Antenna device and electronic equipment

Abstract

An antenna device and an electronic device are disclosed. The antenna device comprises: an antenna element; a non-antenna element; and a flexible circuit board, wherein the antenna element and the non-antenna element are placed together on the flexible circuit board, the antenna element and the non-antenna element are capacitively coupled, and the flexible circuit board is used to be placed above a printed circuit board of an electronic device and separated from the printed circuit board, so that the antenna element and the non-antenna element are capacitively coupled to the printed circuit board respectively.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of antenna technology, and more particularly, to an antenna device and an electronic device. Background Art

[0002] Antennas are a component of wireless communication devices. However, since antennas process electromagnetic waves, their design is affected and restricted by many factors.

[0003] With the popularization of electronic devices such as smart terminal devices, users have increasingly higher demands for communication functions of electronic devices. Antennas are an indispensable component of electronic devices such as smart terminal devices and are receiving increasing attention.

[0004] Miniaturization is a trend in the development of smart terminal devices. Typically, electronic devices like these include screens, motors, batteries, touchpads, and other components with high metal content, which further squeezes the space for antennas. In electronic devices like these, antenna design and the space available for them are subject to numerous limitations. Summary of the Invention

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a new technical solution for an antenna device.

[0006] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an antenna device comprising: an antenna element; a non-antenna element; and a flexible circuit board, wherein the antenna element and the non-antenna element are placed together on the flexible circuit board, the antenna element and the non-antenna element forming a coupling capacitor, and the flexible circuit board is configured to be placed above a printed circuit board of an electronic device and separated from the printed circuit board, so that the antenna element and the non-antenna element respectively form coupling capacitors with the printed circuit board.

[0007] According to a second aspect of the present invention, an electronic device is provided, comprising: a housing; an antenna device according to claim 1; and a printed circuit board, wherein the antenna device and the printed circuit board are placed in the housing; wherein at least a portion of the electronic components of the electronic device are placed on the printed circuit board; wherein the flexible circuit board of the antenna device is placed above the printed circuit board and separated from the printed circuit board, so that the antenna element and non-antenna element of the antenna device respectively form coupling capacitances with the printed circuit board.

[0008] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the coupling capacitance between the antenna and other elements is effectively utilized to adjust the matching impedance of the antenna, thereby improving the radiation efficiency of the antenna.

[0009] Further features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

[0011] Figure 1 The figure schematically shows a three-dimensional diagram of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0012] Figure 2 A schematic top view of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0013] Figure 3 FIG. 4 shows a schematic equivalent circuit diagram of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 4 A schematic return loss waveform diagram of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0015] Figure 5 A schematic top view of an antenna device according to another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0016] Figure 6 FIG2 schematically shows a schematic side view of an antenna device according to yet another embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 7 A schematic top view of an antenna device according to yet another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0018] Figure 8 An electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] Various exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that unless otherwise specifically stated, the relative arrangement of components and steps, numerical expressions and numerical values ​​set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of the present invention.

[0020] The following description of at least one exemplary embodiment is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention, its application, or uses.

[0021] Technologies, methods, and equipment known to ordinary technicians in the relevant art may not be discussed in detail, but where appropriate, the technologies, methods, and equipment should be considered part of the specification.

[0022] In all examples shown and discussed herein, any specific values ​​should be interpreted as merely exemplary and not limiting. Therefore, other examples of the exemplary embodiments may have different values.

[0023] It should be noted that like reference numerals and letters refer to like items in the following figures, and therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it need not be further discussed in subsequent figures.

[0024] Figure 1 The figure schematically shows a three-dimensional diagram of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 A schematic top view of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0025] like Figure 1 As shown, the antenna device 200 includes: an antenna element 201 and a non-antenna element. Figure 2 As shown, the antenna device 200 further includes a flexible circuit board 204. Figure 1 The flexible circuit board 204 is not shown.

[0026] like Figure 2 As shown, the antenna element 201 and the non-antenna element 202 are placed together on the flexible circuit board 204. The antenna element 201 and the non-antenna element 202 form a coupling capacitor. Figure 1 As shown, flexible circuit board 204 is configured to be placed above and separated from printed circuit board 101 of an electronic device, so that antenna element 201 and non-antenna element 202 each form coupling capacitance with the printed circuit board. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the term "forming coupling capacitance" here refers to the antenna, and refers to coupling capacitance that can affect desired antenna characteristics.

