Title of Document : POINTING , ACQUISITION , AND TRACKING FOR DIRECTIONAL WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS

Title of Document: POINTING, ACQUISITION, AND TRACKING FOR DIRECTIONAL WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS John Robertson Rzasa, Doctor of Philosophy, 2012 Directed By: Professor Christopher C. Davis, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Directional wireless communications networks (DWNs) are expected to become a workhorse of the military, as they provide great network capacity in hostile areas where omnidirectional RF systems can put their users in harm’s way. These networks will also be able to adapt to new missions, change topologies, use different communications technologies, yet still reliably serve all their terminal users. DWNs also have the potential to greatly expand the capacity of civilian and commercial wireless communication. The inherently narrow beams present in these types of systems require a means of steering them, acquiring the links, and tracking to maintain connectivity. This area of technological challenges encompasses all the issues of pointing, acquisition, and tracking (PAT).