Array Antenna

Abstract

The present invention relates to an array antenna, comprising an antenna vibrator module, a shielding cavity and a dielectric filter module. The feed network circuit layer can be formed on the surface of a dielectric substrate by means of coating or the like. Therefore, it is equivalent to integrating the feed network and the radiation unit in a traditional antenna on a dielectric substrate. During assembly, there is no need to perform operations such as welding and screwing of the feed network, which is conducive to simplifying the structure. Furthermore, the shielding cavity provides a shielding effect for the dielectric filter module accommodated therein, so a plurality of dielectric filter modules cooperate with the shielding cavity to be functionally equivalent to a plurality of traditional dielectric filters. Moreover, at least two dielectric filter modules are accommodated in each shielding cavity, so the number of shielding cavities can be much less than the number of dielectric filter modules. Compared with the traditional method of directly installing dielectric filters, more metal shielding cavities can be omitted. Therefore, the above-mentioned array antenna can be lightweight.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of mobile communication technology, and in particular to an array antenna. Background Art

[0002] After several years of development, 5G mobile communication technology has accumulated certain technical experience. 5G antennas generally use large-scale array antennas with multiple signal channels, so the number of corresponding components, such as RF components and radiation units, has also increased further. The current mainstream 5G large-scale array antennas mainly use sheet metal, die-casting or PCB vibrators as radiation units, supplemented by PCB boards for feeding. In addition, additional RF components such as filters are welded and installed on the back of the antenna to achieve the corresponding antenna indicators.

[0003] Several necessary parts of existing antennas are generally assembled separately and finally assembled into a complete device through screws and rivets. Since the array antenna has many components, the existing antenna assembly method is not only complicated to assemble, but also leads to a large volume and heavy weight of the antenna. Summary of the invention

[0004] Based on this, it is necessary to provide a lightweight array antenna.

[0005] An array antenna, comprising:

[0006] The antenna dipole module comprises a dielectric substrate, a feed network circuit layer formed on the surface of the dielectric substrate, and a plurality of radiation units arranged on one side of the dielectric substrate and fed by the feed network circuit layer;

[0007] A shielding cavity is formed on a side of the dielectric substrate facing away from the radiation unit; and

[0008] A plurality of dielectric filter modules are arranged in the shielding cavity, and each of the shielding cavity contains at least two of the dielectric filter modules, and the output end of each of the dielectric filter modules is electrically connected to the feed network circuit layer.

[0009] In one of the embodiments, the dielectric substrate includes a feed substrate and a radiation substrate located on one side of the feed substrate and integrally formed with the feed substrate, the feed network circuit layer is formed on the surface of the feed substrate, and the surface of the radiation substrate is covered with a metal layer to form the radiation unit.

[0010] In one of the embodiments, the feed network circuit layer is located on a surface of the feed substrate facing away from the radiation unit;

[0011] Alternatively, the feed network circuit layer is located on a surface of the feed substrate facing the radiation unit.

[0012] In one of the embodiments, a circuit board is further included, and a plurality of the dielectric filter modules are integrated on the circuit board, and output ends of the plurality of the dielectric filter modules are electrically connected to the feed network circuit layer through the circuit board.

[0013] In one of the embodiments, RF connectors and feeding pins corresponding to the plurality of dielectric filter modules are respectively provided on opposite sides of the circuit board, and the feeding network circuit layer is formed with a feeding hole, and the feeding pin is inserted into the feeding hole to electrically connect the plurality of dielectric filter modules with the feeding network circuit layer.

[0014] In one of the embodiments, a reflective plate is further included, and the reflective plate is attached to a side of the dielectric substrate facing away from the radiation unit.

[0015] In one of the embodiments, a surface of the dielectric substrate facing the reflector is formed with raised ribs, and the ribs are in contact with the reflector.

[0016] In one of the embodiments, a shielding cover with an opening on one side is further included. The shielding cover is disposed on a surface of the reflector plate facing away from the antenna vibrator module and cooperates with the reflector plate to form the shielding cavity.

[0017] In one of the embodiments, the end surface of the opening of the shielding cover is covered with conductive glue.

[0018] In one of the embodiments, the inner wall of the shielding cover is provided with conductive foam abutting against the dielectric filter module.

