Abstract
This paper compares the performance and complexity of two methods of steering an array of aperture antennas on a high altitude platform for the provision of broadband fixed wireless access using cellular type frequency reuse. The first method is to steer all antennas individually to maintain the boresight at the required cell centre. The paper also presents a second method of compensating for aperture antenna pointing error due to lateral and vertical displacement of the platform from the nominal station using only four actuators plus a gimbal that can correct for roll, pitch and yaw of the platform. Results for signal strength, CIR and handovers are given for both scenarios and conclusions drawn.
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Myles Capstick received his B.Sc and Ph.D degrees in Electronics from the University of Wales, Bangor, in 1987 and 1991, respectively. His current position is as a Senior Lecturer at the University of York and he has also been a Lecturer at the University of Wales in Bangor and at York. His research interests are centred in RF, microwave and mm-wave circuits and systems. More specifically, mm-wave and microwave filters, diplexers and planar array antennas and the design and modelling of broadband, multiband and compact antennas for MIMO communication. He has particular expertise in the area of EMC for RF and microwave circuits and systems, research that extends into the design of the dosimetry equipment for human exposure to EM fields used in human volunteer trials within the UK’s Human Health and Mobile Telecommunications Research programme. He has been an invited speaker at several conferences and seminars in the fields of mobile communications and EMC. He is a member of the IEE.
David Grace received his M.Eng degree in Electronic Systems Engineering D.Phil degree from the University of York, UK in 1993 and 1999, respectively. His D.Phil thesis dealt with ‘Distributed Dynamic Channel Assignment for the Wireless Environment’. Since 1994 he has been a member of the Communications Research Group at York, where he is now a Research Fellow. He has worked on a variety of research contracts including several from the former Defence Evaluation and Research Agency. Current research interests include radio resource management for broadband communications, particularly from high-altitude platform and terrestrial ad hoc networks. He is now Principal Scientific Officer for CAPANINA a major European Framework 6 project that is developing broadband communications from high-altitude platforms. He has been an invited speaker at several conferences and industrial locations in the fields of HAP systems. He is also a nominated Researcher in the European NEWCOM Network of Excellence, and a Director of SkyLARC Technologies Ltd, a York based company, specialising in broadband communications from aerial platforms. He is a member of IEE and IEEE.
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Capstick, M.H., Grace, D. High Altitude Platform mm-Wave Aperture Antenna Steering Solutions. Wireless Pers Commun 32, 215–236 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11277-005-0743-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11277-005-0743-2