STK Antenna Models

Use the Basic Definition page for a receiver, transmitter, radar, or antenna object to select an antenna model type from the Component Browser and then define and orient the type selected. All types of radars and some types of receivers and transmitters can also link to an antenna object, rather than embed their own individual copy. (For information on how to link to an antenna that resides on a sensor, click here).

Free interactive tutorials that may help you better understand antenna properties are available at http://www.analyzemath.com/antennas.html.

Embedded Antenna

When you select an embedded antenna component, the component definition is copied into the transmitter, receiver, or radar object. Additional changes that you make to the transmitter, receiver, or radar object will not affect the original component.

Linked Antenna

When you select a linked antenna object, the antenna definition is available only for viewing with the transmitter, receiver, or radar object. To modify the linked antenna's properties, double-click it in the Object Browser to access its property pages. Any modifications that you make will affect all transmitter, receiver, and radar objects that are linked to the antenna object.

If you are repeatedly modeling and modifying the same physical antenna, use a linked antenna object to save keystrokes and reduce input errors.

Linking to an Antenna that Resides on a Sensor

In order to model actual, real-world configurations as closely as possible, STK anticipates that the antenna object will be placed on the sensor, so it can inherit sensor properties such as location and pointing. On the other hand, radar, receiver, or transmitter objects that link to this antenna must reside on the sensor's parent object, not on the sensor itself. It is helpful in this context, to think of the sensor as the gimbal for the antenna, while radar, receiver, or transmitter merely represent electronic components that do not require pointing and whose location does not affect RF properties. While STK allows a radar, receiver, or transmitter object to be placed directly on a sensor, the use of embedded antennas is the only available option in this case.