Switched-Feed Antenna Circuit for Multi-Beam Steering With Fewer DSP Chains
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional phased array antennas face challenges in efficiently generating multiple beams without reducing performance, as they require duplicating complex and costly phase, magnitude, and time control circuitry for each antenna element, leading to increased power consumption and interference, especially when implementing digital signal processing for multiple beams.
Innovation Solution
A switched-feed antenna system with a circuit that uses an array of antenna elements grouped for flexible signal routing, employing T-switch circuits to enable multiple feeds to be selected and processed efficiently, reducing the need for full receive and transmit circuitry and digital signal processing chains, thereby minimizing cost, power, and complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If full receive and transmit circuitry and digital signal processing chains are implemented for each feed point to support multiple beams, then beamforming flexibility and multi-beam capability are improved, but cost, power consumption, and device complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the antenna array into multiple groups where each group shares common receive and transmit circuitry. Instead of providing full DSP chains for every feed point, the system segments the processing resources so that a limited number of DSP chains can serve multiple feeds through time-multiplexed or spatial-multiplexed operation, thereby reducing overall system complexity while maintaining multi-beam capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements universal receive and transmit circuitry that can be dynamically allocated to serve multiple feeds. The same RF chains and DSP resources are reused across different feeds and beamforming configurations, allowing a single set of circuitry to perform multiple functions and support multiple beams without requiring dedicated resources for each feed point.
2Device complexity
If multiple signals are transmitted through a single amplifier to support multiple beams, then device complexity is reduced, but achievable power for each independent beam decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs time-multiplexed operation where a single amplifier alternates between serving different feeds and beams in periodic intervals. By rapidly switching the amplifier between different signal paths, the system achieves multi-beam capability while maintaining full power for each beam during its active time slot, thus resolving the power dilution problem inherent in simultaneous multi-signal amplification.
3Device complexity
If multiple signals are transmitted through a single amplifier, then device complexity is reduced, but interference and nonlinear effects increase
Solution Approach 1:
By using time-multiplexed operation where the single amplifier serves different feeds in alternating time slots rather than simultaneously, the patent eliminates signal interference and nonlinear distortion that would result from mixing multiple signals. The periodic switching ensures that only one signal passes through the amplifier at any given moment, maintaining signal integrity while achieving multi-beam functionality through temporal separation.
Data Source
AI summary
A circuit has at least one amplifier and a signal routing device such as one or more switches, and an array of antenna elements from which some subset must be enabled and processed at a time. The antenna elements can be grouped in accordance with an organization scheme (e.g., rows, columns) to enable more flexibility in selecting and routing the signals. The system is used to create one or more beams, which can be pointed (steered) to a wide range of directions by means of selecting one or more feed antennas in a switched-feed antenna without including full receive and transmit circuitry (DSP, frequency conversion) for each feed in the array. In this case, minimizing the number of DSP chains is desirable to reduce the cost, power, and complexity of the antenna. The resulting beam(s) can be combined and manipulated to support multiple users, track several targets, increase operational range, increase radar resolution, or data-rate in communications.