Three antenna ranges based on articulated robotic arms at the national institute of standards and technology: Usability for over-the-air and standard near-field measurements

NIST has developed an antenna range that uses coordinated industrial robotic systems for measuring milli-meter wave (mmWave) antenna patterns and gain. The Configurable Robotic millimeter Antenna (CROMMA) facility employs a multi-axis articulated serial robotic arm to place probes accurately around a test article. The positional and temporal capabilities, shown by CROMMA, has become a springboard to develop two new robotic ranges for use primarily from 0.5–30 GHz. Both of these systems are based upon commercial-coordinated-kinematic systems with multiple degrees of freedom. The first is the dual six-axis, robotic-arm Large Antenna Positioning System (LAPS). It is designed to perform large volume scanning with an emphasis on Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) and Over-the-Air (OTA) testing. The second system employs a seven-axis robotic arm to perform communication testing of Single-Input Single-Output (SISO) systems and will be used to establish modulated and continuous-wave field references. We will discuss the advantages, limitations and techniques employed to use these commercial robotic systems for accurate time-sensitive positioning and coordination with communications measurement equipment.