Augusta SPace InteRlacEd antenna (ASPIRE)

The market of In-Flight Connectivity (IFC) is growing quickly because it enables aeroplanes to provide an internet connection so that passengers can go online during the flight. The key component of an IFC satcom terminal is the antenna. It has to be installed on the top of the airplane fuselage, following clear aeronautical requirements. The design also has to be flexible because service providers have very heterogeneous needs.

The aim of this project is to design an aeronautical antenna for all IFC providers and for all types of airplanes (from airlines to business jet), for a new high-performance type of in-flight connectivity: the Augusta Space Interlaced antenna (Aspire). This antenna can be installed on any type of airplane and flexibly operate with different satellite providers to always have the best service. It is the first exclusive and smallest, real multi-beam, multi-frequency, and multi-orbit antenna on the market, and could also be used on small satellites or for other satcom terminals (e.g. automotive, IoT).

Benefits:

• The ASPIRE antenna is flat, electronically steered, and has an efficiency beyond state of the art.
• Modular and flexible design and offers different degrees of trade-off between complexity and performance.
• Supports 2 parallel beams (thus providing higher throughputs than existing antennas on the market), and can operate them in Ku-band and/or in Ka-band.