Novel low-cost antenna array for vehicular reception of Ku-Band satellite television

Design and analysis of dual antenna elements for an optimum electronically steered array for vehicular MSAT applications was presented. The results show a significant advantage over previously used topologies. Gains of 20dBi can be reached by using just 16 of the proposed antenna pairs. For equal performance over a hundred patch antenna elements are required. Even for 30dBi the element count with the proposed pair is estimated to be close to 100 (50 pairs), covering an extremely large operational area (18deg to 74deg of elevation) without constraints in azimuth. The expected reduction in element count and element complexity could be the breakthrough for MSAT applications in vehicles.