Maxtena designs and manufactures advanced antenna solutions based on their patented Dynamic Aperture Technology TM (DAT). The companny’s antennas empower customers to develop unparalleled solutions for Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), Terrestrial and Satellite Machine-to-Machine (M2M), and Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) applications.
Easy Engineering: What are the main areas of activity of the company?
MAXTENA: Maxtena is working with large military and industrial equipment manufacturers around the world. This experience, which includes embedding the antennas to various products allows us to predict possible obstacles in the material and housing design, thus saving both budget and time needed to get to the final design.
E.E: What’s the news about new products?
MAXTENA: Maxtena, Inc. introduced a small, patented GNSS antenna for high precision and autonomous multi-frequency applications. The M9HCT-A-SMA antenna is a high accuracy, multi-frequency active helix GNSS antenna + L-band corrections services.
The design offers simultaneous GNSS reception on L1: GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Beidou, L2: GPS L2C, Galileo E5B and GLONASS L3OC and L5: GPS + L-band corrections in a rugged, compact and ultra-lightweight form factor. The antenna is a suited for high -precision applications and UAV markets where high performance and low weight are driving features in antenna selection.
The M9HCT-A-SMA active helix design features Maxtena’s patented compact and lightweight Helicore technology, providing pattern control, polarization purity and high efficiency in a very compact form factor. It is ground plane independent and offers low power consumption and minimal phase center variation over azimuth crafted for high precision applications. The antenna offers axial ratio ensuring multipath error is mitigated.
For the embedded version, Maxtena provides support for installation and integration of the embedded antenna to offer optimal antenna performance. Maxtena can embed the antenna in any housing, then tune the antenna to match their housing’s materials, electronics and space.
E.E: What are the ranges of products?
MAXTENA: We are engaged in designing, manufacturing, and marketing a comprehensive range of embedded, external and electronically steered phased array antenna solutions for GNSS (GPS, GLONASS, COMPASS, Galileo, Beidou), Iridium, Inmarsat and Thuraya Satellites and Terrestrial IOT (SigFox/LoRa/ISM), SATCOM and 5G LTE applications.
E.E: At what stage is the market where you are currently active?
MAXTENA: We are participating to several trade shows to promote the products we designed during the pandemic. There are less participants than in previous years, but we are happy to help events reopen and restart the trade show practice.
Some of our highlights would be AUVSI 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA and InterGeo in Hannover.
E.E: What can you tell us about market trends?
MAXTENA: Currently there are a lot of developments on the ISM bands, including Helium leading the charge. They represent a paradigm shift for decentralized wireless infrastructure and are building it with the help of people.
We already have a series of antennas working on 868 MHz up to 915 MHz dedicated to LoRa/SigFox/Helium base stations ready to work all over the world.
Besides that, there are several additional services launched by SatCom providers that have a higher data capacity and need antennas with better throughput. Antennas will enter an era where their performance will need to be superior to get the results promised by SatCom providers. This is where Maxtena shines and where we can help product developers.
E.E: What are the most innovative products marketed?
MAXTENA: Our patented Helicore™ technology is an advanced and extremely flexible platform for designing different antenna products where pattern, polarization purity, efficiency and size are the driving design parameters. All of our helix antennas use the Helicore™ technology.
DAT™ (Dynamic Aperture Technology) is an advanced platform designed for building a new generation of low cost user terminals that will enable higher data throughputs, stronger link integrity, and lower power consumption for aerial, maritime, and land mobile communications.
Our microstrip technology offers a truly optimized wireless system. We are pioneering the optimization of the mircrostrip antenna by using proper electromagnetic grounding schemes to optimize our solutions for the highest possible efficiency
E.E: What estimations do you have for 2022?
MAXTENA: 2022 will be a big year for IoT and satellite communication. There are more services being launched with higher data throughput and older antennas can’t keep up with the need.
Since the beginning of the year, we have doubled our portfolio and we’re ready to support our current and future clients with connectivity solutions that will be unmatched in performance and weight.