Collapsible Radiating Antenna For Trivial Easy Deployment (CRAFTED)

Recent advances in the fieldable technologies by near-peers has pushed the Department of Defense to develop and field its own technologies that will provide a strategic advantage to the United States. Among these technologies are High Power Microwave (HPM) weapons. 30 years ago, HPM weapons were large ground-based platforms. The technology has greatly advanced since then, now providing systems that have even been deployed on airborne systems. There are still many challenges with deploying the technology in a real-world environment. Namely, ease of deployment and survivability in harsh environments.    The MaXentric team proposes the Collapsible Radiating Antenna For Trivial Easy Deployment (CRAFTED) system. The CRAFTED solution will make use of modern origami and tensegrity technology to be easily collapsible into a small form factor. The structure will be lightweight, yet it will be able to endure wind loading, vibrations, and physical shocks typical to a shipboard application. The low stowage size and weight along with ease of deployment will greatly improve the utility of HPMs in shipboard applications and give the United States a greater edge against its adversaries.