United States Patent
US Patent 4878061: Broadband wide flare ridged microwave horn antenna
US 4878061 · granted 1989-10-31
Abstract
A fast-flared horn antenna for use in a microwave detector comprises an upwardly flared top wall, a downwardly flared bottom wall, and outwardly flared side walls extending between the top wall and the bottom wall. The curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flares of the top, bottom and side walls are continuous. Flared and vanishing first and second ridges are formed into the bottom wall and the top wall respectively, the curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flares of the first and second ridges are also continuous and sized such that the first and second ridges vanish into the bottom and top walls and the side walls at the same plane. The horn antenna may be sized such that the ridges vanish at the front edge of the aperture of the horn antenna or the ridges may vanish within the horn antenna. If the ridges vanish within the horn antenna, the length of the horn antenna extending beyond the vanishing plane of the ridges is sized to introduce a phase delay which is substantially equal but opposite to the phase error introduced by the ridged portion of the horn antenna to thereby compensate for phase errors in the horn antenna.
| Patent Number | 4878061 |
|---|---|
| Title | Broadband wide flare ridged microwave horn antenna |
| Filed | 1988-11-25 |
| Granted | 1989-10-31 |
| Inventor(s) | Nusair; Marwan E., Scholl; Stephen R., Valentine; Michael D. |
| Assignee | Valentine Research, Inc. |
| Number of Claims | 19 |
Abstract
A fast-flared horn antenna for use in a microwave detector comprises an upwardly flared top wall, a downwardly flared bottom wall, and outwardly flared side walls extending between the top wall and the bottom wall. The curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flares of the top, bottom and side walls are continuous. Flared and vanishing first and second ridges are formed into the bottom wall and the top wall respectively, the curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flares of the first and second ridges are also continuous and sized such that the first and second ridges vanish into the bottom and top walls and the side walls at the same plane. The horn antenna may be sized such that the ridges vanish at the front edge of the aperture of the horn antenna or the ridges may vanish within the horn antenna. If the ridges vanish within the horn antenna, the length of the horn antenna extending beyond the vanishing plane of the ridges is sized to introduce a phase delay which is substantially equal but opposite to the phase error introduced by the ridged portion of the horn antenna to thereby compensate for phase errors in the horn antenna.
Claim 1
A fast-flared rectangular horn antenna for use in a microwave detector and extending from a waveguide to an open aperture comprises: an upwardly flared top wall; a downwardly flared bottom wall; outwardly flared side walls extending between said bottom wall and said top wall, the curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flares of said top, bottom and side walls being continuous; and a flared and vanishing first ridge formed into said bottom wall, centered between said side walls and originating at the waveguide, the curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flare of said first ridge being continuous andsized such that said first ridge vanishes by melding into said bottom wall and said side walls at vanishing points within a common cross sectional plane taken along said antenna.
Claims
19 totalA fast-flared rectangular horn antenna for use in a microwave detector and extending from a waveguide to an open aperture comprises: an upwardly flared top wall; a downwardly flared bottom wall; outwardly flared side walls extending between said bottom wall and said top wall, the curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flares of said top, bottom and side walls being continuous; and a flared and vanishing first ridge formed into said bottom wall, centered between said side walls and originating at the waveguide, the curvature and the first derivative of the curvature of the flare of said first ridge being continuous andsized such that said first ridge vanishes by melding into said bottom wall and said side walls at vanishing points within a common cross sectional plane taken along said antenna.