[0019] In the above-mentioned array antenna, the feed network circuit layer can be formed on the surface of the dielectric substrate by coating or the like. Therefore, it is equivalent to integrating the feed network and the radiation unit in the traditional antenna on the dielectric substrate. During assembly, there is no need to perform operations such as welding and screwing of the feed network, which is conducive to simplifying the structure. Furthermore, the shielding cavity provides a shielding effect for the dielectric filter module accommodated inside, so the combination of multiple dielectric filter modules and the shielding cavity can be functionally equivalent to multiple traditional dielectric filters. Moreover, each shielding cavity accommodates at least two dielectric filter modules, so the number of shielding cavities can be much less than the number of dielectric filter modules. Compared with the traditional method of directly installing dielectric filters, more metal shielding cavities can be omitted. Therefore, the above-mentioned array antenna can be lightweight. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of an array antenna in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2 for Figure 1 An exploded view of one angle of the array antenna shown;

[0022] Figure 3 for Figure 1 An exploded view of the array antenna from another angle;

[0023] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of one surface of an antenna vibrator module in one embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 for Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of another surface of the antenna element module shown;

[0025] Figure 6 A schematic structural diagram of one surface of an antenna vibrator module in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 7 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the structure of the shielding cover in the array antenna shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In order to facilitate the understanding of the present invention, the present invention will be described more fully below with reference to the relevant drawings. Preferred embodiments of the present invention are provided in the drawings. However, the present invention can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the understanding of the disclosure of the present invention more thorough and comprehensive.

[0028] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "fixed to" another element, it may be directly on the other element or there may be a central element. When an element is considered to be "connected to" another element, it may be directly connected to the other element or there may be a central element at the same time. The terms "vertical", "horizontal", "left", "right" and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only.

[0029] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art of the present invention. The terms used herein in the specification of the present invention are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more related listed items.

[0030] See also Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 3 The array antenna 10 in a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes an antenna element module 100 , a shielding cavity 200 and a dielectric filter module 300 .

[0031] Please also read Figure 4 and Figure 5 The antenna element module 100 includes a dielectric substrate 110, a feed network circuit layer 120 and a radiation unit 130. The antenna element module 100 generally has multiple signal channels. For example, 32 channels and 64 channels are common. Each signal channel includes at least one radiation unit 130. Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, the number of the radiation units 130 is 96, and each signal channel includes 3 radiation units 130. Therefore, the array antenna 10 is a 32-channel antenna.

[0032] The dielectric substrate 110 is an integrally formed structure, and its material can be plastic, resin, etc. Usually, the dielectric substrate 110 is integrally formed by injection molding. The feed network circuit layer 120 is formed on the surface of the dielectric substrate 110. The feed network circuit layer 120 can integrate functional circuits such as a power distribution circuit and a filter circuit, and can be used to feed the radiation unit 120, so it is equivalent to a traditional feed network. Specifically, the feed network circuit layer 120 can be formed on the surface of the dielectric substrate 110 by selective electroplating, LDS (laser direct structuring technology) and other surface metal forming methods, and its material can be good conductors such as copper and silver.

[0033] The radiation unit 130 is used to receive and radiate electromagnetic wave signals outward, and generally adopts a dual-polarization radiation unit. The radiation unit 130 is arranged on one side of the dielectric substrate 110 and is fed by the feeding network circuit layer 120. Among them, the feeding network circuit layer 120 can directly feed the radiation unit 130, or can be coupled to feed. Specifically, when the feeding network circuit layer 120 is formed, the feeding structure circuit layer 140 can also be formed on the dielectric substrate 110 at the same time. The feeding structure circuit layer 140 is supported by the dielectric substrate 110, which is equivalent to a traditional feeding balun and feeding column.

[0034] Each array antenna 10 may include only one antenna element module 100, that is, multiple radiation units 130 are arranged on the same dielectric substrate 110; or may include multiple antenna element modules 100, that is, multiple radiation units 130 are arranged on different dielectric substrates 110 and then spliced. Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, specifically in this embodiment, each array antenna 10 includes 8 antenna element modules 100, and each dielectric substrate 110 is provided with 12 radiation units 130. The 8 dielectric substrates 110 are spliced ​​together to form an antenna element module 100 with 96 radiation units 130.

[0035] The radiation unit 130 can be in the form of a metal vibrator structure, a PCB vibrator structure, a plastic metallized vibrator, a metal layered structure, etc. Figure 4 and Figure 5In one embodiment, the dielectric substrate 110 includes a feed substrate 111 and a radiation substrate 113 located on one side of the feed substrate 111 and integrally formed with the feed substrate 111. The feed network circuit layer 120 is formed on the surface of the feed substrate 111, and the surface of the radiation substrate 113 is covered with a metal layer (not shown) to form a radiation unit 130.

