A device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna

Abstract

The present invention discloses a device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna, comprising an antenna cover and an upper end cover and a lower end cover installed at the upper end and the lower end of the antenna cover, wherein the antenna cover comprises a windward surface, and the upper end cover or the lower end cover comprises a bottom edge and a front contour surface, wherein the front contour surface is formed by bending and extending from the edge corresponding to the windward side of the bottom edge in the longitudinal direction and toward the center direction of the upper end cover or the lower end cover. The present invention provides some contour features on the end cover of the antenna cover, so that the fluid separation point is delayed to the tail of the antenna cover, thereby reducing the wind resistance of the antenna from the shape, thereby improving the reliability of the antenna and reducing the installation and fixing cost of the base station antenna.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of antenna systems, and in particular to a device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna. Background Art

[0002] At present, the mainstream model for building base station antennas is to use a steel structure single-tube communication tower. This tower type has the advantages of small construction radius, small project area, and fast construction progress, but it also has the disadvantages of low tower body stiffness and excessive horizontal displacement of the tower top. Base station antennas are usually installed at an altitude of tens of meters, and the wind speed at high altitude is higher, so higher requirements are placed on the reliability of the antenna.

[0003] The radome is a structure that protects the antenna system from the external environment. It has good electromagnetic wave penetration characteristics in terms of electrical performance, and can withstand the harsh external environment in terms of mechanical performance. In addition to providing reliable mechanical protection for the base station antenna, the cross-sectional design of the radome also affects the electrical performance.

[0004] At present, most of the antenna covers have a rectangular cross-section shape, which is a blunt body shape and will significantly increase the wind resistance of the base station antenna. In severe weather conditions such as strong winds, the large wind resistance will cause certain safety hazards to the antenna.

[0005] At present, the drag reduction method of the radome is mainly to change the cross-sectional shape of the radome to make the shape of the radome more in line with the fluid mechanics characteristics. Moreover, this implementation method only considers the direction of changing the cross-sectional area of ​​the antenna, without considering the influence of the longitudinal direction of the base station antenna. Summary of the invention

[0006] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the defects of the prior art and provide a device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna.

[0007] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention proposes the following technical solution: a device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna, comprising an antenna cover, and an upper end cover and a lower end cover respectively installed on the upper end and the lower end of the antenna cover, the antenna cover comprising a windward surface, the upper end cover or the lower end cover comprising a bottom edge and a front contour surface, the front contour surface is formed by bending and extending from the edge corresponding to the windward side of the bottom edge in the longitudinal direction and toward the center direction of the upper end cover or the lower end cover.

[0008] Preferably, the upper end cover or the lower end cover further includes a first transition contour surface extending from both ends of the front contour surface to both sides and away from the windward surface.

[0009] Preferably, the upper end cover or the lower end cover further comprises a bottom surface and a rear contour surface formed by the bottom edge, and the rear contour surface is integrally connected with the front contour surface and the first transition contour surfaces on both sides and is formed on the bottom surface.

[0010] Preferably, the upper end cover or the lower end cover also includes a top surface, a side contour surface and a rear contour surface, the longitudinal projection of the edge of the top surface is located within the edge of the bottom edge of the end cover, the rear contour surface is opposite to the front contour surface, the side contour surface connects the first transition contour surface and the rear contour surface, and the front contour surface, the first transition contour surface, the side contour surface and the rear contour surface are all extended from the corresponding edge of the bottom to the corresponding edge of the top surface.

[0011] Preferably, the upper end cover or the lower end cover further comprises a second transition profile surface between the side profile surface and the rear profile surface, and the upper end cover or the lower end cover is symmetrical along the transverse or longitudinal central axis.

[0012] Preferably, the antenna cover also includes a mounting surface opposite to the windward surface and two side surfaces connecting the windward surface and the mounting surface. The width of the mounting surface is greater than the width of the windward surface, so that the two side surfaces extend obliquely to both sides, and the cross-section of the entire antenna cover is roughly trapezoidal.

[0013] Preferably, the device further comprises a tail spoiler, which continues to extend backward from the connection between the two side surfaces of the radome and the mounting surface to form the tail spoiler.

[0014] Preferably, the radome further comprises two connecting surfaces connecting the mounting surface and the side surface, and the rear contour surface and at least one of the two connecting surfaces are configured as non-smooth surfaces.

[0015] Preferably, the non-smooth surface is achieved by arranging a plurality of vortex generators at intervals on the surface or by evenly arranging a plurality of uneven concave / convex structures.

