Pattern reconfigurable antenna with wide angle coverage.

A novel pattern reconfigurable patch antenna with a microstrip configuration is proposed. The antenna consists of a disc patch, a ring and eight radially symmetrically distributed microstrip monopoles. The patterns are reconfigured by shifting the states of the eight switches and eight reconfigurable states are available. Each conical pattern around the broadside of the antenna has a wide beam width in the azimuth plane and the eight reconfigurable patterns can cover continuously the space in the horizontal plane. The performance is very advantageous for smart antenna applications on future mobile terminals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]