JPH06104780A - Automatic tracking antenna device for satellite broadcasting reception - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make a device compact and light in weight, to attain a low cost, and to easily mount the device even on a general vehicle without providing a rotation driving control system in an elevation direction, in an automatic tracking antenna device for satellite broadcasting reception. CONSTITUTION:A fun beam antenna 11 equipped with a wide beam Bm which is beam tilt-processed at a prescribed angle theta corresponding to a satellite elevation angle, and whose power half value angle in the elevation angle direction is + or -DELTAtheta is arranged so as to be freely rotatable in horizontal direction. The reception level is supplied through a rotational coupler 13 and a 2 distributor 16 to a controller 17, and when the reception level is less than a prescribed level, a pulse motor 19 is controlled so that the maximum signal level can be obtained, and the antenna 11 is rotation-controlled. Afterwards, the motor 19 is controlled according to a directional error signal supplied from a gyro sensor 18 accompanies with a vehicle horizontal displacement by using a vehicle direction as a reference when the maximum signal level is obtained, and the antenna 11 is rotation-controlled so as to be set in a constant direction.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic tracking antenna device for receiving satellite broadcasting which is used by being mounted on a moving body such as a vehicle or a ship.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a plurality of plane antennas are used as an automatic tracking antenna device for receiving satellite broadcasting, which is mounted on a moving body, and a horizontal monopole system utilizing the output phase difference between them is used for horizontal and elevation angles. Those that perform rotation tracking control in both the (vertical) direction are in practical use.

That is, this automatic tracking antenna device is
A horizontal rotation drive control system is installed on the fixed side, and an elevation angle rotation drive control system is installed on the horizontal rotation side itself. Both the drive system and control system are complicated, heavy and large. Therefore, it becomes an expensive device, and ships, trains,
It is generally mounted on a commercial vehicle such as a bus.

[0004]

However, since the conventional satellite broadcast receiving automatic tracking antenna device having the rotation drive control system in both the horizontal direction and the elevation direction as described above is large and expensive, it is generally used for a private passenger vehicle. There is a problem that it is difficult to mount and use it easily.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a satellite broadcast receiving automatic tracking antenna device that is small in size, lightweight and inexpensive, and can be easily mounted in a general vehicle without providing a rotation drive control system in the elevation direction.

[0006]

That is, an automatic tracking antenna device for satellite broadcast reception according to the present invention has a wide beam having a half-power half-value angle preset in the elevation direction, and the beam corresponds to the satellite elevation angle. Fan beam antenna that is beam-tilted at an angle of, a rotary coupling means that couples the fan beam antenna to the movable body fixed portion so as to be rotatable in the horizontal direction, and a rotational drive that rotationally drives the fan beam antenna in the movable body fixed portion. Means, an initial control means for controlling the rotation of the fan beam antenna by the rotation driving means in accordance with the received signal level from the fan beam antenna, an azimuth detecting means for detecting the horizontal displacement of the movable body fixed portion, and this azimuth. The fan beam antenna is rotationally controlled by the rotation driving means in accordance with the horizontal displacement of the moving body fixing portion by the detecting means. It is constructed by a bearing control means for.

[0007]

In other words, since the antenna beam of the fan beam antenna is not only beam tilted corresponding to the satellite elevation angle but also a wide beam with a preset half-power angle in the elevation angle direction, Even if the vehicle body is slightly displaced in the elevation direction due to a road gradient or the like, the level reduction in the elevation direction of the antenna beam can be suppressed to a minimum, and a beam tracking mechanism in the horizontal direction can be provided without providing a beam tracking function in the elevation direction. Only by providing it, a practically sufficient reception signal level can be obtained.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the structure of an automatic tracking antenna device for receiving satellite broadcasts.
The rotating part and the fixed part are provided, and the rotating part is provided with a fan beam antenna 11.
Ball bearings (BB) are located on the bottom side of the
12 is attached.

The fan beam antenna 11 is, for example, a radial line type planar antenna (RA: Radial Ant).
enna) and a predetermined angle θ corresponding to the satellite elevation angle
The beam is tilted at (52 ° in the Kanto area), and the half-power half-value angle in the elevation direction is ± Δθ (for example, 5).
The fan beam antenna 11 has a wide beam Bm of 10 ° to 10 ° and is rotatably coupled in a horizontal direction to a fixed portion via a 12 GHz band rotary coupler (CC: Coaxial Coupler) 13. The received signal derived from the fan beam antenna 11 via the feeding probe 14 is directly supplied to the low noise block down converter (LNB) 15 on the fixed part side. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a reception signal transmission system from the fan beam antenna 11 in the satellite broadcast receiving automatic tracking antenna device.

