Patent ID: 8319686

Claim:
An apparatus for controlling a radiation direction of an antenna, the apparatus comprising: an antenna; a plurality of parasitic elements disposed in a concentric array around the antenna, wherein each parasitic element comprises a first portion disposed parallel to a ground surface and a second portion that is inclined with respect to the first portion at a first angle, each of the first portions comprising a first lumped element, and each of the second portions comprising a second lumped element; and a determination unit comprising a central control unit, a first radiation direction control unit configured to control the reactance of each of the first lumped elements, and a second radiation direction control unit configured to control the reactance of each of the second lumped elements to control the radiation direction of the antenna, wherein the first radiation direction control unit is configured to vary the reactance of each of the first lumped elements to establish a component of the radiation direction that is in a plane perpendicular to each first portion, and wherein the second radiation direction control unit is configured to vary the reactance of each of the second lumped elements to establish a component of the radiation direction that is in a plane perpendicular to each second portion.