| Over the years the vibrations in the aircraft, thermal shock, and general wear and tear have taken their toll on the electrical wiring of military and commercial aircraft. The miles of wiring in an aircraft are not easy to check for faults manually. The Frequency Domain Reflectometer (FDR) developed at Utah State University aims at detecting and locating small frays and arcs in such wires. This thesis explores the design of a microstrip patch antenna that can transmit the data, collected by the FDR, to a central processor on the aircraft. Steps leading to the chosen antenna design are detailed. A prototype antenna, built using this design, is discussed. Finally, a practical feeding technique for the antenna is also investigated. |
