Flexible Direct-Write Printed RF Sensor for RF Ice Sensing

Shi, Junjie and Wagih, Mahmoud (2021) Flexible Direct-Write Printed RF Sensor for RF Ice Sensing. In 2021 IEEE International Conference on Flexible and Printable Sensors and Systems (FLEPS). IEEE.. (doi:10.1109/FLEPS51544.2021.9469841).

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

Build up of ice can cause major issues in many urban infrastructures if not properly detected and addressed. Existing ice detection systems have many limitations in their application and are highly complex, limiting their scalability in future smart cities. In this paper, we introduce an RF antenna-based sensor, utilizing a flexible dispenser printed loop antenna for ice detection. Once the antenna is covered by ice, the resonance frequency of the antenna significantly decreases, a response which can be detected through the antenna’s reflection coefficient S 11 and wirelessly through the realized gain. The simulated and measured S 11 indicate a frequency shift of about 700 MHz from 2.46 GHz for 9 mm thickness ice. Using the RF loop antenna, thick ice formation as an overlying layer translates to a variation in the channel gain, where the degradation in the antenna’s gain is dependent on the ice thickness, enabling "over the air" wireless detection. Based on the performance of the proposed antenna, printed RF sensing is a promising method for wireless ice detection in future smart cities.

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FLEPS21_IceSensing - Accepted Manuscript

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