[0036] Specifically, the metal layer can also be formed by selective electroplating, LDS (laser direct structuring technology) and other surface metal forming methods. The radiation substrate 113 supports the metal layer and forms the radiation unit 130 together with the metal layer. At this time, the radiation unit 130 and the dielectric substrate 110 form an integrated structure. In other words, the dielectric substrate 110 can be integrated with the traditional radiation unit and the feeding network at the same time, so the structure of the antenna vibrator module 100 can be simplified, and its volume and mass can be significantly reduced.

[0037] The radiation substrate 113 may be a hollow columnar protrusion formed by a local depression of the feed substrate 111. The metal layer forming the radiation unit 130 is attached to the outer surface of the columnar protrusion. Specifically, the hollow columnar protrusion may be in a cubic or cylindrical shape, that is, its cross section is rectangular or circular. Among them, the feed structure circuit layer 140 may be supported by the inner wall of the columnar protrusion and extend toward the radiation unit 130 along the inner wall. By forming the support structure of the radiation unit 130 by making a local depression on the feed substrate 111, the structure of the dielectric substrate 110 may be more reasonable and the yield rate of injection molding may be better.

[0038] Furthermore, the feed network circuit layer 120 and the radiation unit 130 may be located on the same side of the dielectric substrate 110, or on two different sides. Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, in one embodiment, the feed network circuit layer 120 is located on the surface of the feed substrate 111 facing away from the radiation unit 130. At this time, the feed network circuit layer 120 and the feed structure circuit layer 140 can be integrally formed.

[0039] like Figure 6 As shown, in another embodiment, the feed network circuit layer 120 is located on the surface of the feed substrate 111 facing the radiation unit 130. At this time, the feed network circuit layer 120 and the feed structure circuit layer 140 can be electrically connected by opening metallized vias.

[0040] Please refer again Figures 1 to 3, the shielding cavity 200 is formed on the side of the dielectric substrate 110 facing away from the radiation unit 130. The shielding cavity 200 can be a closed cavity structure installed on one side of the dielectric substrate 110 by welding, screwing, etc.; it can also be a cavity structure with shielding function obtained by integrally forming with the dielectric substrate 110 and metallizing the surface; it can also be a closed cavity structure formed by cooperating with the dielectric substrate 110 in a semi-enclosed structure. The shielding cavity 200 can play the role of electrostatic shielding, which is equivalent to the metal shielding cavity of the traditional dielectric filter.

[0041] In this embodiment, the array antenna 10 further includes a reflector 500 , which is attached to a side of the dielectric substrate 110 facing away from the radiation unit 130 .

[0042] Specifically, the reflector 500 is generally a metal reflector that can reflect the electromagnetic wave signal multiple times, thereby enhancing the efficiency of signal transmission and reception of the radiation unit 130. The surface profile of the reflector 500 is generally roughly the same as the surface profile of the dielectric substrate 110, and the surfaces of the two are arranged relative to each other. The reflector 500 can be installed with the dielectric substrate 110 by screwing, welding, etc.

[0043] Please refer again Figure 6 In one embodiment, a surface of the dielectric substrate 110 facing the reflector 500 is formed with raised ribs 1112 , and the ribs 1112 abut against the reflector 500 .

[0044] Specifically, the ribs 1112 are formed on the feed substrate 111. The ribs 1112 may be distributed in a ring shape on the surface of the feed substrate 111, or may extend in a straight line on the surface of the feed substrate 111. On the one hand, the ribs 1112 may play a role in strengthening the mechanical strength of the feed substrate 111. On the other hand, the ribs 1112 may support the reflector 500, so that a stable gap is maintained between the reflector 500 and the feed substrate 111. When the feed network circuit layer 120 is located on the side of the feed substrate 111 facing away from the radiation unit 130, it can ensure that the feed network circuit layer 120 is isolated from the reflector 500.

[0045] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the array antenna 10 further includes a shielding cover 600 with an opening on one side. The shielding cover 600 covers the surface of the reflector 500 facing away from the antenna element module 100 and cooperates with the reflector 500 to form a shielding cavity 200 .

[0046] Specifically, the shielding cover 600 may be in the shape of a cube, a hemispherical shape, a semi-cylindrical shape, etc., with one side open. The shielding cover 600 may be directly formed of a metal material; or may be first formed of a dielectric material, and then the surface of the dielectric material may be metallized. The shielding cover 600 is generally fastened to the reflector 500 by screws. At this time, the reflector 500 serves as a side wall of the shielding cavity 200. Therefore, compared with a conventional metal shielding cavity, the shielding cover 600 may omit a side wall, so the weight may be further reduced.

