This project relies on the results achieved in several previous projects funded by different Spanish ministries. As a consequence, a sound background was achieved in the following areas:
METASURFACES
The research group TSC-UNIOVI has been working on metasurfaces and related topics since 2008. During these years, the group has developed a number of solutions for different applications in the following fields:
- RFID tags for metallic surfaces
- Reduction of the profile of antennas
- RCS reduction
The previous solutions have been implemented at multiple bands including 1 GHz, SHF band (2.45GHz and 5.8 GHz) and C band. Moreover, some of these results have been developed using flexible substrastes in order to account for moderate bending. A summary of the main results is shown in the next video:
ELECTROMAGNETIC IMAGING
Electromagnetic imaging with portable devices has been in-depth study in the project PORTEMVISION. As a result of the previous project, a number of techniques were developed to implement a mutiview scanner. This kind of techniques relies on a small, and therefore portable, scanner, which is aware of its position by means of computer vision techniques. The developed approaches enable to combine the different measurement that can be taken on-the-fly (e.g., by moving the scanner with your own hands) rendering high resolution mm-wave images.
These techniques were successfully validated in collaboration with the Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) Microwave Camera. The main results are summarized in this paper as well as in the next video:
ANTENNA CHARACTERIZATION
The research group has developed an intensive research activity on antenna measurements since it was stablished in 2001. In the context of this project, it is interesting to note that the group has been pioneering multiple techniques for phaseless measurements, which are extremmly useful for in-situ characterization of antennas. A complete summary of this technique can be found in our book chapter for IET.
In addition, the group pioneers several systems and methods for the analysis of antennas using UAVs. This kind of techniques are a valuable assess to check the status of antennas working at relatively low frequencies such as the subsix frequency bands of 5G. Our projects aims developing novel techniques for high frequecies (e.g., mm-wave bands) in order to be able to check the correct working of systems such as 5G femtocells. The following infographic compares both approaches.
You can also find more information about the background on UAVs for antenna measurements in the following video.
E-HEALTH
In regard to the potential outcomes of the project such as e-health, it is also interestint to note that the research group has also a relevant background on contactless, RFID-based systems for management and tracking of medical assets and medicines, as shown in the following video: