An antenna assembly includes at least two active or main radiating
omni-directional antenna elements arranged with at least one beam control
or passive antenna element used as a reflector. The beam control antenna
element(s) may have multiple reactance elements that can electrically
terminate it to adjust the input or output beam pattern(s) produced by
the combination of the active antenna elements and the beam control
antenna element(s). More specifically, the beam control antenna
element(s) may be coupled to different terminating reactances to change
beam characteristics, such as the directivity and angular beamwidth.
Processing may be employed to select which terminating reactance to use.
Consequently, the radiator pattern of the antenna can be more easily
directed towards a specific target receiver/transmitter, reduce
signal-to-noise interference levels, and/or increase gain. A
Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output (MIMO) processing technique may be
employed to operate the antenna assembly with simultaneous beam patterns.