Hughes Aircraft Company

William A Harrington

James V Strahan

Terrence L Myers

Lawrence DiFrancesco

A phase shifter subarray which is useful with a phased array antenna, includes a plurality of phase shifter elements which have substantially equal finite lengths and which are mounted on a ferri-magnetic substrate. An electrical coil is disposed around selected portions of the substrate and a common feed is connected to each of the phase shifter elements to transmit energy through the phase shifter elements to the radiating elements of the antenna. A driver is connected to the coil, and the driver is activated to induce a magnetic flux in the selected portions of the substrate. This flux influences that part of each phase shifter element which is mounted in the selected portions of the substrate and, consequently, the phase of the wave energy which passes through the influenced part of each phase shifter element is shifted to predictably direct the beam radiated from the antenna. For one embodiment, each phase shifter element is bifurcated into first and second segments with the respective first segments being of different length. For this embodiment the flux influences only the first segments of the phase shifter elements. In another embodiment, the phase shifter elements are not bifurcated and, instead, the coil is tapered on the substrate to influence different lengths of each phase shifter element.

Single element driver architecture for ferrite based phase shifter

A one piece millimeter wave phase shifter/antenna, wherein magnetic flux is imported into a ferrite rod body through a plated metallic film helix, driven by a pulse generator to change the amount of remnant flux, and therefore the relative microwave phase shift from one aperture port to its neighbor.

One piece millimeter wave phase shifter/antenna

A phase shifter assembly for use with a phased array antenna includes a plurality of phase shifter subarrays which are mounted on a ferri-magnetic substrate. There is a common power feed which is connected in series through a transmission line with each of the phase shifter subarrays. Additionally, a plurality of power combiners/splitters are connected into the transmission line to direct the proportionate power to each subarray. An alignment phase shifter is connected into the transmission line between adjacent subarrays and their associated power combiner/splitter. Separately from the transmission line, a driver is electronically connected in series with coils at each of the alignment phase shifters to alter the phase power which is fed into each of the subarray to align adjacent subarrays and produce a substantially continuous wave for the antenna. There is also a common driver which is electronically connected in series with each of the phase shifter subarrays to alter the phase of the power which is fed from the common power feed to the radiating elements of the antenna and thereby establish the direction of the radiated beam.

Low cost architecture for ferrimagnetic antenna/phase shifter

A device-implemented method for driving a ferrimagnetic load (10), such as a phase shifter in an antenna array, which precisely meters the amount of magnetic flux imparted to the load (10) by sensing the voltage applied to a winding and integrating the sensed voltage over time. The time intergrated voltage is proportional to the magnetic flux imparted to the load (10) and is constantly compared to a preprogrammed value stored in a memory (18). When the sensed voltage reaches the preprogrammed value, the voltage is removed from the load (10) so that a metered amount of magnetic flux, proportional to the preprogrammed value, remains in the load (10). The load (10) is initially reset by delivering current in one direction through its winding until saturation is reached. The load (10) is set with a metered amount of magnetic flux by delivering current in the opposite direction through the winding. A current sensing circuit (68) senses the point at which the load (10) becomes saturated during the reset cycle and also senses current flow through the winding during the set cycle in order to prevent a current overload.

Method and apparatus for controlling the phase of signal driving a

A thin-line heading sensor is disclosed having an outside diameter of less than an inch which is accurate to within 1.degree. of arc. The invention includes a magnetic wheel having a reflective multifaceted perimeter. The facets are optically coded for identification. When the wheel is illuminated by a collimated beam of light, a beam is reflected onto an array of photodetectors. The photodetectors are coupled with an electronic circuit which decodes the position and pattern of illumination to determine the position of the magnetic wheel.

Growing community of inventors

Whittier, CA, United States of America

William A Harrington