Vox, video and data sharing using body worn antennas

A wireless network integrated in the current `multicam' uniform worn in operational environments by the British Army is described, based on body worn antennas and 802.11n network technology, for communication within patrols. The antennas are lightweight, flexible, robust, and contain a novel integrated balun, which together with the antenna design, permits function over very wide (6:1) bandwidths. A match of better than 1.67:1 VSWR from 800MHz to 5GHz was found to be typical, much larger than was required to support the 29.5Mb/s data rate. The network is capable of sharing voice, video from helmet mounted cameras on individual soldiers or fixed surveillance equipment, and data such as GPS derived positional information, the user simply selecting the required information feed via a wrist mounted smart phone. This additional functionality, relative to existing radios, leads to improved situational awareness for patrol members, individually and collectively.