WO2016089996A1

WO2016089996A1 - Antenna mount with vertical tool access

Info

Publication number: WO2016089996A1
Application number: PCT/US2015/063427
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ian Renilson; David John Walker
Original assignee: Commscope Technologies Llc
Priority date: 2014-12-02
Filing date: 2015-12-02
Publication date: 2016-06-09

Abstract

In one embodiment, an antenna mount has an elevation-plate interface for interfacing with and attachment to an elevation plate of a mounting base, an antenna-coupling ring for interfacing with and attachment to an antenna, and a spanning section connecting the elevation-plate interface to the antenna-coupling ring. The spanning section comprises (1) a support structure whose thickness ranges from the thickness of the elevation-plate interface to the thickness of the antenna-coupling ring and (2) a spanning-section recess having an elevation-plate wall, a support- structure wall, and an antenna wall. The elevation-plate wall has an opening for a pivot bolt, where the pivot bolt is adjustable through the spanning- section recess.

Description

ANTENNA MOUNT WITH VERTICAL TOOL ACCESS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Provisional

Application No. 62/086,490 filed on December 2, 2014, the teachings of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Field

[0003] The current disclosure relates to antenna assemblies and particularly, although not exclusively, to the antenna mounts of antenna assemblies.

[0004] Description of the Related Art

[0005] A typical radio-communication antenna system for terrestrial microwave transmission generally comprises an antenna mounted - using a mount - on a pole that may be freestanding or part of a tower. The typical antenna comprises a parabolic reflector - also known as a dish - and a feed/receive element located at the focus of the reflector, where the feed is electrically connected to a radio transceiver of the antenna system. Efficient microwave transmission between two antennas requires precise alignment of their respective boresights. This alignment needs to be maintained over time, as an antenna in the field may be exposed to wind, precipitation, ice loads, gravity, animals, and other stressors.

Consequently, antenna mounts aim to provide interfaces between antennas and corresponding poles that are both adjustable at installation - to align the boresights - and sturdy

subsequently - to maintain the boresight alignment.

[0006] While the antenna converts between electromagnetic radiation and analog electronic signals used in radio transmission, the radio transceiver converts between digital electronic signals used in a corresponding communication network and the analog electronic signals used in radio transmission. Specifically, the radio transceiver (a) receives an outgoing digital signal from the communication network and provides a corresponding outgoing analog signal to the antenna for radio transmission, and (b) receives an incoming analog signal from the antenna and provides a corresponding incoming digital signal to the communication network.

[0007] Older radio transceivers were heavy and bulky and, consequently, were housed at ground level and connected to their corresponding pole-mounted antennas via analog feed lines, which introduced some signal loss. Miniaturization has more recently allowed for smaller and lighter radios that may be made part of a pole-mounted antenna assembly.

Specifically, these radios may be directly attached to their corresponding antennas and mounted together with them, consequently greatly reducing the length of the feed lines and thereby reducing signal loss. These radios are sometimes called outdoor-unit (ODU) or full- outdoor (FOD) radios. The added weight of the ODU/FOD radios, however, increases the stress on the antenna mount. Furthermore, providing access to bolts on the mount has forced designers to increase the span of the mounts, so that the load is further away from the pole, thereby further increasing the stress on the mount.

[0008] FIG. 1A is a top view of a conventional antenna assembly 100 mounted on a pole 101, showing an exemplary placement for adjustment tool 102. FIG. IB is a perspective view of the antenna assembly 100 of FIG. 1A mounted on the pole 101 and showing the exemplary placement for the tool 102. The antenna assembly 100 comprises an antenna 103, a mount 104, and a pair of ODU radios 105. The antenna 103 - which comprises a reflector 106 and a feed element (not shown) - is mounted on the mount 104, which is, in turn, mounted on the pole 101.

[0009] The mount 104 comprises a mounting plate 107, an elevation plate 108, and pole- mounting components 109. The mounting plate 107 includes an elevation-plate interface 110 adapted to interface with the elevation plate 108. The elevation-plate interface 110 has an antenna-facing side and a pole-facing side, where the latter directly contacts the elevation plate 108. The elevation plate 108 also has a pole-facing side and an antenna-facing side, where the latter directly contacts the elevation-plate interface 110. Some of the adjustment, elevation, and/or securing bolts of the mounting plate 107 are accessed from the antenna- facing side of the elevation-plate interface 110. and some are accessed from the pole-facing side of the elevation plate 108.