[0016] Preferably, the vortex generators are protrusions arranged at intervals on the surface.

[0017] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0018] 1. The present invention provides some contour features on the end cover and the radome, so that the fluid separation point of the radome is delayed to the tail of the radome, thereby reducing the wind resistance of the antenna from the shape, which can not only improve the reliability of the antenna, but also reduce the installation and fixing cost of the base station antenna.

[0019] 2. In addition, the wind resistance of the antenna can be further reduced by combining the tail vortex drag reduction structure and the aerodynamic accessory drag reduction structure.

[0020] 3. The present invention can significantly suppress fluid separation in the longitudinal direction of the antenna cover without changing the cross-sectional shape of the antenna cover, so it can be compatible with various antenna cover cross-sections, has strong versatility, does not increase the size of the antenna, does not affect the internal layout space of the antenna, has good space utilization, and also has the advantages of easy installation, easy mass production, and good market application prospects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of a three-dimensional structure in which only a front contour surface is provided on the end cover of the antenna cover of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the split structure;

[0023] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of another embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the split structure;

[0025] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of a three-dimensional structure in which the end cover of the antenna cover of the present invention is a plane;

[0026] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the split structure;

[0027] Figure 7 yes Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a three-dimensional structure with an additional vortex generator;

[0028] Figure 8 yes Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the top view of the structure with a rear spoiler added;

[0029] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of the results obtained by computational fluid dynamics simulation of a conventional radome and an example radome of the present invention;

[0030] Reference numerals:

[0031] 10. Radome, 11. Windward surface, 12. Mounting surface, 13. Side surface, 14. Connecting surface, 20. Upper end cover, 30. Lower end cover, 41 / 41′, front contour surface, 42 / 42′, first transition contour surface, 44 / 44′, rear contour surface, 50, top surface, 62, second transition contour surface, 70, side contour surface, 80, vortex generator / protrusion, 90, tail spoiler. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the present invention.

[0033] The present invention discloses a device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna. By optimizing the shape of the antenna cover to have a low resistance, adding aerodynamic accessories to reduce the resistance, and using a tail vortex control to reduce the resistance, or a combination of two or more of these designs, the wind resistance of the base station antenna can be significantly reduced, thereby improving the reliability of the antenna and reducing the installation and fixing cost of the base station antenna.

[0034] Combination Figure 1 to Figure 4 As shown, a device for reducing the wind resistance of an antenna disclosed in the present invention includes a radome 10, an upper end cover 20 and a lower end cover 30, wherein the upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30 are respectively mounted on the upper end and the lower end of the radome 10.

[0035] The antenna cover 10 is formed in one step by a pultrusion process, and a receiving space for installing the antenna system is formed inside the antenna cover 10 to protect the antenna system from the influence of the external environment. Figure 2 As shown, the radome 10 specifically includes a windward surface 11, a mounting surface 12, two side surfaces 13 and four connecting surfaces 14, wherein the windward surface 11 is the radiation surface of the radome 10, the mounting surface 12 is arranged opposite to the windward surface 11, and is used to install the radome 10 on an antenna pole (not shown in the figure), the two side surfaces 13 are respectively located on both sides of the radome 10 and connect the windward surface 11 and the mounting surface 12, and the connecting corners between the windward surface 11 and the two side surfaces 13 and the connecting corners between the mounting surface 12 and the two side surfaces 13 are each connected by a connecting surface 14.

[0036] The connection surface 14 specifically extends from the top to the bottom of the radome 10, and the connection surface 14 is an arc surface convex toward the outside of the radome 10. The design of the arc surface can make the fluid smoothly transition at the connection corner of the radome 10, so that the wind does not separate at the connection corner of the radome 10. Preferably, the windward surface 11 of the radome can also be designed as an arc surface convex toward the outside of the radome 10. The design of the arc surface can make the wind quickly fit the radome 10 when it first hits the radome 10. In other embodiments, the cross-sections of the connection surface 14 and the windward surface 11 can also be other shapes that can reduce wind resistance, such as chamfers, tapered angles, or special-shaped angles, etc., which are not limited in the present invention.

