GPS World

Tag: low-noise amplifier

  • Southwest Antennas releases rugged GPS/GLONASS antenna

    Southwest Antennas releases rugged GPS/GLONASS antenna

    Southwest Antennas has introduced a high-performance GPS and GLONASS active L1/L2 patch antenna for high-accuracy location service, timing and navigation applications.

    Part #1065-042 covers both the L1 and L2 bands, supporting military, commercial and industrial applications. For military users, the antenna supports the GPS P/Y code with +/-20-MHz bandwidth, allowing for increased accuracy, jam resistance and encryption for authorized military applications.

    Photo: Southwest Antennas
    Photo: Southwest Antennas

    The antenna’s built-in low-noise amplifier (LNA) and filters give it a total system active gain of +28 dB and out-of-band rejection of >50 dB (+50 MHz / -35 MHz of L1, +35 MHz / -45 MHz of L2). The specifications allow the antenna to operate in contested and congested radio frequency (RF) environments.

    “Our goal is to empower radio operators who require high-accuracy GNSS solutions with more choices for deployment and mounting,” said Benjamin Culver, president and co-owner of Southwest Antennas. “Adding onto our existing line of GPS antennas and gooseneck mounting options, users now have more freedom of choice in antenna placement to help overcome reception issues in challenging environments.”

    The low-profile radome allows the antenna to be easily tucked into pockets or modular lightweight load-carrying equipment (MOLLE) pouches and mounted on body armor, vests, rucksacks or other tactical gear. The custom black chrome SMA(f) RF connector ensures the antenna is waterproof, while allowing users to fully customize antenna placement on their gear and select their own cable type and length to suit their preference for mounting location away from their receiver.

    For additional flexibility in mounting locations, part #1065-042 features a magnetic mount integrated flush into the antenna’s radome, allowing it to be secured and removed quickly from any ferromagnetic surface. This extends the antenna’s operational capabilities through the ability to remotely locate the antenna away from the attached radio system to enhance satellite acquisition speed and signal strength when operating in environments with poor sky views.

    Applications include:

    • SAASM GPS, GLONASS, GNSS receivers, and other precision navigation receivers
    • Manpack and handheld radios, dismounted soldier-level communications
    • Small form-factor radios
    • Low-profile vehicle mounts and unmanned ground vehicles
    • Unattended/intelligent munitions systems
    • Aviators, combat search-and-rescue radios
    • IED recognition and destruction jamming systems
    • Law enforcement and first responders
    • Precision surveying receivers
    • Asset tracking
    • Precision timing applications
    • LBS and M2M applications
    • Oil and gas industries
  • New GNSS receiver front-end integrates, simplifies

    New GNSS receiver front-end integrates, simplifies

    Photo: STMicroelectronics
    Photo: STMicroelectronics

    STMicroelectronics’ latest RF front-end for GNSS receivers offers a simplified design and smaller footprint. The BPF8089-01SC6 integrates the impedance-matching and electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection circuitry typically implemented using discrete components.

    The BPF8089-01SC6 provides a 50-ohm matched interface between the receiver’s antenna and low-noise amplifier (LNA), and is ready for plug-and-play with the company’s STA8089 and STA8090 LNAs.

    The BPF8089-01SC6 is suitable for use in portable receivers for the GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou and QZSS constellations, which can be used in applications such as consumer satellite navigation, radio base stations, drones and tracking of assets or livestock.

    The BPF8089-01SC6’s compact, integrated front-end can replace a matching network containing up to five capacitors, resistors and inductors, as well as two discrete protection devices, resulting in a much smaller footprint. Designers can also leverage PCB-track specifications provided in the device datasheet to ease design challenges and ensure optimal performance.

    The ESD protection provided complies with IEC 61000-4-2 (C = 150 pF, R = 330 ohm) and exceeds level 4: 8 kV for contact discharge and 15 kV for air discharge. The device also withstands 2 kV pulse voltage in accordance with MIL-STD 883 C (C = 100 pF, R = 1.5k ohm).

    Part of ST’s Application Specific Integrated Passives (ASIP) product range, the BPF8089-01SC6 is housed in a SOT23-6L package compatible with automatic optical inspection.

  • Skyworks launches GNSS front-end modules with integrated filters

    Skyworks Solutions, which manufactures analog and mixed-signal semiconductors, has launched three low-noise amplifier (LNA) front-end modules with integrated filters for GNSS. The devices are designed to provide high linearity, excellent gain, a high 1-dB input compression point and a superior noise figure.

    The pre-filters provide the low in-band insertion loss and integrated notch filtering for excellent rejection of desired frequency bands.

    Each device is supplied in small-footprint, surface-mount technology multi-chip module packaging — 1.1 x 1.5 x 0.7 millimeters for the SKY65713-11, and 1.7 x 2.3 x 0.7 millimeters for the SKY65715-81.

    The SKY65713-11 and SKY65715-81 both support products integrating GNSS functionality such as smartphones, personal navigation devices, wearables, machine-to-machine (M2M) systems, base stations, asset tracking instruments, professional radios and Internet of Things (IoT) applications. Both are designed for BeiDou and GPS receiver applications.

  • AWT Global Introduces Low Noise Amplifier

    Source: GPS world staff
    The LNA1 Series by AWT Global.

    AWT Global has launched a new product line of low noise amplifiers: the LNA1 Series.

    The new compact Low Noise Amplifiers (LNAs) are suited as RF measurement amplifiers and for signal boosting applications. LNA1 amplifiers cover telecommunications frequency bands from 700 to 2700 MHz. High gain of 25dB (+/-3) makes them perfect for applications like interference hunting.

     “Due to its small form factor, LNA1 is well suited for mobile applications,” said Wolfgang Damm, president of AWT Global. ”LNA1 has been designed with power requirements of 5V/100mA, so it can be supplied by any USB port, standard at most portable instruments like spectrum analyzers.”

    LNA1-0727-25 covers a frequency range of 700 to 2700 MHz. Impedance is 50 Ohms and VSWR ratio is 2.2:1. LNA1 features 25 dB (+/-3) of gain and 2.0 dB NF. Size is: 1.5” x 1.0“ x 2.5” ( 38 x 25 x 64 mm). Both, input and output comes standard with N-Type connectors, INP N(f) / OUT N(m). Other connector types are available on request. Power is supplied with a common 5.5 OD, 2.1 ID connector. AWT Global’s LNA1-0727-25 LNAs are available for sales immediately.