Low noise block down converter (L
The NB) 15 has a high-frequency circuit board (SHF) 15a and an intermediate-frequency circuit board (IF) 15b, and makes satellite reception signals supplied from the fan beam antenna 11 via the power supply probe 14 correspond to receiver inputs. The low noise block down converter (LNB) 15 converts the received signal into the intermediate frequency band, and the received signal is supplied to the input of the receiver through the two-way divider 16 and the other of the received signals. The DC converter 16 a converts the received DC signal into a DC signal and supplies the DC signal to the controller 17. Further, the fixed portion is provided with a gyro sensor 18,
An azimuth error signal corresponding to the movement of the moving body is supplied to the controller 17.

On the other hand, the fan beam antenna 11 in the rotating section is rotated by the pulse motor (M) 19 via the timing belt 20 and the like, and the pulse motor 19 responds to the motor drive control signal from the controller 17. Driven by the motor driver 21. Then, the motor driver 21 is supplied with, for example, a vehicle-mounted DC power supply signal via the power supply 22.

The controller 17 is a program-controlled CP.
U (macro processor) has an initial acquisition for controlling the fan beam antenna 11 to rotate in the left-right direction so that the received signal level is maximized when the received signal level supplied from the two-way divider 16 is below a predetermined level. With the control (wiper mode) and the azimuth error signal supplied from the gyro sensor 18 as a reference, the fan beam antenna 11 is set to a fixed azimuth with the vehicle azimuth when the maximum reception signal level is obtained by this initial acquisition control. The gyro control (continuous tracking mode) in which the rotation is controlled in the left-right direction to be set is repeatedly performed. In this case, the pulse motor 19 is used.
Is proportional to the rotation angle of the fan beam antenna 11, and a motor drive pulse for an angle corresponding to the azimuth error signal from the gyro sensor 18 is supplied to the motor driver 21 as the motor drive control signal. .

Here, the rotary coupler 13 to the power source 22 on the fixed portion side are all mounted on a base plate (not shown) fixed to the vehicle body, and the fan beam antenna 11 is a radome (not shown). It is covered by and is composed. Next, the operation of the satellite tracking automatic tracking antenna device having the above configuration will be described. When the device power is turned on, the level of the received signal supplied from the two-way divider 16 to the controller 17 is sampled, and it is determined whether or not the level is below a preset predetermined level.

If the controller 17 determines that the received signal level is below a predetermined level, the initial capture control (wiper mode) is activated and the motor driver 21 outputs a motor drive control signal. The pulse motor 19 is driven and the fan beam antenna 11 is rotated rightward or leftward.

At this time, when the antenna beam Bm of the fan beam antenna 11 is directed in the direction of the incoming radio wave from the satellite, the received signal level becomes the maximum level, and therefore the fan beam antenna 11 until the maximum received signal level is obtained. Is controlled to rotate in the left-right direction.

When the level of the received signal supplied to the controller 17 reaches the maximum, the output of the motor drive control signal is stopped and the fan beam antenna 11 sets its antenna beam Bm in the direction of the incoming radio wave from the satellite. Then, in the controller 17, the control mode is switched from the initial capture control (wiper mode) to the gyro control (continuous tracking mode).

That is, when the maximum received signal level is obtained, that is, when the gyro control (continuous tracking mode) is switched to, the azimuth error signal supplied from the gyro sensor 18 is used as a reference, and the vehicle body thereafter is used. The pulse signal corresponding to the azimuth error signal is output to the motor driver 21 as a motor drive control signal based on the azimuth error signal supplied with the azimuth displacement of the antenna beam B in the fan beam antenna 11.
The direction of m is held in the direction of arrival of the satellite radio wave in which the maximum received signal level is obtained.

That is, from the time when the initial capture control is switched to the gyro control, for example, the vehicle body moves to the right by 30
In the case of rotational displacement, the fan beam antenna 11 is rotationally controlled by 30 ° to the left based on the azimuth error signal from the gyro sensor 18, and when the vehicle body is rotationally displaced by 90 ° in the left direction, Similarly, based on the azimuth error signal from the gyro sensor 18, the fan beam antenna 11 is rotationally controlled to the right by 90 °, and its antenna beam Bm is always held in the arrival direction of satellite radio waves.

Thereafter, when the antenna beam Bm of the fan beam antenna 11 deviates from the arrival direction of the satellite radio wave due to the accumulated error due to the gyro control, and the received signal level supplied to the controller 17 drops below a predetermined level. Then, the control mode is switched to the initial capture control (wiper mode) again.

On the other hand, the antenna beam Bm of the fan beam antenna 11 is not only beam-tilted in accordance with the satellite elevation angle, but also a pencil beam in the horizontal direction and a half power half value angle ± Δθ in the elevation direction. (For example, 5 ° to 10
Since the beam is a wide beam of (°), even if the vehicle body is slightly displaced in the elevation direction due to a road gradient or the like, the level reduction in the elevation direction of the antenna beam Bm is suppressed to 1 to 2 dB or less, and the beam in the elevation direction is reduced. Even if the tracking function is not provided, a practically sufficient received signal level can be obtained.

Therefore, according to the satellite broadcasting receiving automatic tracking antenna device having the above-described configuration, the beam is tilted at a predetermined angle θ (52 ° in the case of the Kanto area) corresponding to the satellite elevation angle, and 1 / of the elevation angle direction. 2 Half-power angle is ± Δθ
A fan beam antenna 11 having a wide beam Bm (for example, 5 ° to 10 °) is rotatably arranged in a horizontal direction, and a reception signal level of the fan beam antenna 11 is transferred from a rotary coupler 13 having a feeding probe 14 to a low noise block down converter (LN).
B) The motor is supplied to the controller 17 via the 15 and 2 dividers 16, and when the received signal level is below a predetermined level, the motor is controlled so as to obtain the maximum received signal level by the initial acquisition control (wiper mode). The fan beam antenna 11 is rotationally driven and controlled by the driver 21 via the pulse motor 19, and then the gyro control (continuous tracking mode) is switched to the vehicle body orientation based on the vehicle body direction when the maximum reception signal level is obtained. According to the azimuth error signal supplied from the gyro sensor 18 with the displacement in the left-right direction, the motor driver 21 controls the rotation of the fan beam antenna 11 via the pulse motor 19 so as to set the fan beam antenna 11 in a fixed azimuth direction. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a practically sufficient received signal level without the need for a rotary drive control system in the elevation direction. Easily mountable compact and also houses the vehicle can achieve weight cost reduction.

If the fan beam antenna 11 in the above embodiment is capable of changing its beam tilt angle stepwise, the direction of the antenna beam Bm corresponds to the satellite elevation angle regardless of the region where the vehicle body moves. Can be set.

[0024]

As described above, according to the present invention, a fan beam antenna having a wide beam having a preset half-power angle in the elevation direction and having the beam tilted at a predetermined angle corresponding to the satellite elevation angle. A rotary coupling means that rotatably couples the fan beam antenna to the movable body fixing portion in a horizontal direction, a rotation driving means that rotationally drives the fan beam antenna in the movable body fixing portion, and a reception from the fan beam antenna. Initial control means for controlling the rotation of the fan beam antenna by the rotation driving means according to the signal level, azimuth detecting means for detecting the horizontal displacement of the moving body fixing portion, and horizontal direction of the moving body fixing portion by the azimuth detecting means. Since the azimuth control means for controlling the rotation of the fan beam antenna by the rotation drive means according to the displacement is provided, Of without providing rotational drive control system, it is possible to provide a compact and light-weight inexpensive satellite broadcast receiving automatic tracking antenna device which can also be easily mounted on a general vehicles.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an automatic tracking antenna device for satellite broadcast reception according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a reception signal transmission system from a fan beam antenna in the satellite tracking automatic tracking antenna device.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... Fan beam antenna, 12 ... Rotation bearing, 13
... rotary coupler, 14 ... feeding probe, 15 ... low noise block down converter (LNB), 15a ... high frequency circuit board (SHF), 15b ... intermediate frequency circuit board (I
F), 16 ... 2 distributors, 16a ... DC converter, 17 ... Controller, 18 ... Gyro sensor, 19 ... Pulse motor (M), 20 ... Timing belt, 21 ... Motor driver, 22 ... Power supply, Bm ... Antenna Beam, θ ... Beam tilt angle, ± Δθ ... Half power angle.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Tomoyuki Sato 1406 Hasunuma, Omiya City, Saitama Prefecture, Yagi Antenna Co., Ltd. Omiya Plant (72) Inventor Kenji Taguchi 1406 Hasunuma, Omiya City, Saitama Prefecture, Omiya Plant, Yagi Antenna Co., Ltd.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A fan beam antenna having a wide beam having a preset half-power angle in the elevation direction, the beam being beam tilted at a predetermined angle corresponding to the satellite elevation angle, and a fan beam antenna which is a moving body. Rotational coupling means for horizontally rotatably coupling to the fixed portion, rotational drive means for rotationally driving the fan beam antenna in the movable body fixed portion, and the rotational drive means according to the received signal level from the fan beam antenna. The initial control means for controlling the rotation of the fan beam antenna by means of, the azimuth detecting means for detecting the horizontal displacement of the moving body fixing portion, and the rotation driving means according to the horizontal displacement of the moving body fixing portion by the azimuth detecting means. Azimuth control means for controlling the rotation of the fan beam antenna, and an automatic tracking antenna for satellite broadcast reception. Antenna equipment. 2. The fan beam antenna comprises a radial line type planar antenna, and the feeding probe thereof is SH.
The automatic tracking antenna device for satellite broadcast reception according to claim 1, wherein the automatic tracking antenna device is derived in a coaxial mode through an F-band rotary coupler. 3. The automatic tracking antenna device for satellite broadcast reception according to claim 1, wherein the beam tilt angle in the elevation direction of the fan beam antenna is variable stepwise.