Cell phones to gain extra
antenna
By Lori Kohls
Staff Writer
For the same reason humans and most animals evolved
to have two ears rather than one, cell phones will evolve to have two
antennas in the future.
This extra "smart antenna" is the underlying concept
of Purdue researcher Michael Zoltowski's life work.
Zoltowski, of the materials engineering department,
began working with the double-antenna technology in regard to radar
and surveillance but recently has applied it to cell phones to make
them function better and have more efficient wireless Web services.
The revolving air traffic control towers are a thing of the past due
to a second antenna that can assist the first in determining which frequency
is important.
Interference during cell phone conversations is
a common nuisance, but with a rapidly expanding number of people downloading
wirelessly, it could easily become a much bigger problem. The problem
with cell phones now is that the bandwidth is tiny and too many people
are at the same place, which causes interference.
The second antenna will do the same thing for the
cell phone as the air traffic control tower; it will help to discriminate
between different bandwidths based on the direction they're coming from.
It should not only reduce interference but also help in smoother "handoffs"
from one cell to another.
"The second antenna will allow for more people
to use the same band at the same time," said Zoltowski. "Similar to
how our two ears tell us where a sound is coming from without turning
our heads, the antenna will be able to differentiate between the different
bands."
Not only will more people be able to use their
phones simultaneously, but users will also have quicker access to the
Internet outside of the office.
"People want to be able to work on the move, while
they're commuting, especially in the cities," said Zoltowski.
The second antenna will make wireless Web on laptop
computers available within the next year. Integrating the second antenna
into cell phones may take longer partly because of fashion concerns,
even though it is not a traditional whip antenna, but a small patch.
"People like small things," said Zoltowski, "and
the circuitry involved with adding a second antenna will make the phone
bigger."
There are also problems concerning the down-turned
economy and the fact that people are used to getting free cell phones,
which makes researchers wonder if people will be willing to pay for
this.
Samina Chowdhury, a graduate student at Purdue,
has been working on this research with Zoltowski for two years. In order
to develop this technology, she mainly used simulation programs in Matlab.
Although Chowdhury said "there was no 'Eureka'
moment" in her research, being able to prove that the second antenna
is better than one, even at high speeds, was exciting for her.
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