University of Kent, School of Engineering, Antennas Group, Reader in Antenna Technology
Dr John Batchelor heads the Antennas Group at Kent and is a Reader in Antenna Technology. His main research interests include Body Centric antennas and communications, Frequency Selective Surface integration with buildings and UHF RFID tagging, especially of people. His group's body centric research has produced a dual band monopole antenna with the profile of a metal jeans button which was mentioned in the House of Lords and was also the subject of an enquiry from NASA. Other wearable antenna designs from Kent include a belt buckle antenna and various wide band monopoles. In 2009 he was awarded EPSRC funding to develop motion captured avatars to enhance the modelling of human mounted RF channels. This work is being carried out with the University of Sheffield and Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital. His wearable RFID work has resulted in various ultrathin passive tags that can operate close to human tissue and ultimately to a design capable of being mounted as a transfer tattoo directly on the skin surface. He has been awarded various EPSRC projects and industrial contracts and has acted as a consultant to industry and government agencies. He is frequently invited presentations on his various research interests and in 2009 he co-chaired the Loughborough Antenna and Propagation Conference.
