TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER OPPORTUNITY: Novel Antenna Concept for CubeSat Platforms (GSC-TOPS-225)

NASA’s Technology Transfer Program solicits inquiries from companies interested in obtaining license rights to commercialize, manufacture and market the following technology. License rights may be issued on an exclusive or nonexclusive basis and may include specific fields of use. NASA provides no funding in conjunction with these potential licenses.THE TECHNOLOGY: Current Cubesat antenna technology requires packaging during the launch and deployment mechanisms during orbit. This packaging and deployment hardware adds extra volume, weight and complexity to a payload. Additionally, there is a risk of deployment mechanism failure. By integrating the antenna into the structure of a Cubesat, the need for extruding antennas, packaging considerations and deployment mechanism are eliminated. The resulting antenna has reduced weight and volume and increased dependability.The side walls and railing rods of a CubeSat are replaced by RF radiators that double as supporting structures. The RF

radiators are hollow railing rods with inner dimensions that function as a waveguide to carry RF energy at a desired frequency. Radiating slots are cut on two of the four sides of hollow tubes tube that are open to outside environment. Different operating frequency antennas may be placed at each of the Cubesats four corners. Thus the railing rods provide RF antenna functionality in addition to structurally supporting the CubeSat structure. While this technology was designed for Cubesats, it may be utilized in any technology that utilizes a structural frame. The advantages of this system are increased reliability due to the elimination of deployment mechanisms and decreased payloads. Higher frequency antennas with increased gain and directivity may be embedded into the rails. These higher frequencies are especially useful for remote sensing.To express interest in this opportunity, please submit a license application through NASA’s Automated Technology Licensing Application System (ATLAS) by visiting https://technology.nasa.gov/patent/GSC-TOPS-225If you have any questions, please e-mail NASA’s Technology Transfer Program at Agency-Patent-Licensing@mail.nasa.gov with the title of this Technology Transfer Opportunity as listed in this SAM.gov notice and your preferred contact information. For more information about licensing other NASA-developed technologies, please visit the NASA Technology Transfer Portal at https://technology.nasa.gov/These responses are provided to members of NASA’s Technology Transfer Program for the purpose of promoting public awareness of NASA-developed technology products, and conducting preliminary market research to determine public interest in and potential for future licensing opportunities. No follow-on procurement is expected to result from responses to this Notice.