[0010] The span 112 of the mount 104 is measured from the center line of the pole 101 to the center line 111 of the reflector 106, which corresponds to the boresight of the antenna 103. In the antenna system 100, the span 112 is shown as 377.8 mm. The mount 104 also supports two ODU radios 105, attached to the mounting plate 107 with an adapter module 114. FIGs. 1A and IB show tool 102 accessing a pivot bolt (not shown) from a radio-facing side of the mounting plate 107 and on the antenna-facing side of the elevation plate interface 110. The clearance 113 between the tool 102 and the nearest side of the nearest radio 105 is 9.5 mm. Shortening the span 112 of the mounting plate 107 would bring the center of gravity of the two ODU radios 105 and the antenna 103 closer to the pole 101 and, consequently, would make the mounting of the assembly 100 on the pole 101 sturdier, but, however, would then block access for the tool 102 to the bolts on the antenna-facing side of the elevation- plate interface 110 because the radio 105 would be in the way.

SUMMARY

[0011] One embodiment of the disclosure can be an article of manufacture comprising an antenna mount. The antenna mount comprises an elevation-plate interface, an antenna- coupling ring, and a spanning section connecting the elevation-plate interface to the antenna- coupling ring. The elevation-plate interface is adapted to interface with and attach to an elevation plate of a corresponding mounting base. The antenna-coupling ring is adapted to interface with and attach to a corresponding antenna. The spanning section comprises (1) a support structure and (2) a spanning- section recess. The spanning- section recess has an elevation-plate wall, a support- structure wall, and an antenna wall. The elevation-plate wall has an opening for a pivot bolt. The pivot bolt is adjustable through the spanning- section recess.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] Other aspects, features, and advantages of the invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description, the appended claims, and the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals identify similar or identical elements. Note that elements in the figures are not drawn to scale.

[0013] FIG. 1A is a top view of a conventional antenna assembly mounted on a pole, showing an exemplary placement for adjustment tool.

[0014] FIG. IB is a perspective view of the antenna assembly of FIG. 1A, mounted on the pole and showing an exemplary placement for the tool of FIG. 1A.

[0015] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an antenna assembly in accordance with one embodiment of the disclosure.

[0016] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of the antenna-mount assembly of FIG. 2 comprising the mounting plate and the mounting base.

[0017] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the mounting plate of FIG. 3.

[0018] FIG. 5 is an exploded, perspective view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly of FIG. 2, including the antenna-mount assembly, with the addition of an

ODU radio.

[0019] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the antenna assembly of FIG. 5 after the mounting of the antenna assembly on the pole, also including a tool for adjusting the pivot bolt. [0020] FIG. 7 is a top view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly of FIG. 2, with an attached ODU radio, all mounted on the pole, further showing the tool of FIG. 6.

[0021] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly of FIG. 2, with an attached pair of ODU radios, further showing the tool of FIG. 6.

[0022] FIG. 9A is a partial cut-away side view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly of FIG. 2, with an attached ODU radio, further showing the tool of FIG. 6 in a first position.

[0023] FIG. 9B is a partial cut-away side view of the antenna assembly of FIG. 9A with the tool in a second position.

[0024] FIG. 9C is a partial cut-away side view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly of FIG. 2, with an attached ODU radio, further showing the tool of FIG. 6 in a first position where the tool contacts the radio.

[0025] FIG. 10A is a partial perspective view of a combination wrench engaging the pivot bolt of the antenna mount of FIG. 3 at a first angle.

[0026] FIG. 10B is a partial front view of the combination wrench of FIG. 10A engaging the pivot bolt of the antenna mount of FIG. 10A.

[0027] FIG. IOC is a partial perspective view of the combination wrench engaging the pivot bolt of the antenna mount of FIG. 10A at a second angle different from the first angle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Detailed illustrative embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. However, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are merely representative for purposes of describing example embodiments of the present invention. Embodiments of the present invention may be embodied in many alternative forms and should not be construed as limited to only the embodiments set forth herein. Further, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments of the invention.

[0029] As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the," are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It further will be understood that the terms "comprises," "comprising," "has," "having," "includes," and/or "including" specify the presence of stated features, steps, or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, or components. It also should be noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functions/acts noted may occur out of the order noted in the figures.

[0030] A novel mounting plate for an ODU (or FOD) radio system may allow for shortening the span of the mount while allowing access to antenna-facing bolts despite rear access being blocked by an ODU radio. The novel mounting plate uses an asymmetric structure that allows sufficient vertical access to the bolts from above or below the mounting plate while providing increased mechanical support to the mounted antenna and one or more radios.

[0031] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an antenna assembly 200 in accordance with one embodiment of the disclosure. The antenna assembly 200 comprises an antenna 201 and an antenna-mount assembly 203. The antenna 201 is mounted to a pole 202 using the antenna- mount assembly 203. The antenna-mount assembly 203 includes a mounting plate 204, a mounting base 205, and a mounting clamp 206. The mounting base 205 and the mounting clamp 206 are clamped around the pole 202.

[0032] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of antenna-mount assembly 203 of FIG. 2 comprising the mounting plate 204 and the mounting base 205. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the mounting plate 204 of FIG. 3. The mounting plate 204 may also be referred to as a hub mounting ring (HMR), so called because of its ring-shaped antenna-coupling ring 301 for attaching the antenna 201. The mounting plate 204 includes an elevation-plate interface 302, which is adapted to interface with and be secured to an elevation plate 303 of the mounting base 205.

[0033] The mounting plate 204 is attached to the mounting base 205 using mounting bolts including pivot bolt 304, which is accessed from the antenna-facing side of the elevation- plate interface 302. Other mounting bolts may include elevation-plate bolts (not shown), which are inserted and accessed from the pole-facing side of the elevation plate 303. A top elevation-plate bolt is inserted through an elongated arcuate slot 305 of the elevation plate 303 and into a tapped hole 313 of the mounting plate 204. A bottom elevation-plate bolt is inserted through a corresponding bottom elongated arcuate slot (not visible) in the elevation plate 303 and into a corresponding tapped hole 401 in the mounting plate 204. Rotation of elevation-adjustment bolt 306 moves the top and bottom elevation-plate bolts within their respective slots, which causes the top and bottom elevation-plate bolts to rotate about the pivot bolt 304, which adjusts the elevation (i.e., the angle between a horizontal plane and a boresight, measured in a vertical plane, such as the y-z plane of FIG. 3 and FIG. 4) of the mounting plate 204 and the corresponding antenna 201 of FIG. 2. After the desired elevation is achieved, the elevation-plate bolts and the pivot bolt 304 may be tightened.

[0034] The elevation-plate interface 302 connects to antenna-coupling ring 301 via a spanning section 307. Note that the antenna-coupling ring 301 is substantially perpendicular to the elevation-plate interface 302. The spanning section 307 has a relatively thin section 308 and a thicker support structure 309, each having an antenna-facing surface (not visible) and an opposite radio-facing surface 310 and 402, respectively. The antenna-facing surfaces of sections 308 and 309 may be curved to match the curvature of the antenna 201. Note that, since the thin section 308 is thin, the radio-facing surface may also have a curvature corresponding to the curvature of the antenna 201. The thickness of the support structure 309 along the y axis - which is parallel to the boresight of the corresponding antenna 201 - may vary from (1) the width 406 of the elevation-plate interface 302, along the y axis, at the intersection of the elevation-plate interface 302 and the support structure 309 to (2) the thinner thickness of the antenna-coupling ring 301, along the y axis, at the intersection of the antenna-coupling ring 301 and the support structure 309. At the intersection of the thin section 308 with the elevation-plate interface 302, the thin section 308 has a thickness 405.

[0035] Together, the thin section 308, the top of the support structure 309, and the top portion of the elevation-plate interface 302 - which is the portion not directly adjoining the support structure 309 - form a three-walled recess 320 in the spanning section 307. The three walls are, respectively, (1) an antenna wall corresponding to the thin section 308, (2) a support-structure wall 311 on the bottom and antenna-coupling-ring sides and corresponding to the top of the support structure 309, and (3) an elevation-plate wall 312 corresponding to a section of the elevation-plate interface 302 not directly adjoining the support structure 309. The elevation-plate wall 312 comprises the hole 403 for the pivot bolt 304 and tapped hole 313. Tapped hole 313 may be in a thickened wall section 314. As explained further below, the three- walled recess 320 provides improved access for tools to adjust bolts on the antenna- facing side of the elevation-plate interface 302.

