The Impact of Vehicle Structural Components on Radiation Patterns of a Window Glass Embedded FM Antenna

The relative long wavelength of FM radio signals compared to a typical vehicle length means that a window glass-embedded FM band antenna couples strongly to vehicle structural components. Numerical simulations have been conducted to identify which key structural components in a full-size SUV have an effect on the average antenna gain patterns. In particular, it was found that the rear hatch and the seats of the SUV had a large effect on FM antenna gain patterns and thus required more careful modeling for the electromagnetic simulation. Also, it was found that the sunroof status, opened or closed, had a moderate effect on FM antenna gain patterns. Comparison with experimentally obtained FM antenna gain patterns demonstrated the importance of using the most detailed model possible when simulating patterns in the FM band.