[0027] As described in the background, electronic devices such as smart terminal devices include screens, motors, batteries, touchpads, and other devices with high metal content. These devices are all capable of forming coupling capacitance with antenna elements and can serve as the non-antenna elements described herein. For electronic devices in smart terminal devices, the touchpad (or touch screen) typically occupies a large space in the electronic device and is more likely to generate coupling capacitance with the antenna. Therefore, in one example, the non-antenna element is a touchpad. The touchpad may include a touch screen with touch functionality. Other electronic components can be attached to a printed circuit board (PCB) serving as the main board. The antenna element forms coupling capacitance with the non-antenna element and the main board, respectively. In the prior art, to avoid affecting the antenna characteristics, the coupling capacitance between the antenna element and other components or the PCB is usually minimized. However, here, the coupling between the antenna element and other components is used to design the radiation characteristics of the antenna.

[0028] Here, the antenna element and non-antenna elements such as a touch pad are placed together on the same flexible circuit board, which can effectively utilize the coupling effect between the antenna and the non-antenna elements to improve the efficiency of the antenna.

[0029] like Figure 1 、 2 As shown, antenna element 201 and non-antenna element 202 are connected to printed circuit board 101 via spring clips or pressure welding (eg, copper foil) 203. Here, a combination of spring clips or pressure welding and flexible circuit boards can be used to increase design flexibility.

[0030] Figure 3 FIG. 4 shows a schematic equivalent circuit diagram of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Antenna element 201 can be equivalent to inductor L. The coupling capacitance between antenna element 201 and printed circuit board 101 is C1. Due to the presence of the gap, the coupling capacitance between antenna element 201 and non-antenna element 202 is C2. The coupling capacitance between non-antenna element 202 and printed circuit board 101 is C3. These elements form a resonant circuit. The resonant frequency of this resonant circuit is:

[0032] A monopole antenna is used here. However, other forms of antennas can also be designed as needed. The inductor L and / or coupling capacitors C1, C2, and C3 can be adjusted by adjusting the length, width, and distance between the antenna elements, thereby adjusting the resonant frequency of the antenna device. For example, by appropriately adjusting the width and / or length of the gap between the monopole antenna element 201 and the touch panel 202, the size of the coupling capacitor C2 can be adjusted. In a Bluetooth smart bracelet application, in this way, the resonant frequency of the antenna device of the Bluetooth smart bracelet can be set within the range of 2.4GHz-2.5GHz.

[0033] Unlike existing designs that minimize coupling capacitance between antenna elements and other components, the presence of coupling capacitance increases distributed capacitance and reduces distributed inductance. This converts some inductive reactance into capacitive reactance, creating resonance. This reduces the Q factor and broadens the antenna bandwidth.

[0034] Figure 4 A schematic return loss waveform diagram of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Figure 4 This is a schematic return loss waveform diagram of the antenna device of the Bluetooth smart bracelet.

[0035] The inventors have made an exemplary antenna device according to the embodiments herein. Here, the operating frequency band of the antenna device 200 is the Bluetooth frequency band, that is, in the range of 2.4GHz-2.5GHz. The size of the printed circuit board is 30mm*12mm. The size of the touch pad as a non-antenna element is 10mm*6mm. The gap between the touch pad and the antenna element is a mm, where 0.5mm≤a≤1.5mm. a can be varied in the range of 0.5mm to 1.5mm to adjust the size of the coupling capacitance C2 between the antenna element and the touch pad. The height of the antenna element to the surface of the printed circuit board is 2.5mm. As Figure 4 As shown, when a monopole antenna element is used, the resonant frequency of the antenna device can be set within the range of 2.4 GHz-2.5 GHz, and the antenna device has a good Q value and a wide antenna bandwidth.

[0036] Table 1 lists the hand model efficiency of the exemplary antenna device.

