ITKG Press Release which should have an impact on the future of IASCA....
Tuesday June 23, 3:59 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: Integral Technologies, Inc.
Integral's New CDMA PCS Antenna Passes Rigorous Examination By
Premier U.S. Testing Facility
SAN DIEGO, June 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Integral Technologies, Inc. (''ITI'') announces the successful independent testing of
its revolutionary new CDMA PCS antenna in cooperation with General Atomics (www.ga.com), a San Diego, California,
based research and development firm. The tests were conducted in conjunction with General Atomics' ongoing research into
digital CDMA-based telecommunications technology executed by a General Atomics contractor, Composite Optics, Inc.
(www.coi-world.com).
This new cellular telephone antenna will provide superior ease of use, cost, and performance for the fastest growing segment of
the multibillion dollar mobile telecommunications industry, as well as for other antenna applications requiring small size and
enhanced performance. The antennas tested were developed for Integral Technologies by its subsidiary, Emergent
Technologies Corporation. Based on the company's pioneering research into the patented contrawound toroidal helical antenna
(CTHA), this new antenna project represents an evolutionary step forward in lightweight, extremely compact,
high-performance mobile antennas that can be mounted directly on printed circuit boards providing superior cost factors for
mass production.
In initial head-to-head tests, the new antenna was up to 800% more sensitive than the factory-installed, conventional antenna
when pointed directly toward or away from the base station, as is often the case with mobile users, and on average was equal
or superior in performance in all other positions. This increased performance would result in improved reception under varying
conditions, as well as a more efficient use of the power provided by the rechargeable batteries in mobile devices.
The tests were performed under the sponsorship of General Atomics at the Composite Optics, Inc. anechoic chamber in
Rancho Bernardo, California. This is the same facility in which much of the ''stealth'' radar avoidance technology was tested
and produced. General Atomics' Telecommunications Group has developed a rapid deployment, airborne Code Division
Multiple Access (''CDMA'') platform for military and civilian applications.
Based on these initial test results, the new antennae are almost perfectly omnidirectional around the azimuth (+/- 0.5 dBm),
compared to +/- 1 dBm for the factory antenna. The antenna exhibited an omnidirectional pattern through the elevations, +/-
2.5 dBm, which was markedly better than the factory-installed antenna, which measured +/- 7 dBm. The Integral antenna
showed a 41% lower Frame Error Rate than the factory-installed antenna, which is an indicator of superior signal quality.
''Our new design is clearly superior for mobile applications due to its near-isotrophic radiation pattern and very small size,'' said
Mark Williams, CEO and President of Integral Technologies. ''The antenna performed much better than the conventional
antenna when pointed at or away from the base station; it showed a 12 dBm improvement over the factory-installed monopole,
which translates into an 800% improvement in gain. We are looking forward to the flight tests later this week.''
The CTHA is an electrically small, omnidirectional antenna which is typically about 1/60th the size of a conventional dipole for
the same frequency. The Integral CTHA CDMA antennae are roughly the size of a nickel -- a 5 cent coin. The small size is a
significant factor for space-conscious mobile radio design engineers. The antenna can be embedded into cellphones and other
mobile communications equipment. There is nothing to pull-up and nothing to break off. The near-isotrophic radiation pattern
improves overall performance for mobile users because the cellular phone will work well in any position -- up, down, or
sideways.
''Upcoming matching network improvements should increase gain even further. In short, the combination of small size and big
performance makes the design very attractive for mobile systems designers,'' said Williams.
The tests were conducted on June 10, 1998, by Composite Optics, Inc. at its anechoic chamber in Rancho Bernardo,
California, one of the largest anechoic chambers in the USA. The tests were observed by technical staff and executives of
General Atomics, Integral Technologies, and Emergent Technologies. Test equipment included a Hewlett-Packard HP8924C
CDMA base station simulator and new Samsung SCH1000 and Sony CM-D600S CDMA PCS handsets. Data in this press
release was produced with the factory-installed antenna in its fully-extended position; in the fully-retracted position, the
factory-installed antenna performance dropped 1 to 12 dBm, depending on the angle to the base station. Flight tests using the
new Integral antenna are scheduled for later this week.
General Atomics is a high-tech engineering firm specializing in nuclear reactors, airborne payload systems, and airborne
communications systems. The General Atomics project involves an airborne CDMA system which can provide digital PCS
cellular coverage over large cities and rural areas at a fraction the cost of terrestrial-based systems. The General Atomics
system utilizes off-the-shelf customer handsets which are available from numerous vendors. General Atomics is particularly
interested in Integral's CTHA CDMA antennas because of their superior omnidirectionality, which is especially important when
communicating with a moving airborne base station.
The Composite Optics, Inc. anechoic chamber in San Diego is famous not only for its mammoth size but also for the consistent,
exacting quality of work performed there. Integral's management was impressed by the facilities, the equipment, and by the
competency of the technical staff and management who are clearly on top of the RF game. Integral anticipates working with
them in the coming months on other new antenna designs.
Integral Technologies is in the business of developing, manufacturing, and selling a variety of new technologies including antenna
systems, plasma ignition devices with a variety of industrial and automotive applications, and 2D and 3D imaging systems for
quality control and counterfeit detection. Through its subsidiary, Emergent Technologies Corporation, the company holds a
license on base patents from West Virginia University, and is continuing its own proprietary research. Integral is developing
CTHA solutions at a variety of frequencies, including HF, VHF, UHF, AMPS, narrow band PCS, GPS, PCS, and wireless
LAN.
SOURCE: Integral Technologies, Inc. |
