A Switched Planar Multicoil Transmitter Antenna Designed With Nonuniform H-Field Forming for Small Device Localization

To monitor 3-D position and orientation of a small device having planar receiver (Rx) coil, a switched multicoil transmitter (Tx) antenna is proposed by adopting time-divisional approach. The existing multifrequency methods require eight or more input ports to feed the coils with multifrequency signals for localization. In contrast, the proposed Tx antenna is driven by a single frequency source and uses only three input ports for reduced complexity. Moreover, the multiple coils of the proposed antenna are optimally grouped to form nonuniform magnetic-field distribution using three switches (SWs) in such a manner that better localization accuracy is achieved as compared to the multifrequency design. Rigorous analysis and simulations are performed to investigate the performance of the proposed design and localization approach. To validate the claim, experimental study results proved the potential of the proposed antenna employed for tracking a planar Rx in applications like medical robots, navigation of people with limited vision, virtual reality, etc.