Simplify Antenna Selection, Optimization, and Integration with Online Tools

What you’ll learn:

The ubiquity of RF systems.
An overview of online design tools.
AI and advanced features in online antenna design.

Since its inception in the late 19th century, RF antenna development has been driven by events such as the Second World War and the space race, and its ongoing evolution has leveraged advances in materials such as metamaterials, nanotechnology, dielectrics, and advanced composites. The defense industry continues to benefit from innovation in antenna design, but as other sectors increasingly adopt wireless communications, the RF antenna has become a fundamental enabler of modern life.

Antenna design is a complex task, but one that must be addressed up-front in any project to avoid expensive and time-consuming rework later in the development cycle. This can present a formidable challenge to the developer who is under pressure to reduce development cycles and get to market quickly.

Fortunately, a growing range of off-the-shelf (OTS) antennae are being produced by specialist antenna manufacturers. These devices come in a variety of form factors, supporting different protocols, and are available in military-grade options complying with standards such as MIL-STD-810.

Although OTS antennae significantly simplify the developer’s life, care and knowledge are still required to deploy them into any solution. On this front, a range of powerful online tools can help guide the designer through antenna selection and integration. In this article, we look at some of the trends driving innovation in antenna development and discuss the challenges facing developers when optimizing antenna design, along with the online tools and support available.

The Ubiquitous RF Antenna

Wireless applications are incredibly diverse, ranging from smart-home devices to secure entry and surveillance systems and industrial control applications, and RF antennae are appearing in a wide range of these devices. In the defense sector, high-performance and versatile multiband antennae support applications such as military communications (MILCOM), radar, and surveillance, and they’re integrated into equipment such as handheld radios, manpack communication systems, and vehicles.

Most wireless applications leverage multiple wireless protocols. Thus, devices contain multiple antennae—for example, smartphones can have up to six, supporting 5G, LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GNSS, and NFC protocols.

The growing demand for broadband connectivity is driving the use of more cellular, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth antennas in wearable electronics and a vast array of embedded IoT and M2M devices. And positioning technology is a rapidly growing field, with wireless devices leveraging protocols such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low Energy, and GNSS to offer a seamless transition between indoor and outdoor environments.

The use of GNSS technology is expanding across multiple sectors and military use cases, including navigation, search and rescue, reconnaissance, unmanned vehicles, and munitions guidance. The list goes on, and the market for wireless devices is projected to grow from USD 1811.24 billion in 2025 to USD 2569.50 billion by 2034, representing a CAGR of 3.96% over the forecast period.¹ Significant opportunities, therefore, exist for innovative developers, with short development cycles, cost-effectiveness, and speed-to-market key to success.

Developing any wireless device requires taking on the challenging task of designing the RF front end, which will include at least one, and more often multiple, antennae. Designers beginning a project will invariably always start with OTS antennae. That’s because antenna design is a complex endeavor requiring specialist skills and expensive test and development tools, and it can easily add months to development cycles.

When a custom antenna is needed, though, the design and testing resources of an experienced antenna supplier are vital in creating a solution that works effectively for today’s complex, often small wireless devices.

Today, most antennae aren’t visible externally, either mounted on the PCB or internally cabled. A range of online tools are available to help in the selection, configuration, and placement of the antennae on the PCB or within the device enclosure.

Overview of Online Design Tools

Several important decisions must be made up-front when selecting and integrating an antenna, and a growing selection of cloud-based online tools is available to guide the designer through this process. These tools, developed by specialist antenna manufacturers, range in sophistication and capabilities, from relatively simple configuration tools to more complex simulation and modeling tools.

Common functionalities include support for optimizing and expediting antenna selection, best practices for antenna placement, and PCB optimization for best RF performance, with recommendations for component layout, ground-plane space, vias, enclosure materials, and gaps. Online tools can also provide support for antenna tuning and matching.

For example, for NFC applications, they offer recommended starting values for filter components based on PCB and antenna data provided by the user. Antenna design is iterative, and most tools let the designer specify starting parameters and then run simulations to converge on the optimal design, without the cost of developing prototypes.

As cloud-based resources, these tools enhance the workflow of development teams, enabling online access, facilitating remote working, and enhancing productivity by supporting real-time collaboration across different geographical locations. Many tools also offer features such as version control, which can be particularly valuable for complex projects like MIMO antenna array development, where comparing different iterations and their performance metrics is essential.

AI and Advanced Features in Online Antenna Design

Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to play an increasingly significant role in antenna design. Modern AI-powered tools can suggest design optimizations, predict potential interference issues, and even generate initial antenna concepts based on specified parameters. In particular, generative design algorithms are pushing the boundaries of antenna design by exploring solution spaces that human engineers might not consider, potentially leading to innovative and highly optimized designs.

These cloud-based tools can be said to “democratize” access to the types of powerful design and simulation tools that were once the preserve of specialist RF design engineers. It’s important, however, to ensure that the selected tools align with the existing capabilities and systems of the organization. In general, more sophisticated toolsets require higher levels of RF skills to operate them, whereas, for many developers, the value of a toolset can lie in the simplicity of its user interface.

For example, the AntennaXpert tool set from Taoglas offers three main tools to the wireless system developer—Antenna Builder, Cable Builder, and Antenna Integrator. The first two tools save the developer time and effort by simplifying the often-tedious process of gathering information, consulting with various experts and selecting components. These rule-based tools guide the selection of antenna and cable components, connectors, etc., while bringing all relevant information, such as specifications and datasheets, into a single, easily accessible space.

Antenna Integrator, on the other hand, presents the user with a simple graphical interface, enabling the user to specify PCB dimensions and supporting the ideal placement of the chosen antennae on the board (see figure). The tool fully automates the process of antennae placement and produces a report predicting system performance based on the input design.

Taoglas Antenna Integrator presents the user with a simple graphical interface — Antenna Integrator presents the user with a simple graphical interface, enabling the user to specify PCB dimensions and supporting the ideal placement of the chosen antennae on the board.

The user interface of these tools is relatively simple, but having the developer make the necessary decisions without access to specialist RF knowledge can be tricky, since the underlying enabling technology is much more complex. Online tools such as AntennaXpert make it possible for users to leverage the experience and resources of the antenna manufacturers without investing in specialist skills, RF test equipment, or computing infrastructure.

For applications that require custom-designed, as opposed to OTS, antennae, the developer has the option of working closely with the antenna manufacturer to leverage their resources and capabilities or acquiring them in-house. The decision will ultimately be based on a range of factors, including existing capabilities, production volumes, and the strategic aims of the organization.

Choose the Right Toolset for the Application

Online tools combined with OTS devices are transforming antenna design, offering the designer a palette of functionality and complexity. At one end of the scale, the developer can leverage tools that enable selection, configuration, and optimization of OTS antennae, reducing development cycles and accelerating time to market while avoiding the need to consult or employ expensive RF design resources.

At the other end of the spectrum, sophisticated AI-enabled tools support advanced simulations and RF design iterations, leading to new and custom antennae design. Security is a key concern, particularly for developers of military systems. Many providers of antennae and online toolsets provide manufacturing, design, and support environments that comply fully with relevant military standards. Developers must carefully assess the needs of their specific project and the capabilities of their organization when choosing the right tool for their requirements.