ALCAN Systems, a smart antenna startup from Darmstadt, announces the successful demonstration of satellite-based internet connectivity with its liquid crystal-based phased array antenna.
ALCAN gave a series of remote demonstrations last week to partners in which ALCAN acquired and maintained a stable internet connection via a GEO satellite operating on Ka-Band. The demonstrations were performed at ALCAN headquarters in Darmstadt using ALCAN’s liquid crystal based phased array antenna at a low power consumption of 15 Watt and a video call was established using Microsoft Teams.
During the demonstration calls, due to high pointing accuracy ALCAN was able to achieve a two-dimensional beam steering (azimuth and elevation) up to +/- 50 degrees without causing any connectivity issues. In addition to video conferencing with more 20 different partners and customers, ALCAN performed video streaming, internet browsing and mobile hotspot tests.
A link to the teaser video of this demonstration is available here: https://youtu.be/akJ1XjkP0Fo
Please contact sa*******@al**********.com to request the full demonstration video.
“Our demonstration is proof of the functionality and performance of our LC Phased Array technology and is a key milestone in the development of our LEO/MEO satellite ground terminal product announced in June of this year.“ – Burak Olcen, CPO of ALCAN Systems
About ALCAN Systems
ALCAN Systems is a German-based smart antenna technology company which has developed a revolutionary new liquid crystal (LC) based phased array antenna technology. ALCAN’s liquid crystal based platform technology provides the lowest cost and lowest power consuming high-performance phased array technology in the world. This has disruptive implications for the satellite and 5G markets.
For the satellite market, ALCAN is targeting high-performing enterprise antennas that can achieve throughputs of more than 1Gbps for under EUR 10,000 and consumer & IOT broad-band antennas that can achieve throughputs in excess of 100 Mbps for under EUR 1,000.
For the 5G market, ALCAN is targeting 2D beam-steering antennas that can meet the performance requirements of the mmWave frequencies at price points that are 3-5x lower than comparable products. Furthermore, ALCAN is also working to develop transparent UE antennas that can be integrated into the windows of buildings or sun-roof of cars.
The technology is based on the work of ALCAN co-Founder and CEO Dr. Onur Karabey who proved the viability of LC based phased array antennas in 2011. The company initially received seed funding of EUR 850,000 from the EXIST Transfer of Research Program of German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) in 2014 to commercialise the research and accelerate the development of a working prototype. ALCAN raised a further EUR 10.5 million Series A investment in 2017 from a consortium of leading global companies and is now focused on bringing its first product to market in 2022.
For more information, please contact Esat Sibay, COO / CFO at ALCAN Systems, E-mail: in**@al**********.com www.alcansystems.com