US 6,285,330 B1 · Antenna field tester

Abstract

An apparatus and method for testing of rotating surface based antennas arrays (regardless of their shape), with the capability of fully diagnosing and locating a failure on the face of the antenna by coherently sampling and storing the radiation in the near field and imaging the fully array complex excitation from the stored data. The rotation of the antenna is used in order to collect data for the full azimuth span required for high resolution imaging of excitation in the horizontal domain. Excitation in the vertical domain can be preformed in two ways depending on the type of antenna used. For electronically scanning antennas in elevation (phased array antennas), the phase shifter in the desired row is toggled and the row is isolated by subtracting the complex data from pairs of adjacent samples. The sampling probe is moved vertically while the antenna is rotating horizontally. The vertical movement of the probe provides the aperture necessary to resolve the vertical excitation of the array to a degree of accuracy sufficient for fault detection and isolation.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A method of testing a mechanically rotating antenna by estimating the full one-dimensional complex excitation thereof, said antenna comprising at least one radiating/receiving element, said method comprising the steps of:

disposing said antenna in an arbitrary but known near field position relative to a stationary radiating means for one of radiating and receiving an RF signal;
radiating said RF signal to said antenna;
mechanically rotating said antenna simultaneously during said radiating step;
storing antenna azimuth positions into a tester having storage means;
storing antenna location and dimensional data in said storage means;
receiving and downconverting an output signal from said antenna, said output signal having amplitude and phase components;
storing said downconverted output signal in said storage means;
and
processing said output signal received by said tester after said output signal and related azimuth location and dimensional data have been stored without requiring further interaction with said antenna.

6 more elements

A method of testing a mechanically rotating antenna by estimating the full two dimensional complex excitation thereof, said antenna comprising at least one radiating/receiving element, said method comprising the steps of:

disposing said antenna in an arbitrary but known near field position relative to moving radiating means for one of radiating and receiving an RF signal;
radiating said RF signal to said antenna;
mechanically rotating said antenna simultaneously during radiating step about an antenna axis rotation;
storing antenna azimuth positions into a tester having storage means;
storing said antenna location and dimensions in said storage means;
storing the location of said radiating means relative to said antenna in said storage means;
receiving and downconverting an output signal from said antenna, said output signal having amplitude and phase components;
storing said downconverted output signal in said storage means;
sequentially moving said moving radiating means orthogonally relative to said antenna axis of rotation;
receiving, downconverting and storing output signals and related position data during successive rotations of said antenna;
and
processing said output signals received by said tester after all output signals and related position data have been stored without requiring further interaction with said antenna.

9 more elements

A method of testing a mechanically rotating phased array antenna by estimating the full two dimensional excitation thereof, said antenna comprising an array of antenna elements disposed in a plurality of adjacent rows, said antenna further including switches and phase shifters in each of said rows, said method comprising the steps of:

disposing said antenna in an arbitrary but known near field position relative to stationary radiating means for one of radiating and receiving an RF signal;
radiating said RF signal to said antenna;
mechanically rotating said antenna simultaneously during said radiating step;
storing antenna azimuth locations into a tester having storage means;
storing antenna location an d dimensions in said storage means;
storing the location of said radiating means relative to said antenna in said storage means;
isolating a specific row of elements by using one of said switches and uniquely altering the phase sifters of one said row relative to remaining rows of said elements;
receiving and downconverting an output signal from said antenna, said output signal having phase and amplitude components;
storing said downconverted output signal in said storage means;
sequentially isolating remaining rows of said any during successive separate rotations of said antenna;
sequentially receiving, downconverting and storing said output signals and related position data during each separate rotation of said antenna;
processing said output signals after all output signals and related position data has been stored without requiring further interaction with said antenna.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Antenna field tester

Life of this patent

Antenna field tester

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims21