Abstract
This paper is aimed at designing a locally fabricated fiberglass parabolic antenna as a replacement for a metallic fabricated parabolic antenna. They are coated with a thin film of aluminum dust to enhance reflectivity since electromagnetic radiations do not travel deep in a conductor. This reduces the thick mass of metal usually used for constructing metallic parabolic antenna leading to a reduced cost of production. It incorporates a Low Noise Block (LNB) Converter comprising of amplifiers and frequency down converter. Metallic parabolic antenna contributes more to signal loss by reflecting radio waves. The Parabolic antenna is designed to receive microwave signals in the K-band with the down converter converting it to very high frequency (VHF) and ultra-high frequency (UHF) employing the super-heterodyning principle. The study shows the design and installation of a low-cost parabolic antenna in the rural community in Nigeria. The designed parabolic antenna is used to receive a signal with the center frequency of 11.3GHz and signal strength of 60%. The economic viability is that fiber-glass Parabolic antenna can replace the metallic fabricated ones.
Highlights
Antennas have played and will continue to play a great role in communication for transmission and reception of radio signals
A cheaper antenna that meets the need of developing nation is explored through the development of a fiberglass parabolic antenna
The cost of importing parabolic dish antenna into a developing nation like Nigeria is very prohibitive and as the nation migrates to digital broadcasting, an alternative means of massproducing parabolic dish antenna is inevitable
Summary
Antennas have played and will continue to play a great role in communication for transmission and reception of radio signals. According to Morozov et al, (2018) parabolic antenna has high directivity with a narrow beam width. This has placed it more advantageous with higher gain compared to other forms of antennas. The use of antennas has spread from communication purposes to space exploration [2]. 2018 investigate the possibility of using an antenna to explore other galaxies. The possibility of using a parabolic reflector in their paper is quite promising [3]. 2015 presented a low-cost microstrip planar antenna for use in a communication system [4]. Their work suffers from the fact that their antenna is low power and cannot transmit over a large distance. Papageorgiou, 2012 discusses the use of parabolic reflectors and others at the upper end of the microwave region with a higher bandwidth and data rate [5]
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