Patent ID: 8525751

Claim:
A helix antenna comprising: a cylindrical support tube of dielectric material having a first end that serves as the feed end of the antenna and a second end; a first support disc of dielectric material joined to the first end of the cylindrical support tube; a second support disc of dielectric material joined to the second end of the cylindrical support tube; a first elongated filar element and a second elongated filar element, wherein each of said filar elements comprise an outer planar surface portion and a planar end surface portion, wherein said feed end is entirely covered by each of said planar end surface portions of each of said filar elements except for a gap between each of the planar end surface portions, wherein both elongated filar elements are wound around said cylindrical support tube in a radially opposite, helical arrangement at a predetermined pitch angle relative to an axis of the cylindrical support tube such that the outer planar surface portion of each filar element covers the entire circumference and surface area of a portion of the cylindrical support tube with the exception of a gap separating the two elongated filar elements, wherein the first and second elongated filar elements taper at a specific axial position along the cylindrical support tube from a maximum width to a predetermined minimum width that corresponds to a desired minimum input impedance and a maximum antenna impedance wherein the gap separating the first and second elongated filar elements increases as the filar elements taper with increasing distance from the feed end until the gap reaches a maximum width, said maximum width occurs at least one-half wavelength along the element's length away from said feed end, said first and second elongated elements and cylinder support tube being supported at the cylinder support tube ends by said first support disc at the first end of the cylindrical support tube and by said second support disc at the second end of the cylindrical support tube; an electrically conducting metal shorting strip, wherein the electrically conducting metal shoring strip joins the first elongated filar element and the second elongated filar element at the end of their respective tapered ends; and a coaxial feed cable having a center conductor joined to the planar end surface portion of the first elongated filar, and the inside of an outer conductor joined to the planar end surface portion of the second elongated filar element, wherein the coaxial feed cable is joined to the antenna at a feed point on the axis of said antenna, wherein the coaxial feed cable is wrapped around the length of the antenna positioned at and whose outer conductor is connected to the center of the second elongated filar element continuing to a center of the second support disc which is a radio frequency zero point and then beyond the radio frequency zero point for a predetermined length, such that the entire coaxial feed cable path from the feed point to the center of the conducting metal disc is an infinite balun.