UWB antenna on 3D printed flexible substrate and foot phantom

An ultra-wideband (UWB) monopole antenna on an additive manufactured (AM) flexible substrate for foot wear application is proposed. The 3D printing of foot phantoms for the testing of this type of antennas is also introduced. Inexpensive fuse filament fabrication (FFF) technology is utilized for these developments. Flexible polylactic acid plastic filament (PLA) material is used for the antenna while transparent PLA for the phantom. The antenna is intended for integration into the footwear tongue. The UWB monopole antenna achieves -10dB input impedance matching from 3.1GHz to over 10.6GHz in freespace, on the foot phantom and on the real human body. Simulation and measurement confirm the ultra-wideband operation of the antenna.