[0037] The upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30 are processed by injection molding. Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30 are provided with a front profile surface 41 at least on the side close to the windward surface 11, and the front profile surface 41 is formed by the edge of the end cover close to the windward surface extending longitudinally and toward the center of the end cover. Figure 1As shown, the end cover specifically includes a front profile surface 41, a first transition profile surface 42 located on both sides of the front profile surface 41, and a rear profile surface, wherein the front profile surface 41 is formed by the edge of the end cover corresponding to the windward surface 11 bending and extending in the longitudinal direction and close to the center of the end cover, and the two first transition profile surfaces 42 are formed by the two ends of the front profile surface 41 extending to both sides and away from the windward surface 11. During implementation, the longitudinal section of the front profile surface 40 can be any one of a rounded corner, a chamfered corner, a tapered corner, and a special-shaped corner. In this embodiment, the front profile surface 40 is an arc surface. The bottom surface is located at the bottom of the end cover, and it covers the top or bottom of the radome 10. The front profile surface 41, the two first transition profile surfaces 42 and the rear profile surface are all formed on the bottom surface, and the rear profile surface is connected to the front profile surface 41 and the two first transition profile surfaces 42 on both sides as a whole and formed on the bottom surface.

[0038] In other alternative embodiments, in combination Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30 both include a top surface 50, a front contour surface 41', a first transition contour surface 42', a side contour surface 70, a rear contour surface 44' and a second transition contour surface 62, the top surface 50 is located above the bottom edge of the end cover and the longitudinal projection of the edge of the top surface 50 is located within the edge of the bottom edge of the end cover. Figure 1 The structures of the front profile surface 41 and the first transition profile surface 42 are the same, and are not described here. The side profile surface 70 is formed by the edge corresponding to the end cover and the side surface 13 extending in the longitudinal direction and close to the center of the end cover, and the side profile surface 70 connects the first transition profile surface 42', the second transition profile surface 62 and the top surface 50. The rear profile surface 44' is opposite to the front profile surface 40, and the rear profile surface 44' is formed by the edge corresponding to the end cover and the mounting surface 12 bending and extending in the longitudinal direction and close to the center of the end cover, and extending and connecting with the corresponding edge of the top surface 50. The two second transition profile surfaces 62 are formed by the edge corresponding to the end cover and the connecting surface 14 (specifically, the connecting surface connecting the mounting surface 12 and the side surface 13) bending and extending in the longitudinal direction and close to the center of the end cover. And the two second transition profile surfaces 62 connect the rear profile surface 44' and the side profile surface 70.

[0039] In practice, the longitudinal sections of the front contour surface 41', the rear contour surface 44' and the two side contour surfaces 70 can be any of rounded corners, chamfered corners, tapered corners and profiled corners. In this embodiment, the contour surfaces of the upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30 are both arc surfaces.

[0040] Combination Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, in other alternative embodiments, the upper end cover 20 or the lower end cover 30 may also be a planar structure.

[0041] The present invention sets some contour features on the upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30, such as rounded corners, chamfers, tapered corners, special-shaped corners, etc., so that when the wind passes through the end cover, these contour features can make the wind pass smoothly, and no fluid separation points will be generated in these places. Compared with conventional upper and lower end covers, the present invention can move the longitudinal fluid separation point of the antenna cover 10 from the front end of the end cover to the rear end of the end cover, thereby achieving the purpose of reducing the wind resistance of the antenna cover. Taking the antenna cover with a length, width and height of 500mm×498mm×196mm as an example, before the device of the present invention is installed, the overall wind load of the antenna is 202N when the radiation surface of the antenna cover faces the wind. After the device of the present invention is installed, the overall wind load of the antenna is 105N, and the antenna wind load is reduced by 48%.

[0042] In addition, in the design of the low-resistance shape of the radome 10, the radome 10 can also be designed as a trapezoidal cross section with a narrow front and a wide rear. Specifically, the width of the mounting surface 12 is designed to be greater than the width of the windward surface 11, so that the two side surfaces 13 extend obliquely to both sides, and the cross section of the entire radome is roughly trapezoidal. This design can also reduce the air resistance on the radome to a certain extent, and the cross sections of the upper end cover 20 and the lower end cover 30 on the corresponding radome 10 are also trapezoidal with a narrow front and a wide rear.

[0043] When the wind flows to the tail of the radome 10, fluid separation is likely to occur, so a tail control drag reduction design can be performed at the tail of the radome, which can allow the wind to quickly leave the radome and avoid being drawn into the rear of the radome to increase the eddy area and thereby increase resistance. If the tail of the device of the present invention is designed to be a non-smooth surface, during implementation, the non-smooth surface can be achieved by providing a vortex generator 80 at the tail of the device. The tail here can include at least one of the rear contour surface 44' of the upper end cover, the rear contour surface 44' of the lower end cover, and the two connecting surfaces 14 connecting the mounting surface 12 and the two side surfaces 13. Figure 7 As shown, a plurality of protrusions 80 are arranged at intervals on the rear contour surface 44' of the upper end cover 20, and the plurality of protrusions 80 are horizontally and spaced apart on the rear contour surface 44'. In addition, it can also be achieved by providing a plurality of uneven concave / convex structures at the tail of the device, which can also reduce the wind resistance of the antenna cover 10 to a certain extent.

