A Russian university develops antennas for the Internet of Things based entirely on local components

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Specialists from the Petersburg State Electrotechnical University have created low-cost antennas for digital devices within the framework of the Internet of Things.

Lyubov Lyubina, Assistant Professor at the University’s Department of Theoretical Foundations of Radio Engineering, noted that the innovative communications systems are entirely based on Russian components and will help ensure the process of substituting imports with home-made products in this important area.

She said: “We have developed a number of prototypes of stereo antennas in the W band (75-100 GHz), which are expected to be used in the future in multi-subscriber systems, for example, in Internet of Things applications.” She added that the devices are distinguished from their existing counterparts by using cheap production techniques, as well as the availability of components locally.

She stated that large-scale production of communications devices is necessary in order to operate elements within a large Internet of Things system. In this regard, Russian manufacturers often rely on foreign-made devices, which creates risks for the operation of vital systems. Within the framework of the university's "Priority 2030" program, a group of university specialists designed and tested locally made devices.

The entire range of work on the design of the devices, as well as the modeling of their characteristics and assembly was carried out by engineers from the Department of Theoretical Fundamentals of Radio Engineering of the Petersburg State Electrotechnical University, and the PLANAR company from the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, a manufacturer of radio electronic equipment, was an industrial partner in working on the realization of the project. Home-made measuring systems were provided to test the antennas in different conditions. Tests conducted over a wide frequency range showed that the antennas are practically suitable for use in various fields, whether in industry or in the service sector. This innovation not only has practical importance in terms of replacing imports in industry, but also aims to solve an important scientific problem. As the volume of data transmitted in urban environments grows, new communications frequencies are mastered, especially in the 75-110 GHz range.

She added: “The abundance of signals in the complex urban environment leads to reflections and other problems that can only be solved by using more advanced antennas. In particular, the development presented by the university is more technologically advanced, compared to its counterparts, and the algorithms used are based on methods of manufacturing insulating metal structures.” In the future, these studies aim to design more advanced devices, not only in the field of the Internet of Things, but also in other fields of communications.”