ULTRA-WIDEBAND ANTENNA
An ultra-wideband antenna is formed from a coaxial cable passed through the center of a conductive tube. The center conductor of the coaxial cable is connected to an end of the conductive tube, and the shield of the coaxial cable is not electrically connected to any conductor. Two ferrite beads are disposed serially on the cable beneath the tube, spaced apart from the tube and spaced apart from one another. A centering spacer maintains the coaxial cable within the center of the tube.
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/934,801 titled “1P Antenna,” which is in incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARYIn one embodiment, an antenna according to the present disclosure is configured to be recessed into an underground enclosure, such as a water meter pit. A mushroom-shaped housing partially extends above the cover of the pit. In another embodiment, the antenna can be mounted above ground. The ultra-wideband antenna is formed from a coaxial cable passed through the center of a conductive tube. The center conductor of the coaxial cable is connected to an end of the conductive tube, and the shield of the coaxial cable is not electrically connected to any conductor. Two ferrite beads are disposed serially on the cable beneath the tube, spaced apart from the tube and spaced apart from one another. A centering spacer maintains the coaxial cable within the center of the tube.
The disclosure can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The elements of the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the disclosure. Furthermore, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.
The tube 101 has a distal end 107 and a proximal end 108. A center wire 102 of the coaxial cable 105 is electrically connected to the tube 101. A shield 103 of the coaxial cable 105 terminates below distal end 107 of the tube 101 in the illustrated embodiment and is not electrically connected to any conductor at the distal end of the cable 105. In one embodiment, the coaxial shield 103 terminates ¼ inches below distal end 107 of the tube 101. In one embodiment, the coaxial shield 103 terminates between 6.1 mm and 6.6 mm from the distal end 107 of the tube 101. In one embodiment, a dielectric insulator (not shown) of the coaxial cable extends above the shield 103 of the coaxial cable 105 and terminates before the center wire 102 is connected to the tube 101.
The coaxial cable 105 is substantially centered within the tube 101. A centering spacer 110 keeps the coaxial cable 105 centered within the tube 101 for substantially the length of the tube 101. At the distal end 107 of the tube, the center wire 102 is bent and electrically connected to the tube 101. The centering spacer 110 is formed from an insulating material. In one embodiment, the centering spacer 110 is formed from polyurethane foam.
A first ferrite bead 104 and a second ferrite bead 106 are disposed on the cable 105 beneath the proximal end 108 of the tube 101. The ferrite beads 104 and 106 extend around the shield 103 of the cable 105. In one embodiment, the first ferrite bead 104 is spaced from the proximal end 108 of the tube 101 a distance of between 84.8 mm and 87.6 mm. In one embodiment, the second ferrite bead 106 is spaced from the first ferrite bead 104 a distance of between 59 mm and 61 mm. The spacing of the first and second ferrite beads 104 and 106 is designed to affect the resonant point of the antenna 100. A connector 111 at the end of the cable 105 connects the antenna 100 into a system (not shown).
A coaxial cable 205 extends downwardly from a bottom of the housing 201 as shown. A first ferrite bead 204 and a second ferrite bead 206 are disposed on the cable 205 beneath the housing 201. The ferrite beads 204 and 206 are substantially the same as the ferrite beads 104 and 106 discussed above with respect to
A waterproof connector 207 is disposed on the cable 205 beneath the second ferrite bead 206. Additional cable length 209 extends on the other side of the connector 207.
A stopper 311 is rigidly affixed to the cable 105 between the distal end of cable 105 and the threaded flange 313. The stopper 311 prevents the threaded flange 313 from moving on the cable 105 when the threaded flange is threaded into the housing 201 (
A flexible seal 312 is compressed between the threaded flange 313 and the stopper and forms a water-resistant seal. In the illustrated embodiment, the seal 312 is an O-ring.
The threaded flange 313 is engaged within the housing 202. In this regard, external threads on the threaded flange 313 mate with internal threads (not shown) within the threaded portion 202 of the housing 201.
A stopper 611 is rigidly affixed to the cable 105 between the distal end of cable 105 and the threaded flange 613. The stopper 611 prevents the threaded flange 613 from moving on the cable 105 when the threaded flange is threaded into the housing 701 (
A flexible seal 612 is compressed between the threaded flange 613 and the stopper 611 and forms a water-resistant seal. In the illustrated embodiment, the seal 612 is an O-ring. In some embodiments, a tear-shaped flexible seal 620 is used to maintain a spacing of the cable 105 within the threaded portion of the threaded flange 613.