[0044] In addition, since there is a theoretical fluid separation point on the side of the radome 10, certain aerodynamic accessories can be used to reduce drag at this location, such as Figure 8 As shown, the connection between the two side surfaces 13 of the radome 10 and the mounting surface 12 continues to extend backward to form a tail spoiler 90, which is used to guide the wind flowing through the side surfaces of the radome to the rear of the radome (i.e., the side close to the mounting surface 12).

[0045] like Fig. 9As shown, it is a schematic diagram of the results obtained by computational fluid dynamics simulation of a conventional radome and an example radome of the present invention. Fig. 9 As shown in FIG, the fluid separation point of the conventional radome occurs at the front of the radome, while the fluid separation point of the radome of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention is delayed to the rear of the radome. Fig. 9 The figure also shows the wake near the rear of the antenna cover. By comparing the two wakes, it can be seen that the example cover of the present invention weakens the separation phenomenon. Its wake is smaller than the wake of the original cover, so the negative pressure area it produces is also smaller. The wind pressure on the back of the cover (i.e., the installation surface 12) will be reduced, thereby achieving the purpose of drag reduction.

[0046] The technical contents and technical features of the present invention have been disclosed as above. However, those skilled in the art may still make various substitutions and modifications based on the teachings and disclosures of the present invention without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should not be limited to the contents disclosed in the embodiments, but should include various substitutions and modifications that do not depart from the present invention and are covered by the claims of this patent application.

Claims

1. A device for reducing wind resistance of an antenna, characterized in that: The device comprises an antenna cover, and an upper end cover and a lower end cover respectively mounted on the upper end and the lower end of the antenna cover, the antenna cover comprises a windward surface, the upper end cover or the lower end cover comprises a bottom edge and a front contour surface, the front contour surface is formed by bending and extending from an edge corresponding to the windward side of the bottom edge in a longitudinal direction and toward the center direction of the upper end cover or the lower end cover; The radome also includes a mounting surface opposite to the windward surface and two side surfaces connecting the windward surface and the mounting surface. The device also includes a tail spoiler, which continues to extend backward from the connection between the two side surfaces of the radome and the mounting surface to form a tail spoiler.

2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that The upper end cover or the lower end cover further includes a first transition contour surface extending from both ends of the front contour surface to both sides and away from the windward surface.

3. The device according to claim 2, characterized in that The upper end cover or the lower end cover further comprises a bottom surface and a rear contour surface formed by the bottom edge, wherein the rear contour surface is integrally connected with the front contour surface and the first transition contour surfaces on both sides and is formed on the bottom surface.

4. The device according to claim 2, characterized in that The upper end cover or the lower end cover also includes a top surface, a side contour surface and a rear contour surface, the longitudinal projection of the edge of the top surface is located within the edge of the bottom edge of the end cover, the rear contour surface is opposite to the front contour surface, the side contour surface connects the first transition contour surface and the rear contour surface, and the front contour surface, the first transition contour surface, the side contour surface and the rear contour surface are all extended from the corresponding edge of the bottom to the corresponding edge of the top surface.

5. The device according to claim 4, characterized in that The upper end cover or the lower end cover further includes a second transition profile surface between the side profile surface and the rear profile surface, and the upper end cover or the lower end cover is symmetrical along a transverse or longitudinal central axis.

6. The device according to claim 4, characterized in that The width of the installation surface is greater than the width of the windward surface, so that the two side surfaces extend obliquely toward both sides, and the cross section of the entire radome is trapezoidal.

7. The device according to claim 6, characterized in that The radome further comprises two connection surfaces connecting the mounting surface and the side surface, and the rear contour surface and at least one of the two connection surfaces are configured as non-smooth surfaces.

8. The device according to claim 7, characterized in that The non-smooth surface is achieved by arranging a plurality of vortex generators at intervals on the surface or by evenly arranging a plurality of uneven concave / convex structures.

9. The device according to claim 8, characterized in that The vortex generators are protrusions arranged at intervals on the surface.

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