Microwave radio/antenna assemblies are typically mounted on rooftops or towers where space is a premium and maintenance is dangerous. Known microwave communication systems generally include a microwave radio integrated with a flat antenna to form a non-separable assembly. The maintenance cost of such integrated assemblies is generally high because the entire assembly had to be replaced upon failure of the radio. Even where the radio and flat antenna are detachable, it has been the practice to mount the radio to the supporting structure and to detachably mount the flat antenna to the radio. Failure of the radio required the detaching of the flat antenna from the radio, supporting the antenna while the radio is detached, replacing the radio and then reattaching the antenna. This procedure generally disturbs the orientation of the antenna in space requiring time consuming realignment.

It is known to protect radios, i. e. two radios are enclosed in a common enclosure with a RF combiner so that the radios operate respectively in a mutually exclusive active/stand-by mode. The larger size and increased weight of the protected radios only exacerbates the problems discussed above.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to obviate many of the above problems and to provide a novel system and method for mounting microwave radios and flat antennas.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel system and method for independently mounting microwave radios and flat antennas.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a novel system and method for removing a microwave radio from a radio and antenna assembly without disturbing the orientation of the flat antenna in space.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel system and method for detachably attaching microwave radios and flat antennas within a radio and antenna assembly.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel system and method for detachably attaching microwave radios and RF combiners to form a protected radio assembly.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a novel system and method for protecting communications within a microwave radio and flat antenna assembly.

These and many other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains from a perusal of the claims, the appended drawings, and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a pictorial representation of a prior art integrated radio and flat antenna.

Figure 2 is a partially exploded pictorial view of a flat antenna and radio supported by a common bracket.

Figure 3 is a partially exploded pictorial view of flat antenna and radio connected through an interface plate.

Figure 4 is a pictorial view of a split pole mount with the operative connection established through a flexible waveguide.

Figure 5 is an exploded pictorial view of a protected radio system and flat antenna operatively connected through an interface plate.

Figure 6 is a pictorial view of a split pole mounted protected radio system and flat antenna operatively connected through a flexible wave guide.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS With reference to the drawings where like numerals represent like components, and particularly to Figure 1, a prior art fully integrated microwave radio and flat antenna assembly 10 is depicted. Such assemblies are compact but suffer from the disadvantages discussed above. As shown in Figure 2, the flat antenna 12 may be individually packaged and attached to the supporting structure, in this instance a pole 14, by a suitable conventional bracket 16. In this way, the antenna may be oriented in space for communication with a desired node and the radio 18 attached to and supported by the antenna 12. Both the antenna 12 and the radio 18 may be provided with mating operational connectors such as illustrated at 20 and the attachment of the radio 18 to the antenna 12 may be by suitable conventional latches 22. Because the radio is mounted to the antenna, the radio may be detached from the antenna without disturbing the orientation of the antenna in space.

In the embodiment of the present invention depicted in Figure 3, the microwave radio 18 and the flat antenna 12 may both be detachably connected to an interface plate 24 on opposite sides thereof, the interface plate 24 being supported on the underlying support structure by any suitable conventional mounting bracket 26. In this embodiment, the operable connection between the radio 18 and the antenna 12 is made by connection of the components to the interface plate 24.

As shown in Figure 4, the separately housed radio 18 and antenna 12 made be individually mounted and operatively connected by a flexible wave guide 30. The ability to physically separate the radio 18 from the antenna 12 provides additional flexibility in mounting. For example, the less often accessed antenna may be located in a higher and less accessible location on the supporting structure and the more often accessed radio located in a more accessible location.

The radio 18 is unprotected, i. e. it has no back-up radio in a stand-by mode to become operable in the event of failure. Protected radios enclosed in a single housing are known, and a protected radio may be mounted in any of the ways illustrated for an unprotected radio. In addition, a protected radio system 50 may comprise an RF combiner 32 to which are connected unprotected radios 18. The protected radio system 50 may be directly connected to the antenna 12 with the antenna 12 supported by the supporting structure by a bracket 26 as shown in Figure 5. The RF combiner may be removed without disturbing the antenna as may the individual radios which comprise the protected radio system 50 leaving the other radio operational.

Alternatively, and as shown for example in Figure 6, the RF combiner 32 may be separately mounted from the antenna 12 in any suitable location such as exteriorly on a pole or interiorly in a conventional rack. In all cases, the operable connection is made through a flexible wave guide 30.

By mounting the RF combiner 32 and the flat antenna 12 on individual mounting brackets 26, either the microwave radio 18 or the flat antenna 12 may be removed and replaced without disturbing the other component. In this configuration the operative connection between the microwave radio 18 via the RF combiner 32 and the flat antenna 12 is through a flexible waveguide 30.

In one aspect, the present invention separates the microwave radio from the flat antenna, providing flexibility in mounting and facilitating replacement of the radio without disturbing the orientation of the antenna in space. This separation is also possible with protected radio systems and the operative connection may be made with a flexible waveguide.

Using interface plates increases the ease and convenience of maintaining a radio and antenna assembly with a separate radio and flat antenna. Both the microwave radio and the flat antenna may be configured to include an interface plate as the back of the microwave radio or flat antenna housing. The plates are used to mount the microwave radio or flat antenna to a bracket carrying an opposing interface plate. Alternatively, the components may be combined into a single interface plate to which both the antenna and radios may connect. In all configurations, the radios may easily be removed and replaced.

No longer does the fully integrated design of known assemblies prevent the use of flat antennas with protected radio systems. The non-separable prior art assembly did not accommodate the use of an RF combiner, and therefore, a point to point microwave communications system with a flat antenna could not utilize a protected radio system to ensure continuous communication.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, it is to be understood that the embodiments described are illustrative only and that the scope of the invention is to be defined solely by the appended claims when accorded a full range of equivalence, many variations and modifications naturally occurring to those of skill in the art from a perusal hereof.