An IoT antenna is a crucial component that allows IoT devices to communicate wirelessly by transmitting radio waves. As applications are increasingly turning to wireless connectivity, antenna design is critical in determining whether the device will operate properly or not. The growth of wireless IoT devices has meant that high-performance, ultra-compact antennas have become an expectation, which sometimes can be a puzzle for design engineers to work out, in balancing both.
It goes without saying that antenna design is impacted by the final application, wireless protocols, technical constraints and global regulation. For devices that will be used for close-range purposes, for example, using a protocol such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi might be more suitable; while smart cities or smart agriculture which is happening over a large space, could use LPWAN technologies such as NB-IoT, Sigfox or LoRaWAN.
Design engineers need to take into account global regulations which vary depending on the country and application. These regulations affect different aspects of antenna design from frequency allocation and power levels to emissions standards and certification processes. Understanding these regulations is essential to ensure compliance and avoid costly redesigns.
In the US, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is responsible for setting standards, while this is the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) in Europe and the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) in Japan. To enter global markets, IoT devices and antennas have to undergo rigorous testing and certification processes to demonstrate their compliance.
Trends that are currently influencing antenna design and giving engineers something to think about include the miniaturisation of devices; multi-band and wideband operation; increased connectivity and data rates; and achieving energy efficiency and low power consumption.
Device miniaturisation
As IoT devices become smaller, they have driven the requirement for miniaturised antennas that are able to be integrated while maintaining high performance.
Engineers are using advanced materials and novel antenna configurations to achieve miniaturisation without compromising efficiency. Techniques such as using high-permittivity substrates, embedding antennas into device PCBs, and employing meander line and PIFA (Planar Inverted-F Antenna) designs are common. These approaches allow antennas to fit within smaller spaces while maintaining necessary performance parameters.
Multi-band and wideband operation
Some devices need to be able to operate across multiple frequency brands. To address this, engineers are developing multi-band and wideband antennas that can operate efficiently over a range of frequencies. This includes designing antennas with flexible frequency tuning capabilities and employing advanced simulation tools to optimise performance across the desired bands. The use of fractal and reconfigurable antenna designs is also becoming more popular, allowing a single antenna to adapt to different frequency requirements dynamically.
Increased connectivity and data rates
Demand for higher data rates and more reliable connectivity is growing, which is driven by consumers streaming content, companies using video surveillance and industrial automation.
The response has been to improve antenna designs to support advanced modulation schemes and MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) technologies, which increase data throughput and reliability. High-gain directional antennas are being used to focus signal energy and improve link quality.
Additionally, the adoption of millimetre-wave (mmWave) frequencies, particularly for applications like 5G, requires antenna designs capable of handling these high frequencies with minimal loss.
Achieving efficiency and low power consumption
Many devices, particularly those that are battery-powered and deployed in remote locations such as for environmental monitoring purposes or utility management, require antennas that are conscious of energy usage and power consumption.
Engineers are focusing on designing antennas with high radiation efficiency and low power consumption. This involves optimising antenna impedance matching to reduce energy losses and using energy-harvesting techniques to power IoT devices using ambient RF energy. Low-power communication protocols such as LoRa and Sigfox are also influencing antenna design, requiring efficient operation at specific low-power frequencies.
These trends are driving innovation in antenna design to support a growing number of applications that are relying on wireless IoT devices capable of communicating – whether this is for collecting and sending data on water pollutants or sensing equipment in a factory for predictive maintenance purposes, addressing these trends while maintaining performance cannot be stressed enough.
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