Patents by Inventor Andrew E. McGirr

Andrew E. McGirr has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6061024
    Abstract: An antenna for use with portable duplex radio transceivers, such as those found in hand-held cellular telephones, which includes a pair of co-planar radiating patch elements elevated above a conductive surface by a conductive bar. The surface and bar define a reference ground plane which inherently isolates the patches. The patches are shaped so that they operate in a desired frequency band as well as band-pass filters--one of the patches is tuned to the transmit band and serves a transmit structure, and the other patch is tuned to the receive band and serves as a receive structure. Switching devices such as positive-intrinsic negative (PIN) diodes can be disposed along the space between the patches and the ground plane to allow each structure to be tuned. The antenna is efficient, because of inherent isolation between the receive and transmit patches, and eases the front end filtering functions traditionally performed by a duplexer. It can be completely enclosed within the chassis of a hand-held telephone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 1992
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2000
    Assignee: Novatel Communications Ltd.
    Inventors: Andrew E. McGirr, Paul L. Camwell, John G. McRory
  • Patent number: 5231407
    Abstract: An antenna for use with portable duplex radio transceivers, such as those found in hand-held cellular telephones, which includes a pair of co-planar radiating patch elements elevated above a conductive surface by a conductive bar. The surface and bar define a reference ground plane which inherently isolates the patches. The patches are shaped so that they operate in a desired frequency band as well as band-pass filters--one of the patches is tuned to the transmit band and serves a transmit structure, and the other patch is tuned to the receive band and serves as a receive structure. Switching devices such as positive-intrinsic negative (PIN) diodes can be disposed along the space between the patches and the ground plane to allow each structure to be tuned. The antenna is efficient, because of inherent isolation between the receive and transmit patches, and eases the front end filtering functions traditionally performed by a duplexer. It can be completely enclosed within the chassis of a hand-held telephone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 1991
    Date of Patent: July 27, 1993
    Assignee: NovAtel Communications, Ltd.
    Inventors: Andrew E. McGirr, Paul M. Camwell, John G. McRory
  • Patent number: 5129098
    Abstract: A radio telephone uses a signal indicating the strength of received communication signals as a measure of prevailing signal propagation conditions to control the gain of a power amplifier in its transmitter. Where conditions are favorable, the gain can be reduced without deleterious effects on transmitted signals, and with a resulting savings in power drain on the radio telephone's power supply (e.g., batteries). In this way, talktime on a single battery charge can be significantly lengthened. Where conditions are adverse, e.g., at outlying or fringe areas of a cellular telephone system of which the radio telephone is a station, the gain can be increased to produce stronger transmitted signals, at times extending the effective coverage area of such systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 24, 1990
    Date of Patent: July 7, 1992
    Assignee: NovAtel Communication Ltd.
    Inventors: Andrew E. McGirr, Barry J. Cassidy