This passive device lets you steer signal beams for over-the-air wireless test systems. Vaunix Technology, a manufacturer of modular RF/wireless test equipment, has introduced the LBM-7250-4 Lab Brick Butler Matrix, a beamforming tool that works with phased-array antennas to steer beams between transmitters and receivers. The Butler Matrix has four passive inputs and four outputs…
2.4 GHz chip antennas connect IoT devices to networks
KYOCERA AVX offers a variety of extremely compact and high-performance internal, on-board, multiprotocol, 2.4GHz antennas ideal for use in system-in-package (SiP) applications — the demand for which is surging. SiP modules feature a number of integrated circuits (ICs) with distinct functionalities in a single miniature chip carrier package and often include several silicon and passive components…
Long-wire dipole antennas: still viable after more than a century
The long-wire dipole antenna is effective for low-frequency systems. Adding LC traps makes a single-band dipole antenna into a multiband unit. The historically significant long-wire dipole antenna may seem like an anachronism in these days of compact, highly mobile wireless devices operating in the gigahertz spectrum, but that’s not the case at all. Due to…
GNSS receivers feature triple and quad-band options for UAV applications
Septentrio unveils the mosaic-G5 modules, its smallest GNSS receivers yet, measuring only 23 mm by 16 mm and weighing as little as 2.2 grams. The ultra-compact form factor and reduced power consumption of mosaic-G5 receivers enable reliable, high-accuracy positioning without compromises in performance for commercial UAVs, robots, and many other size and power-constrained industrial high-volume…
Software simulates RF conditions from the Earth to the Moon
Wireless InSite 4.0 from Remcom lets you simulate wireless channel conditions and analyze them based on antenna movement. Remcom announced a new version of Wireless InSite 3D Wireless Prediction Software with advanced capabilities including time-based mobility, lunar propagation modeling, and wideband ray-tracing with S-parameter outputs. Release 4.0 expands support for simulating dynamic and complex RF…
FAQ on the Butler matrix for beamforming: part 2
This passive beamforming topology is not well known but is widely used – a common situation in the RF world. Part 1 was an introduction to the electronic steering of an antenna beam and the Butler matrix; this part continues the investigation. Q: The Butler passive arrangement seems simpler; why not use it in all…
DSL router uses parts from old phones
A consortium of companies found a clever way to recycle phone parts, showing how reusing electronics can improve sustainability. Electronic waste is a huge environmental problem of which disposed cell phones are a major contributor. Think about it, all that metal, plastic, and working semiconductors go into landfills. Some materials, such as gold from PCB…
FAQ on the Butler matrix for beamforming: part 1
This passive beamforming topology is not well known but is widely used — a common situation in the RF world. For many years, radar applications defined much of the world of directional antennas. These antennas were designed with a fixed directivity or rotated in a steady pattern at a known rate, as seen in Figure…
Timing device combines MEO, GEO, and LEO signal integration
VIAVI Solutions Inc. launched EdgeGM 7000, a highly resilient Edge Grandmaster Clock building on the industry-leading SecurePNT portfolio. EdgeGM 7000 offers up to 25G Precision Time Protocol (PTP) and multi-orbit SecureTimeSM altGNSSSM for the most comprehensive assurance of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) services used in critical infrastructure operations worldwide. This solution will be showcased…
Standards group to address 6G multiple access
ETSI has established a new Industry Specification Group (ISG) focused on Multiple Access Techniques (MAT) for 6G mobile systems. The group aims to build industry consensus on numerous multiple-access techniques based on 3GPP specifications. The ISG MAT will explore candidate techniques such as Orthogonal Multiple Access (OMA), Spatial Division Multiple Access (SDMA), Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access…