[0047] Please also read Figure 7 Specifically in this embodiment, the end surface of the opening of the shielding cover 600 is covered with a conductive adhesive 610. The conductive adhesive 610 can make the edge of the opening of the shielding cover 600 have good contact, thereby ensuring the shielding effect of the shielding cavity 200.

[0048] The dielectric filter module 300 is equivalent to the filtering main structure of the conventional dielectric filter after omitting the metal shielding cavity. There are multiple dielectric filter modules 300, and the output end of each dielectric filter module 300 is electrically connected to the feed network circuit layer 120. The dielectric filter module 300 is used to filter the electromagnetic wave signal received or radiated by each radiation unit 130. Therefore, the number of dielectric filter modules 300 corresponds to the number of signal channels of the array antenna 10. For example, Figure 1 The array antenna 10 shown has 32 signal channels, so the number of dielectric filter modules 300 is 32.

[0049] Furthermore, a plurality of dielectric filter modules 300 are disposed in the shielding cavity 200, and each shielding cavity 200 contains at least two dielectric filter modules 300. Depending on the size of the antenna, each array antenna 10 may include one or more shielding cavities 200. For example, Figure 1 The array antenna 10 shown includes two shielding cavities 200 , and each shielding cavity 200 contains 16 filter modules 300 .

[0050] That is to say, one shielding cavity 200 can provide electrostatic shielding for multiple dielectric filter modules 300, so the number of shielding cavities 200 can be much less than the number of dielectric filter modules 300. In the conventional technology, for a 32-channel antenna, 32 filters need to be installed, and each filter has a metal shielding cavity. In this solution, for a 32-channel array antenna 10, only two shielding cavities 200 are required. Therefore, compared with the conventional method, the array antenna 100 can omit more metal shielding cavities, thereby simplifying the installation operation and reducing the mass.

[0051] Please refer again Figure 7Specifically in this embodiment, the inner wall of the shielding cover 600 is provided with a conductive foam 620 that abuts against the dielectric filter module 300 .

[0052] The conductive foam 620 can extend along the length direction of the shielding cover 600, thereby covering all dielectric filter modules 300 in the shielding cavity 200. Therefore, the conductive foam 620 can connect the shielding cover 600 to the surface of each dielectric filter module 300, so that each dielectric filter module 300 is well grounded, thereby suppressing high-frequency clutter caused by surface current radiation.

[0053] In this embodiment, the array antenna 10 further includes a circuit board 400 , and the plurality of dielectric filter modules 300 are integrated on the circuit board 400 . The output ends of the plurality of dielectric filter modules 300 are electrically connected to the feed network circuit layer 120 through the circuit board 400 .

[0054] A plurality of dielectric filter modules 300 can be positioned and welded on the circuit board 400 first, and then the circuit board 400 integrated with the dielectric filter modules 300 is connected to the feed network circuit layer 120 as a whole. Therefore, it is only necessary to align the circuit board 400 as a whole with the feed network circuit layer 12, without repeatedly positioning each dielectric filter module 300, so that assembly can be more convenient. Among them, the number of circuit boards 400 can be the same as the number of shielding cavities 200, and all dielectric filter modules 300 can also be integrated on the same circuit board 400.

[0055] Figures 1 to 3 The array antenna 10 shown is provided with two circuit boards 400 , and each circuit board 400 is integrated with 16 dielectric filter modules 300 . The shielding cavity 200 presses the corresponding circuit board 400 onto the reflector 500 .

[0056] Further, in the present embodiment, RF connectors 410 and feeding pins 420 are respectively provided on opposite sides of the circuit board 400, and the RF connectors 410 and feeding pins 420 correspond one to one with the plurality of dielectric filter modules 300. The feeding network circuit layer 120 is formed with a feeding hole (not shown), and the feeding pins 420 are inserted into the feeding hole to electrically connect the plurality of dielectric filter modules 300 with the feeding network circuit layer 120.

[0057] Specifically, the RF connector 410 and the feed pin 420 are respectively connected to the input and output ends of the corresponding dielectric filter module 300. The feed hole on the feed network circuit layer 120 can be a metalized via that is conductive. Moreover, the position of the feed hole corresponds to the position of the feed pin 420. A avoidance hole (not shown) for avoiding the feed pin 420 is provided on the reflector 500. During assembly, the feed pin 420 is inserted into the corresponding feed hole, so that the positioning and installation of the circuit board 400 can be quickly realized, so the assembly is more convenient.

