Method of steering smart antennas
AssigneeITT Manufacturing Enterprises, Inc.
InventorsWilliam E. Rodgers, Terrance W. Charbonneau
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention includes a method of communicating in a network of multiple nodes transmitting and receiving messages to and from each other. The method includes (a) scanning in synchronism a receive directional beam of an antenna of a first node and a receive directional beam of an antenna of a second node; (b) steering, in azimuth, a transmit directional beam of an antenna of the first node to a relative bearing of the second node; and (c) transmitting a message from the first node to the second node, when the transmit directional beam of the first node and the receive directional of the second node are substantially aligned in relative bearing to each other.
Claims27
In a communications network including a plurality of nodes transmitting and receiving messages to and from each other, each node having receive and transmit antennas, a method of communicating in the network comprising the steps of:
- (a) scanning in synchronism a first receive directional beam of an antenna of a first node and a second receive directional beam of an antenna of a second node;
- (b) steering, in azimuth, a first transmit directional beam of an antenna of the first node to a relative bearing of the second node;
- and
- (c) transmitting a message from the first node to the second node, when the first transmit directional beam and the second receive directional beam are substantially aligned in relative bearing to each other.
In a communication network including at least first and second nodes, each having a directional antenna for receiving and transmitting messages, a method of communicating between the first and second nodes comprising the steps of:
- (a) scanning in synchronism a first directional antenna of the first node and a second directional antenna of the second node;
- (b) steering the first directional antenna of the first node to a relative bearing of the second node;
- and
- (c) transmitting a message from the first node to the second node, when the first directional antenna is substantially aligned to the second directional antenna.
A first node for communicating in a network of at least first and second nodes, the first node comprising:
- an electronically steerable first antenna for transmitting and receiving messages,
- a processor coupled to the first antenna for controlling pointing directions of the first antenna,
- a time generator coupled to the processor for providing a common time reference,
- predetermined steering data, provided to the processor, for controlling the pointing directions of the first antenna as a function of the common time reference, and
- a transmitter for transmitting a message to the second node,
- wherein the common time reference and the predetermined steering data are provided to the second node to steer a second antenna to similar predetermined pointing directions of the first antenna as a function of the common time reference, thereby synchronizing the first antenna to the second antenna, and
- the message is transmitted based on the predetermined steering data.
The first node of claim 21 including
- the GPS receiver providing geodetic position information of the first node,
- a receiver for receiving geodetic position information of the second node, and
- the processor including a calculator for determining relative bearing of the first node to the second node,
- wherein the message is transmitted based on the predetermined steering data and the determined relative bearing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.