New antenna design gets Northrop Grumman backing

RF experts at the Northrop Grumman Electronic Sensors and Systems Division in Linthicum, Md., are integrating the new Contrawound Toroidal Helical Antenna (CTHA) design in antenna systems for U.S. military customers. The CTHA, from the Emergent Technologies Corp. subsidiary of Integral Technologies Inc. of Morgantown, W.Va., consists of at least two helices wrapped around a doughnut-shaped core and fed from opposite directions. Under terms of a memorandum of understanding, Emergent engineers will provide for the design, development, and production of the CTHA, while Northrop Grumman experts will provide matching networks, physical integration, and assembly of the final units. Proponents claim the CTHA, which is applicable to communications and global positioning systems, can replace a 16-foot monopole or dipole antenna with a 2-inch doughnut-shaped device. The CTHA design is also receiving attention from the Naval Surface Warfare Center activity at Dam Neck Atlantic Fleet Combat Training Center in Virginia Beach, Va., and from the New York City Police Department. For more information, contact Integral`s Michael Pound by phone at 888-666-8833, or on the World Wide Web at http://www itechfin.com. - J.K.