Thread: Antenna Terminology

looking into expanding my setup(s) a bit further, and i'll happily admit that i'm a bit of a noob

First up:

whats the difference between ground dependant and independant?

Originally Posted by amtravic1

Ground plain independent antennae do not need a "ground plain" to work.
Dependent antennae use the vehicle body to work correctly such as the roof area of the body. The more centre of the area the more even the radiation pattern of the signal.
I have both fitted to my car. A small $20.00 antenna fitted to the roof, and for when I have a rack fitted, an expensive independent antenna on the bull bar. The roof antenna relying on the ground plain is far more efficient but requires drilling a hole in the roof or other panel you want to fit it to.

Ian

They work better when working on a plain old ground plane.

In very simple terms, ground plane aerial is 1/2 of adipole which is the basic aerial design. The ground plane is an essential part of the aerial as it replaces the missing 1/2 of the dipole aerial. Without it, the aerial will not transmit/receive as effectively and may actually damage your transmitter owing to some technical reasons I won't go into.