A low cost switched beam array antenna for L-band land mobile satellite communications in Australia

A fully planar array antenna for Optus Mobilesat in Australia has been presented. The array is divided into four quadrants each being activated by a single pole four throw switch. The full design of the array has been given including the antenna elements and beam forming network. The results show that the array features a minimum gain of more than the required 7 dBi across the whole Mobilesat frequency band over the elevation angles between 30/spl deg/ to 70/spl deg/ and 360/spl deg/ in azimuth. This antenna system was developed using low cost dielectrics and a plastic foam. As it does not require any phase shifters, it is inexpensive to build and therefore should prove very attractive from a commercial point of view.