In order for a half wave end fed configuration to perform properly at the lowest operating frequency and at all harmonics, the RF current must not travel back to the transceiver (not shown). Therefore the radiating shield current must be prevented from continuing down the feed line, while allowing the internal feed currents to continue unaffected. The ferrite beads 104 and 106 (
The antenna broadband tuning is accomplished automatically by the addition of the tube 101 (
When the operating frequency varies, the antenna resonance is automatically changed due to the reaction of the inductive and capacitive reactance maintained between the two over a broad bandwidth. As frequency decreases below resonance and the antenna becomes inductive, this tuning network offsets this reactive shift, thereby stabilizing voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR). Once the frequency increases above resonance and becomes capacitive, the same tuning network offsets this reactive shift, continuing to stabilize VSWR.
The antenna has a wide bandwidth an is suitable for cellular, IOT, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth applications deployed in various environments.
Claims
1. An ultra-wideband antenna comprising:
- a coaxial cable extending through the center of a conductive tube, a distal end of a center conductor of the coaxial cable electrically connected to a distal end of the conductive tube, a distal end of a shield of the coaxial cable not electrically connected to any conductor;
- a first and a second ferrite bead disposed on the coaxial cable outwardly from a proximal end of the conductive tube, outside of the conductive tube, the first and second ferrite bead disposed serially on the coaxial cable, spaced apart from one another.
2. The antenna of claim 1, further comprising a centering spacer disposed between the conductive tube and the coaxial cable, the centering spacer configured to maintain the coaxial cable substantially centered within the conductive tube.
3. The antenna of claim 2, wherein the centering spacer is formed from an insulating material.
4. The antenna of claim 3, wherein the centering spacer is formed from polyurethane foam.
5. The antenna of claim 1, wherein the conductive tube is formed from brass, and wherein a wall of the tube is between 0.38 mm and 0.420 mm thick.
6. The antenna of claim 1, wherein the shield of the coaxial cable terminates within the conductive tube, a distance of between 6.1 mm and 6.6 mm from the distal end of the conductive tube.
7. The antenna of claim 1, wherein the first ferrite bead is spaced from a proximal end of the conductive tube by between 84.8 mm and 87.6 mm.
8. The antenna of claim 7, wherein the second ferrite is spaced apart from the first ferrite bead by a distance of between 59 mm and 61 mm.
9. The antenna of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second ferrite beads extends around the outer shield of the coaxial cable, and wherein the first and second ferrite beads are configured to affect a resonant point of the antenna.
10. The antenna of claim 1, further comprising a mushroom-shaped housing configured to be installed in a lid of an underground pit, the housing comprising a rounded top portion unitarily formed with a male-threaded portion, the male-threaded portion configured to pass through an opening in the lid, the rounded top portion configured to extend above the lid.
11. The antenna of claim 10, wherein the conductive tube extends into the rounded top portion a distance of between 0.40 and 0.49 inches.
12. The antenna of claim 10, further comprising a female-threaded nut configured to mate with the male-threaded portion of the housing and secure the housing to the lid.
13. An ultra-wideband antenna comprising:
- a conductive tube comprising a distal end and a proximal end;
- a coaxial cable extending through the center of the conductive tube, the coaxial cable comprising a center conductor and a shield, a distal end of the center conductor electrically connected to the distal end of the conductive tube;
- a first and a second ferrite bead disposed on the coaxial cable outwardly from the proximal end of the conductive tube, outside of the conductive tube, the first and second ferrite bead disposed serially on the coaxial cable, spaced apart from one another.
14. The antenna of claim 13, a distal end of a shield of the coaxial cable not electrically connected to any conductor.
15. The antenna of claim 13, further comprising an insulating centering spacer disposed between the conductive tube and the coaxial cable, the centering spacer configured to maintain the coaxial cable substantially centered within the conductive tube.
16. The antenna of claim 13, further comprising a mushroom-shaped housing configured to be installed in a lid of an underground pit, the housing comprising a rounded top portion unitarily formed with a male-threaded portion, the male-threaded portion configured to pass through an opening in the lid, the rounded top portion configured to extend above the lid.
17. The antenna of claim 16, wherein the conductive tube extends into the rounded top portion a distance of between 0.40 and 0.49 inches.
18. The antenna of claim 16, further comprising a female-threaded nut configured to mate with the male-threaded portion of the housing and secure the housing to the lid.
19. An ultra-wideband antenna comprising:
- a conductive tube comprising a distal end and a proximal end;
- a coaxial cable extending through the center of the conductive tube, the coaxial cable comprising a center conductor and a shield, a distal end of the center conductor electrically connected to the distal end of the conductive tube; and
- an insulating centering spacer disposed between the conductive tube and the coaxial cable, the centering spacer configured to maintain the coaxial cable substantially centered within the conductive tube.
20. The antenna of claim 19, further comprising a first and a second ferrite bead disposed on the coaxial cable outwardly from the proximal end of the conductive tube, outside of the conductive tube, the first and second ferrite bead disposed serially on the coaxial cable, spaced apart from one another.
Type: Application
Filed: Nov 13, 2020
Publication Date: May 13, 2021
Inventor: Roger OWENS (Huntsville, AL)
Application Number: 17/098,125