Conformal array antenna subsystem

An antenna subsystem to communicate between Ariane 4 and a data relay satellite was studied, concluding that the original ideas on ring antennas should be corrected due to the wide margin of coverage required in elevation for such antennas, which implies the need of splitting the coverage. Nevertheless, the study of cylindrical and conical conformal arrays was continued in view of their intrinsic interest. Needed coverages with specified gain can be obtained with a set of microstrip circular patch antennas. For the lower stage, a single patch is enough. For geostationary missions, one horizontal array is used, and for heliosynchronous missions two horizontal arrays and a vertical one. The numerical study carried out on omniazimuthal ring antennas shows that a tendency to omnidirectional pattern exists in spite of the directivity of the elementary radiators. A small pointing improvement of the meridian pattern can be obtained by means of conical arrays instead of the cylindrical ones.