Abstract
This paper presents the performance evaluation of a sleeve Balun integration in the design of a flexible loop antenna for wildlife health monitoring and tracking applications. To verify the design concept, an experimental antenna is designed, fabricated, and measured in free-space and muscle mimicking phantom. Moreover, investigations are carried out for wearable and implanted antennas in planar and conformal arrangements. In free-space, the antenna is operating within the industrial, scientific, and medical ISM 5.8 GHz band. Balun integration in the antenna design efficiently chokes the currents excited on the outer surface of the feeding cable and provides a good impedance match between antenna and feed line, as demonstrated by simulation and measurement results. On the other hand, in phantom, the antenna has a wide bandwidth characteristic that covers the most used frequency bands for in-body devices. Balun integration, in this case, showed a negligible effect on antenna’s matching properties for two studied implantation depths; 2.5 cm and 5 cm. The proposed study offers a promising guideline in the design and realization of wearable and implanted antennas.
Highlights
DEVELOPMENT of modern wireless communication systems is of great importance, especially with the witnessed technological revolution
These technologies have successfully been used for animals’ health monitoring and tracking of different species such as measuring canine vital signs [2], detecting the presence of viruses and pathogens in the poultry industry [3], tracking birds [4] and bats [5], and pregnancy detection in cows by monitoring temperature changes in the body [6]. Advantages of using these technologies for animals can be seen through providing a timely diagnosis of diseases in animals, eventually decreasing economic losses, prevention of road-side accidents, understanding complex biological processes such as social interactions and migration, and prevention illegal hunting of endangered species [7]-[8]. Efficiency of such technologies depends on the radio frequency front ends which are highly required with enhanced performance in convenience, low cost, and compact size [9]
The flexible antenna that is proposed in this paper features lightweight and compact size (2.5 mm3) that can be integrated with a radio frequency (RF) tag for tracking small animals such as small birds, mammals, or even insects
Summary
DEVELOPMENT of modern wireless communication systems is of great importance, especially with the witnessed technological revolution. Satisfy different demands for continuous, convenient, and flexible access to up-to-date information [1] These technologies have successfully been used for animals’ health monitoring and tracking of different species such as measuring canine vital signs [2], detecting the presence of viruses and pathogens in the poultry industry [3], tracking birds [4] and bats [5], and pregnancy detection in cows by monitoring temperature changes in the body [6]. The flexible antenna that is proposed in this paper features lightweight and compact size (2.5 mm3) that can be integrated with a radio frequency (RF) tag for tracking small animals such as small birds, mammals, or even insects It can be implanted and used for animal’s health monitoring applications. All the simulations were conducted using CST Microwave Studio (MWS) [15]
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