[0036] If the radio-facing surface 402 and the elevation-plate interface 302 were to be extended to the top of the mounting plate 204, they would intersect at a corner 407. A point KE represents a point at the top of the elevation-plate interface 302 that is a thickness 405 away from the antenna-facing surface of the thin section 308. In one implementation, the angle in the y-z plane formed by the lines from the center of the hole 403 to the corner 407 and to the point 404 is at least thirty degrees. [0037] FIG. 5 is an exploded, perspective view of an antenna assembly 500 comprising the antenna assembly 200 of FIG. 2, including antenna-mount assembly 203, with the addition of an ODU radio 501. The radio 501 is mounted on the mounting plate 204 with the help of an interface plate 502 and two mounting supports 503. The combined assembly 500 is ready to be mounted on a pole (not shown).

[0038] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the antenna assembly 500 of FIG. 5 after the mounting of the assembly 500 on the pole 202, also including a tool 601 for adjusting the pivot bolt 304. The tool 601 may be a wrench (also known as a spanner), such as, for example, a torque wrench, an open-end wrench, a combination wrench, a socket wrench, a flare-nut wrench, an adjustable wrench, or crowfoot wrench. The recess 320 provides room for the tool 601 to reach the pivot bolt 304 from above the antenna assembly 500 and for maneuvering a bolt- interfacing end 602 of the tool 601 to turn the pivot bolt 304 from above the antenna assembly 500.

[0039] FIG. 7 is a top view of an antenna assembly 700 comprising the antenna assembly 200 of FIG. 2, with an attached ODU radio 701, all mounted on the pole 202, further showing the tool 601 of FIG. 6. The dimensions of the attached ODU radio 701 along the x axis are such that the radio blocks from behind the three- walled recess 320 of the mounting plate 204 and forms an effective fourth wall 702, referred to as a radio wall, perpendicular to the elevation-plate interface 302 of the mounting plate 204. This radio wall 702 limits the available arc of motion for the tool 601 in adjusting the pivot bolt 304 (not visible) on the antenna-facing side of the elevation-plate interface 302. Together, the radio wall 702 and the recess 320 form a pocket 704. Note that the span 703 of the mounting plate 204 is only 303.39 mm, which is less than the span 112 of the mounting plate 107 of FIG. 1A. The width of the mounting plate 204 along the y axis is such that the width of the four- walled pocket 704 along the y axis provides the tool 601 at least a 30-degree arc of rotation in the y-z plane for adjusting the pivot bolt 304.

[0040] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an antenna assembly 800 comprising the antenna assembly 200 of FIG. 2, with an attached pair of ODU radios 801, further showing the tool 601 of FIG. 6. The two ODU radios 801(1) and 801(2) are mounted to the antenna assembly 200 using an adapter module 802. Together, the radios 801 and the adapter module 802 make up radio module 804. The antenna assembly 800 is mounted on the pole 202. Similar to the antenna assembly 700 of FIG. 7, the dimensions and placement of the radios 801 and the adapter module 802 are such that the recess 320 of the mounting plate 204 is blocked. The radio module 804 makes an effective fourth wall, which is the radio wall, thereby forming a pocket 803. The available arc of motion for the tool 601 for adjusting the pivot bolt 304 (not visible) on the antenna-facing side of the elevation-plate interface 302 is limited by the dimensions of the pocket 803. The width of the mounting plate 204 along the y axis in the plane of the pivot bolt' s top is such that the width of the four- walled pocket 803 along the y axis provides tool 601 at least a 30-degree arc of rotation in the y-z plane for adjusting the pivot bolt 304.