[0058] The RF connector 410 can be matched with the plug interface of the coaxial feeder to facilitate the actual connection between the dielectric filter module 300 and the signal transceiver of the base station. The RF connector 410 generally extends out of the shielding cavity 200, and the side wall of the shielding cavity 200 is provided with a through hole 210 for the RF connector 410 to pass through.

[0059] In the above array antenna 10, the feed network circuit layer 120 can be formed on the surface of the dielectric substrate 110 by coating or other methods. Therefore, it is equivalent to integrating the feed network and the radiation unit 130 in the traditional antenna on the dielectric substrate 110. During assembly, there is no need to perform operations such as welding and screwing of the feed network, which is conducive to simplifying the structure. Furthermore, the shielding cavity 200 provides a shielding effect for the dielectric filter module 300 accommodated inside, so the combination of multiple dielectric filter modules 300 and the shielding cavity 200 can be functionally equivalent to multiple traditional dielectric filters. Moreover, each shielding cavity 200 accommodates at least two dielectric filter modules 300, so the number of shielding cavities 200 can be much less than the number of dielectric filter modules 300. Compared with the traditional method of directly installing dielectric filters, more metal shielding cavities can be omitted. Therefore, the above array antenna 10 can achieve lightweight.

[0060] The technical features of the above-described embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above-described embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0061] The above-mentioned embodiments only express several implementation methods of the present invention, and the descriptions thereof are relatively specific and detailed, but they cannot be understood as limiting the scope of the invention patent. It should be pointed out that, for ordinary technicians in this field, several variations and improvements can be made without departing from the concept of the present invention, and these all belong to the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the patent of the present invention shall be subject to the attached claims.

Claims

1. An array antenna, characterized in that: include: The antenna dipole module comprises a dielectric substrate, a feed network circuit layer and a feed structure circuit layer formed on the surface of the dielectric substrate, and a plurality of radiation units arranged on one side of the dielectric substrate and fed by the feed network circuit layer; Circuit boards; A reflector, the reflector being attached to a side of the dielectric substrate facing away from the radiation unit; A shielding cover with an opening on one side, the shielding cover is provided on the surface of the reflector facing away from the antenna vibrator module, and cooperates with the reflector to form a shielding cavity, the shielding cavity is formed on the side of the dielectric substrate facing away from the radiation unit; and A plurality of dielectric filter modules are arranged in the shielding cavity, the dielectric filter module is a filtering main body structure after omitting the metal shielding cavity, the plurality of dielectric filter modules are integrated in the circuit board, and the output ends of the plurality of dielectric filter modules are electrically connected to the feed network circuit layer through the circuit board, and at least two dielectric filter modules are accommodated in each of the shielding cavities, and the output end of each dielectric filter module is electrically connected to the feed network circuit layer; Wherein, the dielectric substrate includes a feed substrate and a radiation substrate located on one side of the feed substrate and integrally formed with the feed substrate, the feed network circuit layer is formed on the surface of the feed substrate, and the surface of the radiation substrate is covered with a metal layer to form the radiation unit; the radiation substrate is formed by a local depression of the feed substrate to form a hollow columnar protrusion, and the metal layer forming the radiation unit is attached to the outer surface of the columnar protrusion; the feed structure circuit layer is supported by the inner wall of the columnar protrusion and extends toward the radiation unit along the inner wall.

2. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The feed network circuit layer and the feed structure circuit layer are integrally formed.

3. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The feed network circuit layer is located on a surface of the feed substrate facing away from the radiation unit.

4. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The feeding network circuit layer is located on a surface of the feeding substrate facing the radiation unit.

5. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The shielding cavity is a closed cavity structure installed on one side of the dielectric substrate by welding or screwing.

6. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: Radio frequency connectors and feeding pins corresponding to the plurality of dielectric filter modules are respectively arranged on opposite sides of the circuit board, and a feeding hole is formed on the feeding network circuit layer, and the feeding pin is inserted into the feeding hole to electrically connect the plurality of dielectric filter modules with the feeding network circuit layer.

7. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: A surface of the dielectric substrate facing the reflector is formed with raised ribs, and the ribs abut against the reflector.

8. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the array antennas includes only one antenna vibrator module, and multiple radiation units are arranged on the same dielectric substrate; or each of the array antennas includes multiple antenna vibrator modules, and multiple radiation units are arranged on different dielectric substrates and then spliced.

9. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The end surface of the shielding cover opening is covered with conductive glue.

10. The array antenna according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inner wall of the shielding case is provided with conductive foam that abuts against the dielectric filter module.

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