US3697994A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Automatic beam steering technique for cylindrical-array radar antennas
Assignee: United States Department of the Navy
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Filing: 1971-07-19
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Granted: 1972-10-10
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Expires: 1991-07-19
Abstract
Abstract A digital computer system and technique for automatically steering the pencil beam of a 3-D cylindrical array radar antenna. The beam is steered in both elevation and azimuth by selectively energizing binary phase shifters associated with each radiating element of the array. A digital computer is used to store phase values corresponding to a selectively predetermined number of beam positions and functions in response to beam control information from the associated radar to output appropriate phase values to the radiating elements whereby agile steering of the array beam and/or random beam positioning can be obtained.
Inventors
- 👤 Stephen A O'daniel
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-25 23:53
CPC Classifications
H; H01; H01Q; H01Q3/00; H01Q3/26; H01Q3/267; H01Q3/30; H01Q3/34; H01Q3/36; H01Q3/38; H01Q3/385
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 4
Claim 1
Independent Claim
216 words
An automatic beam steering control system for a cylindricalarray antenna of a radar system comprising: a cylindrical-array radar antenna having a plurality of active elements arranged and disposed in a selectively predetermined number of rows and columns on the surface thereof; binary phasor means connected to each of said elements on the back side thereof; digital computer means connected at the input thereof to said radar system for receiving beam control information from said radar system; said digital computer means including means for storing phase value tables for a selectively predetermined number of beam positions, the number of tables required to be stored being equal to the total number of elevation beam positions only, and the length of each of said tables being equal to the number of required azimuth beam positions; a plurality of row and column shift register means connected to the output of said digital computer means and being responsive to control commands from computer control logic means to transfer selectively predetermined ones of said stored phase values to said binary phasor means; said binary phasor means including serially connected N-bit binary adder means and N-bit phase shifter means responsive to the phase values transferred thereto to thereby set all of said binary phasors to steer a beam in a selectively predetermined direction.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
216 words
An automatic beam steering control system for a cylindricalarray antenna of a radar system comprising: a cylindrical-array radar antenna having a plurality of active elements arranged and disposed in a selectively predetermined number of rows and columns on the surface thereof; binary phasor means connected to each of said elements on the back side thereof; digital computer means connected at the input thereof to said radar system for receiving beam control information from said radar system; said digital computer means including means for storing phase value tables for a selectively predetermined number of beam positions, the number of tables required to be stored being equal to the total number of elevation beam positions only, and the length of each of said tables being equal to the number of required azimuth beam positions; a plurality of row and column shift register means connected to the output of said digital computer means and being responsive to control commands from computer control logic means to transfer selectively predetermined ones of said stored phase values to said binary phasor means; said binary phasor means including serially connected N-bit binary adder means and N-bit phase shifter means responsive to the phase values transferred thereto to thereby set all of said binary phasors to steer a beam in a selectively predetermined direction.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
17 words
The system of claim 1 further including row multiplier means connected to said row shift register means.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
45 words
The system of claim 1 further including beam number shift register means connected to the output of said digital computer means for transferring current beam number data to said radar system and time delay register means for transferring time delay data to time delay means.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3646558A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-10-10 | 1976-04-10 | 1976-10-10 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-10-10 | 1980-04-10 | 1980-10-10 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-10-10 | 1984-04-10 | 1984-10-10 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |