Techniques, devices and systems use pseudo-conductor materials as antennas to receive or radiate electromagnetic energy for communications and other applications. Methods of configuring an antenna can include, in some implementations, selecting a pseudo-conductor material having an electromagnetic constitutive property, wherein the electromagnetic constitutive property comprises a real part of the electromagnetic constitutive property that is greater than a corresponding imaginary part of the electromagnetic constitutive property; and forming the pseudo-conductor material into an antenna shape configured, upon being excited, to radiate emissions that satisfy a predefined antenna performance, such that the pseudo-conductor material formed in the antenna shape weakly guides an electromagnetic wave on the pseudo-conductor material using a leaky mode that is below cutoff to establish a field structure to radiate the emissions from the pseudo-conductor material that satisfy the antenna performance.

Pseudo-conductor antennas

A variable permeability antenna apparatus includes a first region configured for coupling with a feed of a radio frequency signal and a second region for transmitting the radio frequency signal. The permeability of material at the second region is greater than the permeability of material at the first region. Also, a spiral antenna for transmission or reception of radio frequency signals is disclosed.

Magnetic pseudo-conductor spiral antennas

A radio frequency transmission apparatus includes a first elongated antenna element having a first feed end and a first aperture end. A second elongated element has a second feed end and a second aperture end. The second feed end is coupled to the first feed end. The first and second elongated antenna elements are positioned relative to each other to render a separation between the first antenna element and the second antenna element to increase from the first and second feed ends to the first and second aperture ends. The first and second antenna elements comprise pseudo-conductor material having an electromagnetic constitutive property having a real part greater than the corresponding imaginary part of the electromagnetic constitutive property.

Magnetic pseudo-conductor conformal antennas

An optical transmission system with automatic startup functions to optimize the power level of optical signals entering each optical amplifier and operate those amplifiers in appropriate mode. In the process of starting up an optical transmission system, upstream and downstream optical transmission devices set up themselves under the coordination of their internal controllers. The downstream device controller adjusts its local variable optical attenuator by utilizing optical noise emission from a post-amplifier in the upstream optical transmission device, and it selects and sets a preamplifier unit to work in appropriate operating mode. The upstream device controller, on the other hand, selects and sets operating mode of its local post-amplifier unit. During this process, the upstream and downstream device controllers exchange messages over supervisory control channels to achieve the purpose.

Optical transmission system with automatic signal level adjustment and startup functions

An inductive charging interface with magnetic retention can be used for charging electronic devices and accessories. For example, a magnetic core of an inductive charging configuration may be divided into two magnetic elements, one element can be housed within a receptacle or receiving connector of housing of an electric device and the other element can be housed within a plug or transmission connector. The poles of the two elements of the magnetic core may create a magnetic field to retain the plug connector in an aligned, mated position with the receptacle connector of the electronic device in addition to directing magnetic flux to flow in a circular path around and between the two elements of the magnetic core, thereby inducing a current for charging the internal battery of a device.

Inductive charging interface with magnetic retention for electronic devices and accessories

An apparatus for, and method of, replacing conventional antennas which transmit radio frequency energy from radio frequency transmitters. The invention provides for the use of any conductive surface as a transmitting antenna by taking advantage of the fact that any electrical conductor or surface that is 0.1 wavelengths or longer will radiate RF energy when injected with sufficient current. The RF current injecting antenna device, employing the principles of an instrument transformer, couples RF energy from a transmitter to a linear conductive element or a conductive surface. The useful frequency range that has been demonstrated for the device is 2 MHz to 1 GHz.

RF current injecting antenna device

A TEM mode cell having an internal TEM element and at least one port on the cell comprising a stepped transmission line transformer coupling said element to the port. The cell comprises a hollow metallic housing having an enlarged center with opposite open ends, and a pair of end sections closing off said center open ends and tapering to a distal end of reduced cross sectional area. A connector at the distal end of each end section, and a stepped septum mounted within the housing and insulated therefrom, the septum coupled to and extending between the connectors. The septum having a central portion joining a pair of end portions each having a stepped contour reducing in size toward its connector. Each end portion has at least three steps in contour, with transition slopes between the steps being greatest leading to said central portion and the least leading to its connector.

Joseph F. Fischer

Papers

RF current injecting antenna device

Transverse electromagnetic cell