Shaped reflector antennas for satellite communications

Shaped reflector antennas are capable of producing desired coverage contours on earth by using a single horn thereby avoiding the need for complicated feed arrays and associated beamforming networks (BFNs). The advantages of shaped reflector technology for SATCOM antennas are lower cost, reduced mass and shorter delivery schedule. Development results of a dual-gridded shaped reflector designed for Canada and Conus (cities only) coverage at C-band are discussed in this paper. Measured results are compared with computed results and sensitivity analysis is carried out to establish tolerance requirements for shaped reflector antennas.