Patent ID: 9537208
Date: 2017-01-03
CPC Classifications: H01Q

Claim:
1. An antenna element comprising: a radiator unit cell structure having a first open end and a second end with a conductive backplane disposed thereover, with the backplane corresponding to a ground plane; a first vertical conductor disposed in said radiating unit cell structure and electrically coupled to said backplane; a horizontal conductor disposed in said radiator unit cell structure and capacitively coupled to said first vertical conductor, said horizontal conductor corresponding to a patch antenna element; a first feed circuit electrically coupled to and disposed proximate and parallel to said first vertical conductor and having a first end electrically coupled to said backplane and having a second end electrically coupled to a first feed point proximate said horizontal conductor with said feed circuit positioned such that at a first frequency, said first feed circuit couples signals to said patch antenna element and at a second, higher frequency, said first feed circuit generates RF signals in a first guided path slotline mode formed by the first vertical conductor, at least one sidewall of the radiator unit cell structure and the first feed circuit within said radiator unit cell structure; a second vertical conductor, wherein the first vertical conductor and the second vertical conductor are electrically coupled together and to the backplane; and a second feed circuit electrically coupled to said second vertical conductor, wherein said second vertical conductor and said second feed circuit are disposed in said radiator unit cell structure to couple RF signals which are orthogonal to RF signals coupled to said first vertical conductor and said first feed circuit such that the antenna element is responsive to RF signals having dual linear polarizations; wherein said second feed circuit generates RF signals in a second guided path formed by the second vertical conductor and the second feed circuit and within said radiator unit cell structure, and wherein the first and second guided paths guide RF signals along sidewalls of the radiator unit cell structure to the first feed point and a second feed point respectively.