REARMOUNTED FORWARD-LOOKING RADIO FREQUENCY ANTENNA FOR PROJECTILES

A new radio frequency antenna which is mounted on the rear of the nose cone of a projectile which generates a forward-looking radiation pattern is provided. The antenna comprises the hollow metal nose cone of the projectile with a flat metal base attached. This is electromagnetically excited by an RF source connected to a hollow metal L-shaped cylindrical tube having a wire coaxially extended therethrough. One end of the wire is connected to the radio frequency source along with the hollow tube. The other end of the wire is connected to another similarly shaped solid metal L-shaped cylindrical rod wherein both said L-shaped rod and said L-shaped tube form a U-shaped structure wherein the end faces of said structure are attached to the nose cone. The wire extending through said hollow tube is surrounded by dielectric material and is isolated from said tube throughout. The wire extending through the tube extends beyond the tube and attaches to the rod in such a fashion as to form a gap between the end face of said tube and the end face of said rod. The radio frequency source is attached to the coaxial wire-tube assembly by means of a standard RF connector.