Body Wearable Radio Direction Finding (DF) Antenna

Significant and growing use of communications, remote sensing and triggering devices by friend and foe are characteristics of modern warfare. The ability to Direction Find (DF) on the resultant radio transmissions is a critical capability. Advances in electronics and battery packs have enabled miniaturized DF processors that are easily hand carried onto the battlefield. However, advances in antenna and RF architectures have not kept pace. As a result, small DF processors are encumbered by relatively large and heavy antenna subsystems with resultant concealment and deployment challenges. The primary challenges for traditional antenna solutions have been imbalances, interactions, and mismatching between small size antenna elements. ASI has developed a novel Dual Port Antenna (DPA) solution for DF that enables hand carry and man wearable systems. The pattern of the DPA becomes more directive as frequencies drop, opposite of conventional antennas, and precisely what is required in man-wearable DF applications where nulls are required to cancel reflections off of the operator. Creating a man-wearable DPA antenna array for a field deployed DF system is the immediate objective of this proposal, followed by broader dissemination of the technology.