[0041] FIG. 9A is a partial cut-away side view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly 200 of FIG. 2, with an attached ODU radio 901, further showing the tool 601 of FIG. 6 in a first position where the tool 601 contacts the radio 901. FIG. 9B is a partial cut-away side view of the antenna assembly of FIG. 9A with the tool 601 in a second position where the tool 601 contacts the antenna wall 308 of the mounting plate 204. FIG. 9C is a partial cut-away side view of an antenna assembly comprising the antenna assembly 200 of FIG. 2, with an attached ODU radio 902, further showing the tool 601 of FIG. 6 in a first position where the tool 601 contacts the radio 902.

[0042] The radios 901 and 902 block part of the rotation arc of the tool 601 when adjusting the pivot bolt 304 (not visible). As can be seen, the closer a radio is to the mounting plate 204, the smaller the available rotation arc for the tool to adjust the pivot bolt. Specifically, in FIGs. 9A and 9B, where the radio 901 is almost flush against the mounting plate 204, there is about a 34-degree arc for the tool 601 to adjust the pivot bolt 304, while in FIG. 9C, where the radio 902 is a bit further away from the mounting plate 204, there is about a 40-degree arc for the tool 601 to adjust the pivot bolt 304.

[0043] FIG. 10A is a partial perspective view of a combination wrench 1001 engaging the pivot bolt 304 (not visible) of the antenna-mount assembly 203 of FIG. 2 at a first angle. FIG. 10B is a partial front view of the combination wrench 1001 engaging the pivot bolt 304 of FIG. 10A. FIG. IOC is a partial perspective view of the combination wrench 1001 engaging the pivot bolt 304 of FIG. 10A at a second angle different from the first angle. As can be seen, the wrench 1001 clears the thick- wall section 314 of the elevation-plate interface 302.

[0044] Embodiments have been described where the spanning- section recess is at the top facing upwards with the support structure at the bottom. In alternative embodiments, the orientation is reversed, and the spanning-section recess is at the bottom facing downwards with the support structure at the top. This allows for tool access to adjust the pivot bolt from below. [0045] Note that pivot-bolt adjustment comprises rotation of the bolt to either tighten or loosen the pivot bolt 304.

[0046] Embodiments have been described where an antenna assembly is mounted to a pole. The invention is not, however, so limited. In alternative embodiments, the antenna assembly may be mounted to a structure other than a pole, such as, for example, a wall or a post.

[0047] It will be understood that various changes in the details, materials, and

arrangements of the parts which have been described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of this invention may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as expressed in the following claims.

[0048] Reference herein to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the invention. The appearances of the phrase "in one embodiment" in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments necessarily mutually exclusive of other embodiments. The same applies to the term "implementation."

[0049] Unless explicitly stated otherwise, each numerical value and range should be interpreted as being approximate as if the word "about" or "approximately" preceded the value of the value or range. As used in this application, unless otherwise explicitly indicated, the term "connected" is intended to cover both direct and indirect connections between elements.

[0050] The use of figure numbers and/or figure reference labels in the claims is intended to identify one or more possible embodiments of the claimed subject matter in order to facilitate the interpretation of the claims. Such use is not to be construed as limiting the scope of those claims to the embodiments shown in the corresponding figures.

[0051] The embodiments covered by the claims in this application are limited to embodiments that (1) are enabled by this specification and (2) correspond to statutory subject matter. Non-enabled embodiments and embodiments that correspond to non-statutory subject matter are explicitly disclaimed even if they fall within the scope of the claims.

Claims

CLAIMS We claim:

1. An article of manufacture comprising a mounting plate (e.g. , 204), the mounting plate comprising:

an elevation-plate interface (e.g., 302) adapted to interface with and attach to an elevation plate (e.g. , 303) of a corresponding mounting base (e.g. , 205);

an antenna-coupling ring (e.g., 301) adapted to interface with and attach to a

corresponding antenna (e.g., 201); and

a spanning section (e.g., 307) connecting the elevation-plate interface to the antenna- coupling ring, wherein:

the spanning section comprises (1) a support structure (e.g., 309) and (2) a spanning- section recess (e.g. , 320);

the spanning- section recess has an elevation-plate wall (e.g., 312), a support- structure wall (e.g. , 311), and an antenna wall (e.g. , 308);

the elevation-plate wall has a set of one or more openings (e.g. , 313, 403) for a corresponding set of mounting bolts (e.g. , 304); and

a subset of the mounting bolts (e.g. 304) is adjustable through the spanning-section recess.

