Antenova Ltd. has launched new surface-mounted designed antennas and modules for GNSS applications. The antenna is named Agosti with part number SR4G080 with a size of 9.0 x 5.8 x 1.7 mm that operates with great efficiency and needs less amount of space on printed circuit boards. Agosti is designed to integrate and synchronize with the other antennas on the same device. Most SMD use the surrounding area of the PCB around the antenna as a ground plane for radiation while Agosti requires small ground planes and operates on 40 x 20 mm, 70 x 25 mm, and 80 x 30 mm with an efficiency that can be suitable for small wearable devices, trackers, etc.
The on-board diagnostics and trackers use 4G/LTE with A-GPS for fallback. The Agosti antenna and Antenova’s Pharoah antenna (part number SR4L073) have been tested together, both requiring a very small ground plane. Both Antennas work close to each other in a very small device due to magnificent isolation quality without the 4G signal interfering with sensitive GNSS signals.
“Small SMD antennas such as Agosti are an exciting alternative to the common delicate ceramic patch antennas used in GNSS designs,” said Michael Castle, product marketing manager, Antenova. “This is not just because the SMD antennas are significantly smaller. It is also because they provide Omnidirectional performance.
“Patch antennas are typically 12 mm or 14 mm square, are heavier than SMD antennas, and need a much larger ground plane and keep-out area,” Castle said. “They also have to be placed in the center of a circuit board and only work well when they point at the sky. Antenova’s new generation of SMD antennas overcome all of these limitations and perform well regardless of position and orientation of the device.”
