Contact Us 
Support 
Radio Telemetry Antennas
We manufacture a variety of antennas used for monitoring VHF signals by hand, or by autonomous systems for wildlife telemetry. Each antenna has a specific application and suits a certain environment or application. The most common types of antennas are yagi-uda (aka yagi), phased arrays, underwater dipoles, and whip antennas.
Keep in mind that the standard RG-58 coaxial cable also has a signal loss of approximately 6.2dB/100ft for 150MHz. Amplifiers and power inserters can be used to boost the signal along a long transmission line, which can also be bought from us here.
Four Element Yagi
A widely used telemetry antenna
Yagi antennas are the standard radio antenna. They can be mounted to a variety of places such as shorelines, dams, buildings, towers, vehicles, or aircraft. Yagis are directional antennas, which have a large receiving area out the top of the antenna, and a smaller receiving area behind the antenna. These areas generally have a lobe shape, and the size and width of the lobe also depends on the orientation of the antenna. This is called the radiation pattern, and it must be accounted for when setting up the surveyable area.
The elements (pieces perpendicular to the boom) are cut to a specific size to best receive a certain frequency range (+/-2MHz). To get the best results, yagi antennas are usually setup high, pointing the boom at the area of interest. If the animal is being tracked under water, the antenna should be vertically polarized. This is due to the horizontal component of a signal is reflected at the water-air interface, while the vertical component will propagate through. Angle also plays a roll tracking in water, as the signal will be strongest at the Brewster angle of the incoming transmission. Generally, this angle is approximately constant, at about 84° from the normal. If you are tracking terrestrial animals, the Brewster angle is not relevant.
This yagi is unique as it requires no gamma feed tuning. Simply mount it and connect a coax cable and it’s ready for use.
Three element Yagi-Uda (Yagi) Antenna
The standard telemetry antenna
This antenna is a more traditional three element yagi that has a slightly broader beamwidth. Although it can be tuned to slightly different frequencies, it is limited to about a 5MHz range.
The elements (pieces perpendicular to the boom) are cut to a specific size to best receive a certain frequency range (+/-2MHz). To get the best results, yagi antennas are usually setup high, pointing the boom at the area of interest. In terms of polarization, the same ideas apply as the four element yagi above.
We currently manufacture 3 element Yagis which are made out of light weight aluminum. If you wish to boost the sensitivity of the yagi antenna, two of them can be setup in a phased array.
Underwater Dipoles
Used in turbulent water ways
An underwater dipole is much like a yagi antenna, however it is modified for submersed use. Unlike a yagi-uda antenna which has a driven element, reflector element, and at least one director element, the underwater dipole only has a driven element. However, since underwater dipoles are often mounted near the base of dams, the concrete behind the antenna usually acts as a reflector as well. The situation changes if an underwater dipole is thrown over the side of a boat in the middle of a lake, as the receiving area is a donut shape around the driven element.
This type of antenna is suitable for receiving signals in turbulent water ways, deep areas, high conductivity water, and precise locations.
Phased Arrays
Boosting sensitivity by using two antennas in conjunction
A phased array is when two antennas are setup in close proximity to one another, and in phase so that any signal received has roughly double the strength. This can be done with any antennas, as long as the signal coming in from both is in phase, causing constructive interference.
It is important to setup the phased antennas to be as much of an identical environment as possible. If one antenna is close to a noise source or a reflective surface such as concrete, this will make it more difficult to get the antennas to be in phase with one another.