The relation between the radiation pattern and the dimension of the conducting box for a portable telephone is illustrated both theoretically and experimentally. The Galerkin-moment method using the Fourier series expansion for the surface current of the conducting box, which has a great advantage of having a high accuracy, is employed to obtain the radiation pattern. As an example of antennas, a quarter-wavelength monopole antenna having a sinusoidal current distribution is used. As a result, it is pointed out that the radiation pattern of a monopole antenna mounted on the box tends to tilt in a lower direction both in theory and in experiment as well. The relation between the radiation pattern and the location of the monopole antenna is also described. An asymmetrical, or distorted pattern is observed when the monopole antenna moves away from the center of the top plane.

A rectenna element applicable to Stratosphere Radio Relay System was proposed and a fundamental microwave power transmission experiment was carried out at 2.45GHz using a rectenna array manufactured based on the proposal. The rectenna element consists of a circular microstrip patch and a rectifying circuit of novel balanced-type design. The circuit allows to mount a rectifier and circuit components just on one side of a substrate without through holes, and hence it must be easy to manufacture a rectenna even having a large aperture. It was verified by a preliminary experiment that the rectifying circuit can provide more than 1 W of DC output power using 8 Shottky diodes as a rectifier with microwave-DC conversion efficiency of 67%. Then, DC output power of 4W was obtained from the 4-element rectenna array in the microwave power transmission experiment carried out in a radio anechoic chamber. The data showed a feasibility of practical application of the microwave power transmission technique.

The Satellite/Terrestrial Integrated mobile Communication System (STICS), which allows terrestrial mobile phones to communicate directly through a satellite, has been studied [1]. Satellites are unaffected by the seismic activity that causes terrestrial damage, and therefore, the STICS can be expected to be a measure that ensures emergency call connection. This paper first describes the basic characteristics of call blocking rates of terrestrial mobile phone systems in areas where non-functional base stations are geographically clustered, as investigated through computer simulations that showed an increased call blocking rate as the number of non-functional base stations increased. Further simulations showed that restricting the use of the satellite system for emergency calls only ensures the STICS's capacity to transmit emergency communications; however, these simulations also revealed a weakness in the low channel utilization rate of the satellite system [2]. Therefore, in this paper, we propose increasing the channel utilization rate with a priority channel framework that divides the satellite channels between priority channels for emergency calls and non-priority channels that can be available for emergency or general use. Simulations of this priority channel framework showed that it increased the satellite system's channel utilization rate, while continuing to ensure emergency call connection [3]. These simulations showed that the STICS with a priority channel framework can provide efficient channel utilization and still be expected to provide a valuable secondary measure to ensure emergency communications in areas with clustered non-functional base stations during large-scale disasters.

NICT has developed a test model of an optically controlled beam-forming network (OBF) for a future multiple-beam antenna. The OBF test model consists of an electro-optic converter unit, an OBF unit, and an optoelectronic converter unit. A Ka-band OBF test model was manufactured to demonstrate the OBF. Radiation patterns obtained from the measured OBF data confirmed agreement between the expected and calculated results. Communication tests of the bit error rate (BER) for the digital communication link were performed. The results confirmed the OBF had no serious degradation below 1 dB of Eb/N0 on BER performance at 110-8.

It is well known that satellite communications systems are effective and essential communication infrastructure for disaster relief. NICT sent researchers to Tsunami stricken area in March right after the Great East Japan Earthquake and provided broadband satellite communications link to support rescue activities. Through this experience, we learned many kinds of requirements of communications for such purposes. In this paper, we list up the requirements and report what kind of satellite communications technologies are needed, and research and development issues.

To increase the accuracy of a near field antenna measurement system, it is necessary to know radiation characteristics of a probe to detect near field data. Open ended waveguide used as a near field probe in our system was analyzed using Transmission Line Matrix (TLM) method which is a time domain electromagnetic solver. Validity of this analysis has been confirmed by comparison with experimental data and existing theoretical approximation. Frequency dependence of a complex reflection coefficient at the waveguide aperture has been derived and is shown to agree with measured values. The radiation pattern of the open ended waveguide with mounting structure is also calculated. Ripples on both the amplitude and phase patterns are correctly predicted by our simulation. This method can be applied to accurately model the effect of probe antennas to enhance the accuracy of near field antenna range.

Results of a DC motor driving test with a power sent by a microwave and extracted with a rectenna array are reported. No significant difference has been observed in the output DC power from the rectenna array between a motor load and a resistive load. Mechanical output could be extracted from the received microwave power with an efficiency of 26%.