to each other. Each arm carries a GNSS antenna, creating a segmented baseline structure. This segmentation reduces the length of individual arms while maintaining the overall baseline distance between antennas, thereby improving stability while preserving measurement precision.
2Measurement precision
If long arms are used to increase baseline, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases making storage and transport inconvenient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs movable connections (joints) that allow the two arms to fold relative to the main housing and to each other. This dynamic structure enables the device to transition between an extended configuration (for measurement) and a compact folded configuration (for storage and transport), resolving the contradiction between maintaining long baseline for precision and reducing complexity for portability.
Solution Approach 2:
The two arms can be folded back against the main housing, with one arm potentially nesting near or against the other arm, creating a compact package. This nesting arrangement significantly reduces the storage volume and makes the device portable despite having long arms for GNSS measurement.
3Measurement precision
If long arms are used to increase baseline, then measurement precision is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to mechanical break-off risk
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the long arm into two shorter segmented arms with a movable joint, the patent eliminates the single point of failure that would exist in a long monolithic arm. The segmentation creates multiple shorter structural elements that are less prone to breaking, while the movable joint is designed to accommodate movement and stress, improving overall mechanical reliability while maintaining the necessary baseline length for accurate GNSS measurements.
Data Source
AI summary
A global navigation satellite system (GNSS) antenna alignment device may have two movably attached arms to a main housing of the antenna alignment device. Each arm may have a GNSS antenna mounted thereon. The baseline between the GNSS antennas is therefore tri-segmented, with a first arm forming a first segment, a second arm forming a second segment, and the main housing forming a third segment. The length and orientation of the baseline may be adjusted by moving one or more of the first arm and the second arm. Furthermore, the first arm and the second arm may be stowed for a convenient storage and transport.