Saturday, April 25, 2026

TI-84 Plus CE: Beam Pattern for Uniform Array

TI-84 Plus CE: Beam Pattern for Uniform Array




Introduction



The following formula calculates an antenna’s normalized beam response in decibels given the following:



* the number of sensors of an antenna

* the wavelength of the beam pattern

* the angle incident of the wavelength from the ground, in degrees.

* the steering angle of the array, in degrees; which is measured from the zenith, starting directly upwards with the angle going downwards.



The program calculates the response in from a range of incident angles.



R(ΘI) = [ sin(180 * n * d * (sin(ΘI) – sin(ΘS) ÷ λ ] ÷ [ n * sin(180 * d * (sin(ΘI) – sin(ΘS) ÷ λ ]

If the denominator is 0, then the response is 0 dB.



Variables:

n = number of sensors

d = spacing between sensors

λ = wavelength

ΘI = incident angle

ΘS = steering angle



TI-84 Plus CE Code: BEAMPTN



ClrHome

Degree

Disp “BEAM PATTERN”, “BY STEPHEN A HERTZ”, “(HP 67 ANTENNAS)”

Input “NO. SENSORS? “, N

Input “INTERIOR SPACING? “, D

Input “WAVELENGTH? “, L

Input “STEERING Θ°? “, S

Input “STARTING ΘI? “, I

Input “NO. PTS? “, K

Input “CHG Θ°? “, J

For(Θ, I, I+K*J, J)

180 * D / L → A

sin(Θ) – sin(S) → B

N * sin(A * B) → R

If R=0

0 → R

Else

sin(N * A * B) / R → R

20 * log(abs(R)) → R

End

ClrHome

Disp “ΘI=”, Θ, “R (DB)=”, R

Pause

End



Example



Input:

n = 6

d = 36 ft

λ = 100 ft

ΘS = 0° (steering angle)

Range: ΘI = starting at 0°, 5 calculations, in increments of 5°



Results:

K =

ΘI =

R(ΘI) =

0

0

0

1

5

-0.4983317822

2

10

-2.056358346

3

15

-4.9617921711

4

20

-9.809670689



The negative response signifies that there is a reduction of signal strength.



Source



Hertz, Stephen A. “Beam Pattern for Uniform Array” HP-67/HP-97: Users’ Library Solutions: Antennas. Hewlett Packard. Corvallis, OR. Rev. D. April 1979. pp. 24-27




Eddie


All original content copyright, © 2011-2026. Edward Shore. Unauthorized use and/or unauthorized distribution for commercial purposes without express and written permission from the author is strictly prohibited. This blog entry may be distributed for noncommercial purposes, provided that full credit is given to the author.

TI-84 Plus CE: Beam Pattern for Uniform Array

TI-84 Plus CE: Beam Pattern for Uniform Array Introduction The following formula calculates an antenna’s normalized beam respo...