SBIR Phase I: Multifunctional Reconfigurable Antenna Development for 5G Small Cells

这个项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是它能够为每个无线系统创造积极的影响。该项目专注于天线元件和控制算法，目标是商用无线通信应用，即5G蜂窝小蜂窝。由于任何无线平台都使用天线，因此该元件的进步将对每个无线系统产生积极影响。例如，战术军用天线不仅必须具有较小的尺寸、特征和成本，而且还必须确保在任何时间、任何频率和任何类型的环境下都能实现最大的效率、动态互耦容差和覆盖面积。提出的多功能可重构天线（MRA）技术具有动态变化的特性，是军事和商业天线应用的理想选择。社会将受益于由提出的创新设计原则和MRA技术驱动的无线网络应用的增加。该项目还具有很强的教育成分，将为本科生和研究生提供极好的机会，在跨学科领域培养结合无线通信理论，天线设计和制造技术的学生。如果成功，该项目将大大提高无线频谱的使用。这项小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目旨在通过开发一种称为多功能可重构天线（MRA）的新型天线技术，彻底改变无线通信的执行方式。天线的频带、辐射方向图和极化特性直接影响无线网络的覆盖范围、容量和服务质量。特别是，5G及以后的无线系统必须采用多输入多输出（MIMO）技术，以实现更高的频谱效率、先进的干扰管理能力、更高的网络容量和能源效率，同时降低成本、尺寸和重量。然而，实现这一目标是一个重大挑战，特别是如果MIMO系统使用传统的天线技术，自100多年前天线发明以来，这种技术并没有太大的变化。这些系统的智能仅限于自适应信号处理，这些信号处理是独立于假定固定的天线特性进行优化的。所提出的MRA技术使单个天线元件能够动态改变其特性，从而联合优化所有系统参数（环境、电磁波特性和通信算法）。在这一前沿领域的成功有可能在灵活性、性能、功耗、成本和尺寸方面彻底改变天线系统。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is its capability to create a positive impact for every wireless system. This project concentrates on the antenna element along with control algorithms and targets commercial wireless communication applications, i.e., 5G cellular small cells. As any wireless platform uses an antenna, an advancement accomplished for this element will create a positive impact for every wireless system. For example, the tactical military antennas must not only have reduced size, signature and cost, but must also ensure that maximum efficiency, dynamic mutual coupling tolerance and coverage area are achievable at all times, for any frequency and in any kind of environment. The proposed multifunctional reconfigurable antenna (MRA) technology with dynamically changeable properties is ideal for military and commercial antenna applications. Society will benefit from the increased array of applications of wireless networks driven by the proposed innovative design principles and MRA technologies. This project also has a strong educational component and will provide excellent opportunities to train students at undergraduate and graduate levels in interdisciplinary fields that combine wireless communication theory, antenna design, and fabrication technologies. If successful, this project will significantly enhance accessing the wireless spectrum.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project targets to revolutionize the way wireless communication is performed by developing a new class of antenna technology called multifunctional reconfigurable antenna (MRA). The frequency band, radiation pattern and polarization properties of an antenna directly impact the coverage, capacity, and quality of service achieved by wireless networks. Particularly, 5G and beyond wireless systems must employ multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology to attain improved spectral efficiency, advanced interference management capability, higher network capacities and energy efficiencies with reduced cost, size and weight. However, achievement of this represents a significant challenge particularly if the MIMO systems use legacy antenna technology, which has not seen much change since the invention of antennas more than 100 years ago. The intelligence of these systems is limited to adaptive signal processing, which are optimized in isolation independent from antenna properties that are assumed fixed. The proposed MRA technology enables a single antenna element to dynamically change its properties, thereby the joint optimization of all system parameters (environment, EM wave properties, and communication algorithms). Success on this frontier has the potential to revolutionize the antenna systems in terms of agility, performance, power consumption, cost, and size.