PCTEL Inc. announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office notified PCTEL that its patent application, which describes an invention that will protect antenna installations from vandalism, will issue as U.S. patent number 8,162,698 on April 24, 2012. The patent, entitled "VANDAL PROOF NMO ANTENNA MOUNT" should have great value to the industry and PCTEL will introduce a new product line based upon the vandal-proof design. The inventor, Brandon Johnson, is a University of Michigan Engineering (B.S.E, Industrial and Operations Engineering, 2007) graduate who was recently promoted to Director of PCTEL's China Manufacturing Operations.
The new NMO Vandal Proof antenna mount (NMO-VP) applies to both vehicular and fixed station installations. Increasingly, public safety, healthcare, utilities, industrial process automation, education, and arenas require wireless networks to transfer data, monitor devices, and offload cellular systems. All of these vertical markets and applications share a common threat: communication equipment exposed to theft and vandalism. The vandal-proof invention locks the antenna in place with a unique design that prevents removal from its base.
"This innovative feature prevents unauthorized personnel from removing the antenna and disrupting the connectivity of critical wireless network communications," commented Ana Bakas, Senior Product Manager at PCTEL. "PCTEL continues to invest heavily in the research and engineering to develop creative solutions to meet our customers' evolving needs."
The new NMO-VP mount will be production released and available for purchase through PCTEL's channels of distribution by June 1, 2012.