HYBRID FEM SBR METHOD TO COMPUTE THE RADIATION-PATTERN FROM A MICROSTRIP PATCH ANTENNA IN A COMPLEX-GEOMETRY/

A previously introduced technique to compute the radiation of a micros trip patch antenna on a cylindrical body of arbitrary cross section is extended to include patch antennas mounted on complex, three-dimensio nal bodies. The technique involves using the finite-element method (FE M) to characterize the patch antennas, and then computing tile radiati on pattern with the use of the reciprocity theorem and the shooting an d bouncing ray (SBR) method with edge diffraction. The validity of the calculation and the need for an extension to three dimensions is show n by comparison with measured data for a waveguide-fed trihedral. Othe r calculations show the effects of the external geometry on the radiat ion pattern of a microstrip parch antenna. (C) 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.