Ultra Wideband Low Profile Antennas for Software Defined Radios (1000-304)

In the proposed Phase II enhancement, SI2 Technologies, Inc. (SI2) proposes to build on our Phase I and II efforts and continue to develop a wideband conformal antenna suite for incorporation into and employment on small tactical unmanned aerial systems (STUAS) in support of various and selected radio payloads. The research, development, acquisition, and support of the conformal antenna suite will support the future versatility and success of STUAS missions. SI2s development of Size, Weight, and Power optimized conformal antennas will result in increased capability, reliability, and maintainability of the STUAS vehicles. The proposed program will focus on system engineering design trades to optimize antenna performance based on available SWAP constraints across the threshold and objective frequency bands. SI2 will examine embedded antenna designs that will simplify connections and part count, and perform Modeling and Simulations to predict installed performance of the design. Volume and weight estimates will be provided for the designed antenna, and SI2 will provide support in the development of antenna placement for Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance, and specifically Direction Finding applications. In follow-on efforts, Phase II.5 and III, SI2 will develop a prototype conformal antenna suite suitable for integration with an SRP payload on STUAS vehicles.