[0037] Table 1

[0038] Frequency (MHz) Efficiency (dB) efficiency(%) 2400 -9.2 12.0 2410 -9.2 12.1 2420 -9.1 12.4 2430 -9.1 12.4 2440 -9.0 12.6 2450 -8.9 12.8 2460 -8.9 13.0 2470 -8.8 13.2 2480 -8.8 13.2 2490 -8.8 13.1 2500 -8.8 13.1

[0039] Here, the antenna device has relatively ideal antenna efficiency.

[0040] Figure 5The schematic top view of the antenna device according to another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. Figure 1 、 2 The description of the element is the same as the element in the .

[0041] In this embodiment, the antenna device 200 may further include a first driver. The driver drives at least one of the antenna element 201, the non-antenna element 202, and the flexible printed circuit board 204 to adjust the relative positions between the antenna element 201, the non-antenna element 202, and the printed circuit board 101, thereby adjusting the coupling capacitance between the antenna element 201, the non-antenna element 202, and the printed circuit board 101. Those skilled in the art will understand that the relative position adjustment herein refers to the relative position adjustment between any two elements among the antenna element 201, the non-antenna element 202, and the printed circuit board 101, and does not require adjustment of all relative positions.

[0042] like Figure 5 As shown, the driver includes a rotary motor 205. This motor 205 is connected to a rotary shaft 206 to drive the shaft's rotation. The rotary shaft 206 is attached to the antenna portion of the flexible printed circuit board 204 corresponding to the antenna element 201, and rotates the antenna portion to change the coupling capacitance. The flexibility of the flexible printed circuit board can be leveraged to adjust the coupling capacitance between components, thereby increasing design flexibility.

[0043] Figure 7 A schematic top view of an antenna device according to yet another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. Figure 6 The schematic side view of an antenna device according to another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. Figure 1 、 2 , Description of the same elements as those in 5.

[0044] like Figure 6 、 7 As shown, the antenna device 200 further includes a dielectric plate 207 . The dielectric plate 207 is placed between the antenna element 201 and / or the non-antenna element 202 and the printed circuit board 101 . The dielectric plate 207 can be used to support the flexible circuit board 204 .

[0045] By using a dielectric board, the electrical distance between the antenna element 201 and / or the non-antenna element 202 and the printed circuit board 101 can be adjusted, thereby achieving a larger coupling capacitance in a smaller space.

[0046] like Figure 7As shown, antenna device 200 may further include a second driver 208. Second driver 208 drives dielectric plate 207 to change the area of ​​overlap between dielectric plate 207 and antenna element 201 and / or non-antenna element 202 in the projection direction of printed circuit board 101. In this way, the coupling capacitance between antenna element 201 and / or non-antenna element 202 and printed circuit board 101 can be adjusted.

[0047] like Figure 7 As shown, the medium plate 207 may include a toothed belt 210. The second driver 208 engages with the toothed belt 210 on the medium plate 207 via a gear 209 to drive the medium plate 207.

[0048] For smaller electronic devices, such as smart watches, the antenna element settings may sometimes deviate. In addition, the antenna frequencies of other electronic devices connected to such electronic devices may also deviate. In such cases, if the antenna device of the electronic device can be fine-tuned, the performance of the electronic device can be improved. For example, such adjustments can improve communication efficiency and save power consumption of the antenna device. Figure 5-7 In an embodiment, such adjustment can be achieved, thereby improving the performance of the electronic device.

[0049] Furthermore, a larger adjustment range can be set for each application, so that an antenna device can be switched between different frequency bands as needed, thus realizing a so-called intelligent antenna device.

[0050] In addition, those skilled in the art should understand that Figure 5 The embodiment can be Figure 6 、 7 In this case, the first driver 205 and the second driver 208 can be combined into one driver, thereby reducing the number of components in the electronic device. However, providing two drivers can also achieve more adjustment methods.

[0051] Figure 8 An electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0052] The electronic device 300 includes: a housing (the upper housing is shown in the figure) 301; an antenna device 200 according to the embodiment of the present invention; and a printed circuit board 101. The antenna device 200 and the printed circuit board 101 are placed in the housing 301. Figure 8At least some of the electronic components of electronic device 300 are placed on printed circuit board 101. Flexible circuit board 204 of antenna device 200 is placed above and separated from printed circuit board 101, so that antenna element 201 and non-antenna elements of antenna device 200 form coupling capacitances with printed circuit board 101.

