IS IT TIME TO TRY A DIFFERENT ANTENNA?
Modern MANET radios provide robust and high performing communication systems, transmitting voice and data around the battlespace, speeding up both the passage of information and the decision-action cycle. With the recent developments in radio technology, why do we still hear about communication issues?
Our view is that it is due to a combination of user understanding but primarily a lack of focus on integration with the Dismounted Close Combat (DCC) user. The DCC community is challenging, there are a wide variety of roles and tasks that may require specific equipment as well as the standard combat load of personal and team equipment. There is very limited carriage space on the soldier so integrating the load onto the user so that they can effectively carry our their role requires careful consideration. User training will instruct the soldier where to place the antenna for optimised performance, This is likely to be as high up on the body as possible to maximise the line of sight and unimpeded by the user or their equipment. The first challenge is that the combat load of the DCC user is often very high which means that the high points on the body will be used for load carriage equipment. The second challenge is about usability and comfort, whatever is carried by the user must be comfortable, accessible when required and must not impede the user in carrying out their tasks. A radio on the shoulder or rear can interfere with load carriage, this often results in the user carrying the radio on the belt or front of the tactical vest. This positioning can lead to issues with body blocking of the RF signal and detuning by the body or equipment but minimises the impact on the soldier and their ability to operate. Any performance impedance can be magnified when the wearer adopts a tactical patrol position as the signal can be further blocked by the body or directed into the ground.
We began our design process to overcome some of these challenges by focusing on simplifying the integration challenge for the user. Our goal was to develop and antenna that would seamlessly integrate with tactical vests and load carriage equipment, be lightweight, low profile and minimise the visual signature whilst still maintaining a high level of RF performance. Our 2 year development process resulted in the Patent pending SIGMA antenna range.
We carried out some comparison testing between commonly used pole and paddle antennas and the SIGMA range. Detailed data is available so please get in touch to discuss methodology and results, an example of the results is shown below. On the left is the pattern of the SIGMA antenna with the radio worn on the belt and the antenna over the shoulder, on the right is a standard pole antenna with the radio worn on the belt (red area added for emphasis). This body blocking would have a significant impact upon transmissions, especially for those nodes at the edge of the network or when operating in challenging terrain such as woodland. The variation that can be see is caused by the change in body position, whilst the SIGMA remains consistent, the pole antenna has significant performance variation when in the prone or standing position.
The SIGMA antenna range has been designed and tested for tactical use. The antennas offer omnidirectional coverage in a low profile and lightweight design that is easily integrated into a user’s tactical equipment. For the user this means lower visual signature, better comfort, better consistency of communications whenever the operator is standing, kneeling or in the prone position. The SIGMA antenna is a great option for comms within the Platoon. Get in touch if you want to know more.
