motion plastics for the aircraft exterior

Aircraft broadband antenna

Internet during the flight is a decisive factor for many passengers when they book a flight. To enable a WLAN connection on long-distance flights, more and more antenna are used, which are installed at the top of the aircraft fuselage. Such an antenna establishes a connection with a nearby satellite, which in turn connects the aircraft with a ground station. The distance between the satellite and the aircraft is around 35,000km and both objects are moving at high speed. In order to receive signals, the antenna have to continuously adjust their position in a rotating movement. With tribologically optimised slewing ring bearings, the igus product range offers the ideal component - it ensures that rotation works reliably all the time.
Aircraft with antenna
Aircraft antenna
Aircraft antenna

Advantages of our slewing ring bearings for UMTS antennas

  • Smooth, vibration-dampening - no limited functionality during air turbulence or other impacts
  • Temperature-resistant materials - fluctuations of -50°C to +200°C do not affect our products
  • No minimum rotational speed - in contrast to slewing rings with ball bearings, in which the balls are flattened at slow speeds
  • Low weight - this saves emissions and fuel costs
  • Dry operation - with all the external electronics, lubricants are not desired
  • Maintenance-free - this saves time and costs that would otherwise occur for the opening of the radome and maintenance