Phased array antenna
AssigneeAstrium GmbH
InventorsAlan David Couchman, Adrian George Russell
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A phased array antenna for a telecommunications satellite, that is deployable from a retracted condition to a deployed condition when the satellite is on-station, comprising a base member of hexagonal form, and a plurality of deployable antenna panels stacked one on top of the other on the base member in the retracted condition, each antenna panel being connected to a respective side edge region of the base by means of a respective back flap hinge, and the hinges having pivot points that are offset relative to one another, such that the antenna panels can be hinged sequentially one after the other from the stick to a position in which each panel is adjacent a respective base side edge region to provide an extended flat two-dimensional area when deployed.
Claims18
A phased array antenna, deployable from a retracted condition to a deployed condition, comprising a base member having, at least in part, a polygonal cross-sectional form defined by a plurality of edge regions, and a plurality of antenna panels, each antenna panel being connected, by a respective hinge means, to a respective one of said edge regions of said base member, such that, in said retracted condition, two or more of the antenna panels are stacked one on top of the other on the base member, and the hinge means being such that each antenna panel can be rotated sequentially one after the other, around a single pivot point for each respective hinge means, from the stack to a position in which each panel is adjacent a respective base member edge region to provide said deployed condition wherein the phased array antenna provides an extended area.
A telecommunications satellite comprising a service module and a phased array antenna coupled to the service module by means of a boom member, the service module including solar panels, and the phased array antenna being deployable from a retracted condition to a deployed condition, wherein in the retracted condition, the antenna is positioned on top of the service module, and the boom member including rotatable means so that the antenna, when deployed, can be rotated relative to the service module, and the antenna comprising a plurality of antenna panels, such that, in said retracted condition, two or more of the antenna panels are stacked one on top of the other, wherein for deployment, the antenna is firstly moved by means of the boom member to a position away from the service module, and then the antenna panels are rotated to the deployed condition wherein the phased array antenna provides an extended area.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.