Manufacturing Technology for Conformal Arrays

The goal of our effort is to develop manufacturing technologies for conformal, load-bearing, antenna structures (CLAS). In Phase II, we are focusing on the design, development and fabrication of a dielectrically loaded, slot-coupled, GPS antenna array suitable for integration on a doubly curved surface of an aircraft. At the end of Phase II, the following will be completed: (1) design of a GPS antenna array on a doubly curved surface; (2) assessment of structural and RF performance; (3) fabrication of a 7-element GPS antenna using optimized manufacturing techniques; (4) antenna performance measurements (5) plans for commercialization. The key design features of our Phase II conformal antenna research include the use of digital beam forming (DBF), an aperture-coupled patch array, and a direct write system. The direct write system will ease manufacturing issues with ink-jet style printing of the patch elements, while the aperture coupling will eliminate through-the-thickness vias. Furthermore, DBF will facilitate anti-jamming, better penetration and 3-D orientation.