Origami Fresnel Zone Plate Lens Reflector Antennas for Satellite Applications

This work presents a methodology for designing deployable reflector antennas that combine origami structures and the Fresnel zone plate lens to obtain a compact antenna structure. In particular, Miura and Yoshimura’s origami patterns have been considered for the design of the Fresnel reflector mirror and the conical horn antenna feeder, respectively. A set of memory-form alloy (MFA) actuators have been used to deploy the antenna. The MFA actuators are activated by a direct current aimed at increasing the temperature and activating the memorized shape. The combination of these techniques provides light, inexpensive, and very compact antennas, particularly suitable for satellite applications. A numerical and experimental assessment campaign has been carried out on antenna prototypes operating in the (Formula presented.) band at 15 GHz. The obtained experimental results are quite promising.