Description
Objective: The objective is to develop and test a Ku or Ka band transparent phased array antenna to provide broadband connectivity on board cars. Targeted Improvements: Develop a new class of phased array antennas for cars able to guarantee a seamless broadband connectivity with LEO satellites. Description: There is today a significant interest to provide broadband connectivity to cars. This request is associated to the need to guarantee emergency services (such as police, firefighters, paramedics), environmental protections, healthcare (telemedicine), urban services, entertainment and autonomous driving. Next generation cars will be designed with large panoramic, transparent roofs. Therefore, broadband connectivity can be only enabled by developing large transparent antennas in Ka-band integrated in the car glasses (windows, panoramic roof, windshield, etc...). Connections with Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites, as compared with connection with GEO satellites, offer a significant advantage in terms of link budget but poses additional challenges in terms of antenna pointing angles and extension of the angular field of view. The antenna is expected to be able to point a beam everywhere inside a conical region with a minimum angle of 30 degrees elevation as compared to the horizon. Exploiting higher frequency, Ku or Ka-band, guarantees some advantages in terms of link budget. However, an antenna with reduced thickness on the top roof of the car cannot provide an acceptable gain level unless a significant portion of the roof is used. In this activity a transparent phased array antenna able to provide a broadband connectivity with LEO satellites shall be developed. A Ku or Ka band operational frequency shall be considered. Antennas with limited dimensions integrated on glasses have been already developed for other applications and this type of placement guarantees an almost invisible antenna with a negligible impact on the car aesthetics. These antennas could be considered as a starting point for the design of a reconfigurable array. In the first part, a phased array antenna shall be developed. In the second part, a scaled fully representative demonstrator of the antenna shall be manufactured and experimentaltesting shall include usable bandwidth, sidelobe levels, cross-polarisation and grating lobe levels. Procurement Policy: C(1) = Activity restricted to non-prime contractors (incl. SMEs). For additional information please go to: http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Business_with_ESA/Small_and_Medium_Sized_En…