2. The article of claim 1, wherein the set of mounting bolts further includes a first elevation- plate bolt.

3. The article of claim 2, wherein:

the set of one or more openings comprises a first elevation-plate-bolt opening (e.g., 313) for the first elevation-plate bolt; and

the elevation-plate interface comprises a second elevation-plate-bolt opening (e.g., 401) for a second elevation-plate bolt.

4. The article of claim 3, wherein:

the elevation-plate wall includes a thickened section (e.g., 314); and

the first elevation-plate -bolt opening is located in the thickened section of the elevation- plate wall.

5. The article of claim 1, wherein: the corresponding antenna includes a curved surface;

the antenna wall has a first antenna-facing surface;

the support structure has a second antenna-facing surface adjoining the first antenna- facing surface; and

the first and second antenna-facing surfaces are curved to match the curved surface of the corresponding antenna.

6. An antenna assembly comprising the article of claim 1, the corresponding antenna, and a radio (e.g. , 501) mounted to the mounting plate, wherein:

the radio and the spanning-section recess form a pocket (e.g. , 704); and

the mounting bolts of the subset of the mounting bolts are adjustable through the pocket.

7. The assembly of claim 6, further comprising the corresponding mounting base and a corresponding mounting clamp.

8. An antenna assembly comprising the article of claim 1, further comprising a radio module (e.g. , 804) comprising an adapter module (e.g., 802) and a first (e.g. , 801(l))and a second (e.g., 801(2)) radio, wherein:

the first and second radios are mounted to the adapter module;

the adapter module is mounted to the mounting plate;

the spanning-section recess and the radio module form a pocket (e.g. , 803); and the mounting bolts of the subset of the mounting bolts are adjustable through the pocket.

9. The article of claim 1, wherein:

the mounting plate has a top and a bottom;

the support structure extends to the bottom of the mounting plate; and

the spanning-section recess is open to the top of the mounting plate.

10. The article of claim 1, wherein:

the mounting plate has a top and a bottom;

the support structure extends to the top of the mounting plate; and

the spanning-section recess is open to the bottom of the mounting plate.

11. The article of claim 1, wherein the elevation-plate wall is part of the elevation-plate interface.

12. The article of claim 11, wherein the support- structure wall is part of the support structure.

13. The article of claim 1, wherein the subset of the mounting bolts that is adjustable through the spanning-section recess includes a pivot bolt.

14. The article of claim 13, wherein:

the opening for the pivot bolt has a center point;

the antenna wall has an intersection with the elevation-plate wall;

the support structure has an intersection with the elevation-plate interface;

the antenna wall has a first thickness (e.g. , 405) at its intersection with the elevation-plate wall;

the support structure has a second thickness (e.g. , 406) at its intersection with the elevation-plate interface;

the elevation-plate wall has a top and an antenna-facing side;

the elevation-plate wall has a first point (e.g. , 404) on its top that is a first thickness from its antenna-facing side;

a second point (e.g. , 407) is the second thickness from the antenna-facing side of the elevation-plate wall along an extension of the top of the elevation-plate wall; and

an angle formed by the first point, the center point, and the second point is at least thirty degrees.

15. A method of mounting an antenna, the method comprising:

mounting the antenna on an antenna-coupling ring of a corresponding mounting plate; and attaching the mounting plate to a corresponding mounting base, wherein:

the mounting plate comprises an elevation-plate interface adapted to interface with and attach to the elevation plate of the corresponding mounting base;

the antenna-coupling ring is adapted to interface with and attach to the corresponding antenna;

the mounting plate comprises a spanning section connecting the elevation-plate interface to the antenna-coupling ring; the spanning section comprises (1) a support structure and (2) a spanning-section recess;

the spanning-section recess has an elevation-plate wall, a support-structure wall, and an antenna wall;

the elevation-plate wall has a set of one or more openings for a corresponding set of mounting bolts; and

a subset of the mounting bolts is adjustable through the spanning-section recess.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising turning at least one mounting bolt of the subset of the mounting bolts using an adjustment tool moving through the spanning-section recess, wherein:

a radio is mounted to the mounting plate; and

the radio forms a fourth wall for the spanning-section recess.