Directional Antenna Alignment Control System

The goal of the project is to create a control system that can be used to automatically align a directional antenna mounted on a barge to an on-shore omnidirectional antenna. This system will use GPS coordinates of the bow and stern of the barge to determine the directional antenna's position as well as the coordinate of the on-shore antenna to determine the angle of alignment that the system will need to output.

=Problem Definition= The U.S Navy Acoustic Research Detachment has been conducting research on a barge and transmitting the recorded data to an on-shore omnidirectional antenna. Their transmitting antenna is not automatically aligned to the receiving antenna on the shore. Thus, those on the barge must go up to the antenna and manually redirect it every time the barge moves to a new location. This process wastes time that could have been spent researching as well as wastes energy of those that must redirect the antenna. This wastes time and energy of personnel as well as delays research. Utilizing a control system that automatically aligns the transmitting antenna to the onshore antenna could significantly reduce waiting time. We will be creating a control system that will align the antenna within 30 seconds the moment the system is powered. Additionally, the system will have an on/off switch so that those on the barge will not have to go up to the antenna to power the system, further increasing the convenience of aligning the antenna. Along with our control system being a more energy efficient approach, the precision of the antenna will also improve, as it can be adjusted more regularly. The antenna adjustment will also be a mechanical output of a calculated digital input position, which will be more precise than any human eye.

Deliverables
The objective of this project is to create a working finalized product that can be mounted and implemented atop the barge. The system will also be made so that maintenance and upkeep is fairly easy to conduct.

9. Schedule Requirements
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Project Schedule



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