Design of Life-jacket Integrated Multiband Antenna for Rescuing Distressed People

Abstract

: In this paper, we suggest a flexible multiband antenna which can be equipped on an inflatable life-jacket. The antenna can send distress alert and location data of survivors to assist rescue operation when crew or people are in distress. The antenna operate in three frequency bands such as VHF-DSC band (156MHz), COSPAS-SARSAT band (406MHz) and GPS band (1,575MHz). The GPS band is implemented with a square ring-slot planar antenna, the COSPAS-SARSAT band and the VHF-DSC band antenna is implemented by monopole type. In order to give flexibility of substrate to be equipped on life-jacket, FR4-epoxy substrate of thickness 0. 2mm is used to make antenna. The reflection coefficients of the fabricated antenna are -8. 8dB, -20. 4dB and -10. 7dB at each bandwidth like VHF-DSC, COSPAS-SARSAT and GPS band, respectively, when people are wearing life-jacket integrated multiband antenna.