New amplifier developed for vehicle testing

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August 2003 Maintenance, Test & Measurement, Calibration

TMD Technologies (TMD), represented locally by OEN Enterprises, has supplied PTC6468 high power, L band pulse amplifiers to the Swedish National Testing and Research Institute (SP) for testing the immunity of vehicles to radar transmitters, such as those used in air traffic control (ATC) operating just above 1 GHz.

The new PTC6468 is the result of a demanding amplifier specification from SP, requiring L band frequency radiation at particularly high field strengths. Developed in only six months, the new PTC6468 operates from 1,1 to 1,5 GHz at 20 kW minimum, with typically 24 kW at the band edges and 35 kW mid-band.

The amplifier comprises a high power L band TWT, a switched mode power supply that is a re-engineered version of TMD's standard 50 kW radar power supply and control circuitry. The unit is liquid cooled, using water with anti-freeze and anti-corrosion additives. Control is via a digital front panel, but operation would normally be carried out remotely via the IEEE interface.

Development of the PTC6468 represents a considerable departure from TMD's standard range of amplifiers covering 1 to 18 GHz at 2 kW pulsed or 250 W CW and 18 to 40 GHz at 40 W CW. As with all TMD instrumentation amplifiers, the technology used is based on that developed for the company's military radar subsystems offering particular advantages of high performance and reliability.

Jan Welinder from the Swedish National Testing and Research Institute said, "The modern car is now controlled as much by computer electronics as by the driver. Electromagnetic fields from several different sources are one of the threats that a car has to be immune to, but radar transmitters, although not common, generate the strongest fields of all."

There is, therefore, a growing need to test the immunity of vehicles from radar radiation. A wide frequency range with particularly high field strengths is required from equipment that can simulate all the very many radar installations in use worldwide. However, the greatest challenge is with radars operating just above 1 GHz with particularly high output, as employed by ATC. The company approached TMD to supply an amplifier specifically designed to simulate the radiation from these radars. With the development of the PTC6468 the company has met the challenge admirably and delivered in record time.

For more information contact Paddy Hanson, OEN Enterprises, 011 675 4447, [email protected], www.oenenterprises.co.za

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Maintenance, Test & Measurement, Calibration

New amplifier developed for vehicle testing

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