Southwest Antennas Releases New Rugged Omni-Directional Antennas

Southwest Antennas, an industry leader in innovative rugged antenna products, has released a new line of omni-directional antenna solutions designed specifically for existing and upcoming JTRS military radio waveform standards that utilise the UHF, L, and S Bands, such as the Wideband Networking Waveform (WNW) and Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW).

Designed for use on handheld or manpack radio systems, these antennas are focused on the band-specific needs of current warfighters and are fully compatible with deployed radio units currently in use, in addition to new radio systems under development. As radio waveforms are upgraded to add system features in the coming years, these antennas can continue to be utilised on existing radio systems without issue.

Southwest Antennas products are built to stand up to adverse outdoor operating environments anywhere in the world, featuring rugged flat black radomes and non-rotating TNC(m) radio frequency (RF) connectors, along with a choice of integrated RF coaxial gooseneck or Ultra-Flex sealed spring base. Once mated to a radio’s RF connector, these antennas are waterproof to resist rain, mud, sand, and salt water while operating in extreme environments.

To improve antenna performance and operator usability, these antennas feature rugged cylindrical fibreglass radomes that are only .562in OD. The cylinder shape provides the antenna additional strength and eliminating issues where ‘paddle’ shaped antennas don’t lie flat against the operator’s kit. This mechanical design coupled with proprietary antenna tuning technique ensures excellent performance across the broadband and improved antenna efficiency.

These new antennas cover the following frequency bands and form factors:

• Part # 1001-148: Omni Antenna, Half Wave Dipole, 700MHz to 970MHz, 2.07dBi, Integrated Sealed Waterproof RF Coaxial Gooseneck (long-range voice and data applications)
• Part # 1001-149: Omni Antenna, Half Wave Dipole, 1,250MHz to 1,850MHz, 2.05dBi, Integrated Sealed Waterproof RF Coaxial Gooseneck (voice and data applications, Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW))
• Part # 1001-150: Omni Antenna, Half Wave Dipole, 1,850MHz to 2,600MHz, 2.45dBi, Integrated Sealed Waterproof RF Coaxial Gooseneck (voice, video, and data applications, Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW), Wideband Networking Waveform (WNW), and Law Enforcement L-Band future compatibility)
• Part # 1001-152: Omni Antenna, Half Wave Dipole, 1,250MHz to 1,850MHz, 2.05dBi, Integrated Sealed Waterproof RF Gooseneck (Internal GPS Notch Filter to help eliminate out-of-band TX noise power from GPS frequency band (1,575.42MHz to ±10.23MHz), which can cause loss of GPS signal. voice and data applications, Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW))
• Part # 1001-154: Ultra-Flex Omni Antenna, Half Wave Dipole, 1,250MHz to 1,850MHz, 2.05dBi, Sealed Ultra-Flex Waterproof Spring Base (voice and data applications, Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW))

Other RF connector options are also available, including Type-N(m), RP-TNC(m), SMA(m), and others. Contact Southwest Antennas to discuss your connector requirements.

Additionally, Southwest Antennas manufactures rugged low-loss magnetic mount solutions for military radio systems operating from DC – 3.0GHz (and above). Our magnetic mount kits give operators the flexibility of rapid antenna deployment in the field, with the ability to quickly reposition or remove the antenna and mount as field conditions change. The integrated magnetic base can be securely attached to most ferromagnetic metal surfaces, including vehicles, tables, posts, pillars, or other flat surfaces. A field-replaceable black neoprene cover prevents the magnetic base from damaging painted surfaces.

These products are available now from Southwest Antennas, authorised sales representatives, and distributors.