Importance

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Abstract

The invention provides a multibeam antenna comprising: an array 11 of N.sub.e elementary sources 31; energy-focusing optical means comprising a reflector 10 or a lens; the array being situated in the focal zone of said focusing means: and a feed and control circuit cooperating with the N.sub.e primary sources 31 to produce N.sub.b beams each generated from a subgroup of the primary sources, some of which are shared between overlapping beams; the feed and control circuit comprising phase shifter means and attenuator means, said means being organized in N.sub.e feed channels for said N.sub.e primary sources, each feed channel including specific means for acting on the phase and the amplitude of an excitation signal in each feed channel; wherein each required beam is generated by the multibeam antenna solely by acting on the phase and the amplitude of the excitation delivered to each elementary source forming a portion of said beam; and wherein the number of sources N.sub.i contributing to a beam i, 1.ltoreq.i.ltoreq.N.sub.b, varies and is determined as a function of the characteristics desired for said beam i. The antenna is applicable to satellite telecommunications, in particular for on-board antennas of high capacity.

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First Claim