Tesla Patents New Technology for Embedding Starlink Antennas in Car Bodies
Tesla has filed a new patent application that describes a technique to connect electric vehicles from the company to Starlink, a satellite system from SpaceX. The proposal is to actually embed such antennas directly into the body structure of the car to make them unrecognizable from outside.
Relation to Patented Technology
The title of the patent reads "A Radio Frequency Transparent Vehicle Roof Assembly for Consolidating Electronic Modules" that talks of a new kind of roof for an automobile. It is meant to be constructed from polymer materials that are radio frequency transparent instead of metal construction. Such materials are included in the following:
- Polycarbonate
- ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene)
- ASA (Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate) plastic
This enables satellite signals to penetrate through the roof and allow any electronic modules, such as a Starlink antenna, to be directly accommodated within the roof assembly.
Advantages in Connectivity
This will enable a Tesla vehicle to switch automatically from the cellular network to the Starlink satellite network while driving in poor or entirely absent cellular coverage areas. The most critical reason for that is to assure connectivity at all times, very vital for the uninterrupted operation of features such as Autopilot and general in-car connectivity even when not around.
Availability and Pricing
The news hasn't been information about when this will be available or how much it could cost, whether as an option or as standard.
