New flat panel antenna design from QUB

The Cush

There was an article in yesterday's Irish Times on a new design flat panel satellite antenna from QUB start-up company Flish. According to the article the antenna will not require set-up or calibration and can be used for satellite TV or broadband reception.

The team, which have set up university spin-out company Flish, have developed an innovative antenna that can pick up satellite signals automatically – potentially consigning the satellite dish on the side of your house to the bin.

According to Flish, the “high-gain antenna” has the ability to “point” to distant signals such as a satellite. Currently satellite dishes have to be aligned; many are bulky and have moving parts.

But Flish, which worked with the European Space Agency to fine-tune its design, has produced an “analogue circuit design”, which means satellite dishes could be replaced with flat panels on walls or rooftops that need no set-up or calibration.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2011/1004/1224305203006.html

The Flish team's product, a low cost, low power antenna which is able to pick up satellite signals automatically and could make satellite dishes a thing of the past

Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/antenna-for-success-helps-team-lift-top-prize-at-technology-awards-16058272.html#ixzz1ZtNK8mGf

The innovative equipment developed by Flish is a high gain antenna which has the ability to 'point' to distant signals such as a satellite. It does not need to be aligned, like a satellite dish, and has no moving parts.. It enables satellite dishes to be replaced with flat panels on walls or roof tiles that need no set-up or calibration and will have particular relevance to the commercial satellite broadband market with the long-term aim of replacing the cumbersome domestic satellite dishes. It also has potential application in transportation as it can fit around the curves of vehicles or aircraft. The more compact antenna which has the ability to point to a signal in milliseconds has further application in the military and disaster relief market when a team may only have minutes to setup a lifesaving video link.

http://www.ecit.qub.ac.uk/News/

The new antenna design reminds me of a discussion on the long gone satellite radio tech show "Mediazoo" hosted by Eric Wiltsher during the 90's which on one show discussed a new phased array satellite antenna for domestic use from a California based company, cannot remember the name of the antenna/company now. The dish was based on millitary antenna technology. Don't think the dish ever made it to market.

I wonder if the Belfast designed antenna is similar technology?

zg3409

Yes. It seems very much like a phased array. After some searches I came up with no more details on their design.

Phased array is "standard" now for very expensive uses.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phased_array

No moving parts, very fast virtual movement time. It can even point multiple directions at the same time.

They say it is a cheap solution. I think it will only work out as cheaper than self tracking dishes currently used on ships etc.

I can't see how this would be cheaper than an ordinary dish. I have a flat satellite dish (with no curve) which is based on a fixed phased array so it still needs to be pointed.

Most self tracking systems are £1,500 upwards and take a good while to lock after powering on. They need to get a GPS fix, and a electronic compass fix, and then align exactly on the correct satellite. They have inbuilt giro stabilisation to compensate for movement. Generally they are in a dome to prevent wind moving the dish.

I cannot see this solution for the average home, but it would be good to undercut self-tracking systems, both in size and cost.