[0053] exist Figure 8 In FIG, the antenna element and the touch panel 202 are arranged together on the flexible circuit board. Figure 8 Also shown in FIG. 3 is a screen 302 .

[0054] exist Figure 8 In the embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device 300 is exemplarily shown as a smart wristband. The non-antenna element is the touch panel 202.

[0055] Here, although the electronic device is described by taking a smart bracelet as an example, those skilled in the art should understand that the electronic device is not limited to a smart bracelet, but may also be other electronic devices, such as a television, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a mobile phone, etc.

[0056] Although some specific embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail through examples, those skilled in the art should understand that the above examples are only for illustration and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An antenna device, comprising: Antenna elements; Non-antenna elements; as well as Flexible circuit boards, The antenna element and the non-antenna element are placed together on the flexible circuit board, the antenna element and the non-antenna element form a coupling capacitor, the flexible circuit board is used to be placed above a printed circuit board of an electronic device and separated from the printed circuit board, so that the antenna element and the non-antenna element respectively form a coupling capacitor with the printed circuit board, and the radiation characteristics of the antenna device are designed by adjusting the coupling capacitors between the antenna element, the non-antenna element and the printed circuit board, and the gap between the non-antenna element and the antenna element is a mm, wherein 0.5 mm ≤ a ≤ 1.5 mm, It also includes: a first driver, wherein the driver drives at least one of the antenna element, the non-antenna element and the flexible circuit board to adjust the relative position between the antenna element, the non-antenna element and the printed circuit board, thereby adjusting the coupling capacitance between the antenna element, the non-antenna element and the printed circuit board.

2. The antenna device according to claim 1, wherein: The non-antenna element is a touch pad.

3. The antenna device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The antenna element and the non-antenna element are connected to the printed circuit board by means of springs or pressure welding.

4. The antenna device according to claim 1, wherein: The driver includes a rotary motor connected to a rotary shaft to drive the rotary shaft to rotate, and The rotation shaft is attached to an antenna portion of the flexible circuit board corresponding to the antenna element, and causes the antenna portion to rotate to change the coupling capacitance.

5. An antenna device, comprising: Antenna elements; Non-antenna elements; as well as Flexible circuit boards, The antenna element and the non-antenna element are placed together on the flexible circuit board, the antenna element and the non-antenna element form a coupling capacitor, the flexible circuit board is used to be placed above a printed circuit board of an electronic device and separated from the printed circuit board, so that the antenna element and the non-antenna element respectively form a coupling capacitor with the printed circuit board, and the radiation characteristics of the antenna device are designed by adjusting the coupling capacitors between the antenna element, the non-antenna element and the printed circuit board, and the gap between the non-antenna element and the antenna element is a mm, wherein 0.5 mm ≤ a ≤ 1.5 mm, Also included: a dielectric plate, wherein the dielectric plate is placed between the antenna element and / or the non-antenna element and the printed circuit board; A second driver, wherein the second driver drives the dielectric plate to change an overlapping area of ​​the dielectric plate and the antenna element and / or the non-antenna element in a projection direction of the dielectric plate and the antenna element and / or the non-antenna element on the printed circuit board.

6. The antenna device according to claim 5, wherein: The non-antenna element is a touch pad.

7. The antenna device according to claim 5 or 6, wherein: The antenna element and the non-antenna element are connected to the printed circuit board by means of springs or pressure welding.

8. The antenna device according to claim 5, wherein: The medium plate includes a toothed belt, and the second driver is engaged with the toothed belt on the medium plate through a gear to drive the medium plate.

9. An electronic device, comprising: case; The antenna device according to claim 1 or 5; as well as Printed Circuit Boards, Wherein, the antenna device and the printed circuit board are placed in the housing; wherein at least a portion of electronic components of the electronic device are placed on the printed circuit board; The flexible circuit board of the antenna device is placed above the printed circuit board and separated from the printed circuit board, so that the antenna element and the non-antenna element of the antenna device form coupling capacitances with the printed circuit board respectively.

10. The electronic device according to claim 9, wherein: The electronic device is a smart bracelet, and the non-antenna element is a touch panel.

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