Radome assembly having an outer layer
In one example of the present disclosure, a radome assembly for use with an antenna assembly is described. The radome assembly may comprise a radome body portion having a first side and a second side, wherein the radome body portion defines a portion of a housing for an antenna assembly. The radome assembly may further comprise an outer layer coupled to the first side of the radome body portion, wherein the outer layer is made from a different material than the radome body portion, and wherein at least a portion of the outer layer is exposed to an outdoor environment and has hydrophobic properties.
1 . A radome assembly for use with an antenna assembly, the radome assembly comprising:
a radome body portion having a first side and a second side;
an outer layer coupled to the first side of the radome body portion, wherein the outer layer is made from a different material than the radome body portion, and wherein at least a portion of the outer layer has hydrophobic properties; and
a radome spacer portion extending from the second side of the radome body portion and configured to space the radome body portion and the outer layer from antenna elements of the antenna assembly, wherein the radome body portion and the radome spacer portion are integrally formed, wherein the radome spacer portion includes a plurality of cells, wherein each cell of the plurality of cells is formed from at least two cell walls positioned adjacent to each other, and wherein the plurality of cells are configured as nodeless such that a gap is defined between the at least two cell walls of each cell.
2 . The radome assembly of claim 1 , wherein the outer layer has a thickness that is less than or equal to 60 thousandths of an inch.
3 . The radome assembly of claim 1 , wherein the radome assembly has a thickness of greater than 3 mm.
4 . The radome assembly of claim 1 , wherein the outer layer has superhydrophobic properties.
5 . The radome assembly of claim 1 , wherein the radome body portion and the radome spacer portion are formed from a different material than the outer layer.
6 . The radome assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of elongated members each coupled to the second side of the radome body portion and each having a proximal end at or near the radome body portion and a distal end extending away from the radome body portion, wherein the distal end of each of the plurality of elongated members is configured to extend through an opening defined in the antenna assembly.
7 . The radome assembly of claim 6 , wherein at least one elongated member of the plurality of elongated members is configured to interface with the antenna assembly to resist separation of the radome body portion from the antenna assembly.
8 . The radome assembly of claim 6 , wherein the plurality of elongated members is further configured to port thermal energy from the antenna assembly to the radome body portion.