Patent ID: 7656351
Filing Date: 2010-02-02
Classification: H01Q,H04B

Abstract:
1. A method of electronically scanning with a single linear scan an orbital arc segment around the earth with a planar array of antenna elements on a mobile earth station, which moves between the equator and the poles, the planar array of antenna elements comprising a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns, the method comprising: providing one optimum fixed electronic squint optimized based on a range of longitudes and latitudes covered by the mobile earth station, the one optimum fixed electronic squint minimizing a maximum beam pointing error for the range of longitudes and latitudes; determining transmission line lengths for each antenna element in the planar array based on the one optimum fixed electronic squint; adding the determined transmission line lengths to each of the antenna elements in the planar array; and electronically scanning the orbital arc segment with a single linear scan by the planar array using a phase shifter at each column of the planar array as the mobile earth station moves between the equator and the poles.