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These articles provide step-by-step instructions on setting up simulations, drawing wires, grids, surfaces, and transmission lines, adding excitations and loads, running calculations, and displaying plots and tables with the results.
These articles cover the basic information needed to begin using AN-SOF.
Master antenna simulation using AN-SOF software. Enhance your design process and gain insights into the first steps of modeling antennas with ease.
AN-SOF is a comprehensive software tool for the modeling and simulation of antenna systems and radiating structures in general. AN-SOF is intended for solving problems in the following areas...
When AN-SOF is started, the initial screen contains the following components: The title bar contains the name of the currently active project (.emm file)...
Preferences in AN-SOF allow users to customize the unit system for input and output data, adjust the workspace appearance, and configure various miscellaneous options.
The background of the workspace can be white or black. When a white (black) background is chosen, all wires will default to black (white) unless a different color is specified for certain wires. The workspace color can be set by going to...
Discover the groundbreaking Conformal Method of Moments (CMoM) revolutionizing antenna modeling. Overcome limitations and unleash accurate simulations.
Discover comprehensive resources and practical tools for mastering AN-SOF. Our collection of guides offers step-by-step instructions on setting up simulations, designing models, and interpreting results, while our tools help streamline and enhance your workflow.
Master antenna modeling with the AN-SOF Engine—a high-performance simulation tool for advanced users. Configure input files, analyze results, and troubleshoot designs. Supports wires, helices, and arcs with RAM-optimized precision.
A set of tools for electrical parameter conversions and calculating antenna characteristics and propagation metrics.
Frequently Asked Questions about licensing, technical queries, and troubleshooting AN-SOF.
This Knowledge Base and associated software are provided “as is” without warranty of any kind, expressed or implied. Golden Engineering LLC disclaims all warranties, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. Golden Engineering LLC does not warrant that: Golden Engineering LLC is not liable for […]
These articles provide comprehensive guidance on the options and settings available for configuring simulations in AN-SOF.
The simulation parameters can be set in the Setup tabsheet. This page has the following panels: Frequency, Environment, Far-Field, Near-Field, Excitation, and Settings...
The Frequency panel has three options: Single, List and Sweep. By choosing one of these options the simulation can either be performed for a single frequency, for frequencies taken from a list or for a frequency sweep...
Go to the Setup tab in the main window and select the Environment panel. The relative permittivity and permeability of the surrounding medium can be set in the Medium box, Fig. 1. Four options are available for the ground plane...
The far field can be computed after having calculated the current distribution previously. Thus, the parameters set in the Far-Field panel have no effect in the determination of the currents and can be modified at any time. However, the far field must be...
The near field can be computed after having calculated the current distribution previously. Thus, the parameters set in the Near-Field panel have no effect in the determination of the currents and can be set at any time. However, the near field must be recalculated every...
Go to the Setup tab in the main window and select the Excitation panel. There are two types of excitations: Discrete Sources and Incident Field...
Go to the Setup tab in the main window and select the Settings panel, Fig. 1. The accuracy of the integrals involved in the calculations can be set in the Settings panel. The Quadrature Tolerance is the error in the evaluation of...
Go to View > Project Details in the main menu to display the Project Details window, where a summary of the project information is shown...
When a project is saved in AN-SOF, multiple files that have the same name as the project are saved. Each file has a unique extension that...
These articles provide guidance on adding and editing wires, setting their attributes, and defining materials within AN-SOF.
AN-SOF has different types of wires. Each wire type has its own geometrical parameters, attributes and materials that can be set in a specific Draw dialog box. This dialog box allows us...
The Attributes page belongs to the Draw dialog box of the chosen wire type, Fig. 1. In the Attributes page the following attributes can be specified...
The Materials page belongs to the Draw dialog box of the chosen wire type, Fig. 1. In the Materials page the following attributes can be specified...
If wires with non-zero resistivity have been drawn previously and the whole structure must now be considered as a perfect electric conductor, all resistivities can be disabled...
If wires with a coating shield or insulation have been drawn previously and the whole structure must now be considered as composed of bare conductive wires, all coatings can be disabled...
The wire cross-section can be chosen from a combo-box in the Attributes page of the Draw dialog box for the chosen wire type...
Linear wires can be exported from AN-SOF to a text file in NEC format (extension .nec) by going to File > Export Wires in the main menu. Linear wires will be stored as GW lines. FR (frequency), EX (excitation), LD (load impedances and wire conductivity), RP (radiation pattern)...
These articles guide on how to add and edit wire grids and solid surfaces in AN-SOF.
Wire grids can be composed of curved or straight wires and can be used to model grids and approximate conductive surfaces. The wires of a grid do not overlap but are connected to each other...
The Attributes page belongs to the Draw dialog box of the chosen wire grid type. As an example, Fig. 1 shows the Attributes page for the Plate...
A wire grid can be modified by the procedure described in Modifying a Group of Wires...
Click on the Selection Box button in the main toolbar. By left clicking on the workspace and dragging a box with the mouse, a wire grid can be selected...
Click on the Selection Box button in the main toolbar. By left clicking on the workspace and dragging a box with the mouse, a wire grid can be selected...
These articles provide guidance on adding and editing sources as well as load impedances in your AN-SOF model.
Discrete Sources, Incident Field, and Loads. A structure can be excited by discrete sources or an incident field. Refer to "Excitation by an Incident Field" for the second case. Discrete sources can be located on any wire segment...
The Source/Load toolbar is used to place a source or load in a selected segment on a given wire. Sources and loads can also be edited with this toolbar...
A source can be added to a selected wire segment by means of the following steps...
A source can be edited by means of the following steps...
A load can be added to a selected wire segment by means of the following steps...
A load can be edited by means of the following steps...
All the loads can be enabled or disabled at the same time. This option avoids deleting the load impedances when loads must not be considered in a simulation...
Learn how to configure an excitation by an incident plane wave field in AN-SOF.
To choose an incident plane wave as excitation of the structure, go to the Setup tab > Excitation panel and select the Incident Field option...
The following incident field parameters can be set in the Excitation panel of the Setup tabsheet after clicking on the Incident Field option...
The 3D-View interface allows us entering the parameters of the incident field in a graphical way. Follow these steps...
These articles describe the different types of ground planes and provide instructions on how to add a ground plane to a model in AN-SOF.
A perfectly electric conducting (PEC) ground plane, parallel to the xy-plane, can be added to the model by means of the following procedure...
A real ground plane, located on the xy-plane (Z = 0), can be added to the model by means of the following procedure...
A dielectric substrate, located below the xy-plane (Z < 0), can be added to the model by means of the following procedure...
A wire will automatically connect to the ground plane when the z coordinate of one of its ends coincides with the position of the ground plane...
To remove the ground plane, follow these steps:
Explore the various options available to run calculations in AN-SOF and optimize your simulations.
Once the frequencies, the environment, the geometry of the structure, the excitation, and the points of observation of the radiated field have been set, AN-SOF is ready to execute the calculations. First, the current distribution on...
When the frequencies, the environment, the geometry, and the excitation are set, AN-SOF is ready to compute the currents...
Once the current distribution on the structure has been obtained, the far-field in the angular ranges set in the Far-Field panel of the Setup tabsheet can be computed...
Once the current distribution on the structure has been calculated, the near electric field can be computed at the points in space specified in the Near-Field panel of the Setup tab. To calculate the near electric field:
Once the current distribution on the structure has been obtained, the near magnetic field at those points in space set in the Near-Field panel of the Setup tabsheet can be computed...
When a calculation is executed using the commands under the Run menu, the Processing window will be displayed...
There are simulations where we need to change the excitation of the structure frequently. For example, when we must often change the amplitudes of discrete sources or the direction of arrival of an incident field...
AN-SOF can import a sequence of input files to obtain a corresponding sequence of output files, without user intervention in the middle of the process. The input files must be in NEC format...
These articles provide guidance on displaying various types of plots (2D, 3D, Smith charts, polar charts) and tables with simulation results.
Commands to Display Results. The output data of a simulation can be listed in tables or displayed in graphs. All results are found under the Results menu...
In the AN-SOF main window there is a Results tab, Fig. 1, where a table with the main results for a transmitting antenna is shown: input impedance, VSWR, directivity, gain and efficiency...
Select the Plots tab in the AN-SOF main window to visualize the plots of the main results for a transmitting antenna as a function of frequency.
These articles provide detailed explanations on adding, editing, and customizing transmission lines and coaxial cables within your AN-SOF model.
AN-SOF allows for the addition of lossy or lossless transmission lines and has a list of preloaded lines with parameters adjusted to the attenuation curves published in the data sheets of real cables. This list of cables includes both two-wire and coaxial transmission lines.
If you want to add “custom” transmission lines with your own parameters, you have types 0, 1, and 2 available, Fig. 1, which are explained below. Type 0: Custom Lossless Line This is an ideal transmission line with zero losses, so only the nominal Z0 and velocity factor must be specified. Type 1: Custom line […]
Any transmission lines added through the Transmission Lines command (Ctrl + L) under the Draw menu will remain in the table until the user decides to remove or modify them. During calculations, only transmission lines with both ports connected to respective wire segments will be considered for simulation. Any lines with a single port connected […]
Due to the model used in the calculation engine, the transmission lines that are considered to exist in the simulation are those that have both ports connected to wire segments. Therefore, if you want to have an open-circuited line connected to a certain segment, the opposite port must also be connected to another wire segment. […]
The Transmission Lines table has a pop-up menu with keyboard shortcuts, Fig. 1. To access this menu for editing cells and rows, right-click on the table. The available commands are:
Coaxial transmission lines can be modeled implicitly, as explained in previous articles. To define a coaxial cable, one needs to know its characteristic impedance (Z0), velocity factor (VF), length, parameters that model losses (K0, K1, K2, etc.), and the shunt admittances at each end (Y1 and Y2). Additionally, each end or port of the line […]
AN-SOF provides parameters for modeling the losses of more than 160 types of transmission lines. These parameters have been obtained by adjusting the loss model to the attenuation curves published by manufacturers. In case a particular type of cable is not listed or if the manufacturer has updated the parameters, a custom transmission line can […]