Multi-band base station antenna with improved gain and / or inter-band isolation

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a multi-band base station antenna with improved gain and / or inter-band isolation. A multi-band base station antenna includes a first array and a second array. The first array has a plurality of radiating elements arranged in a plurality of columns and rows, wherein both the topmost row and the bottommost row of the first array include a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other rows of the first array includes a second, larger number of radiating elements. The second array includes a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from one another. At least one radiating element in the topmost row of the first array is not vertically aligned with any radiating element in the bottommost row of the first array.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority under 35 USC §119 to U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 62 / 912,745, filed on October 9, 2019, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present invention relates generally to radio communications and, more particularly, to multi-band base station antennas utilized in cellular and other communications systems. Background Art

[0004] Cellular communication systems are well known in the art. In a typical cellular communication system, a geographic area is divided into a series of regions called "cells", each of which is served by a base station. A base station may include baseband equipment, a radio, and a base station antenna configured to provide two-way radio frequency (RF) communication with subscribers located throughout the cell. In many cases, the cell may be divided into a plurality of "sectors", and a separate base station antenna provides coverage for each sector. The base station antennas are typically mounted on a tower or other raised structure, with the radiation beam ("antenna beam") produced by each antenna pointing outward to serve the corresponding sector. Typically, the base station antenna includes one or more phased arrays of radiating elements, wherein the radiating elements are arranged in one or more vertical columns when the antenna is mounted for use. As used herein, "vertical" refers to a direction generally perpendicular to a plane defined by the horizon.

[0005] A common base station configuration is a "three-sector" configuration, in which the cell is divided into three 120° sectors in the azimuth plane, and the base station includes three base station antennas that provide coverage for the three corresponding sectors. The azimuth plane refers to a horizontal plane that is parallel to the plane defined by the horizon and bisects the base station antenna. In a three-sector configuration, the antenna beam generated by each base station antenna typically has a half-power beam width (Half Power Beam Width, "HPBW") of approximately 65° in the azimuth plane, so that the antenna beam provides good coverage throughout the 120° sector. Typically, each base station antenna will include several vertically extending columns of radiating elements, and the vertically extending columns are often referred to as "linear arrays." Each linear array generates an antenna beam, or if a dual-polarized radiating element is used to form a linear array, an antenna beam is formed at each of the two orthogonal polarizations. The radiating elements used to form the linear array typically have an HPBW of approximately 65°, so that the antenna beam generated by each linear array provides coverage for a 120° sector in the azimuth plane. Base station antennas may include linear arrays that operate in different frequency bands. Base station antennas having an array of radiating elements that operate in two or more different frequency bands are referred to as "multi-band antennas."

[0006] The base station antenna may include one or more two-dimensional arrays of radiating elements, each array having multiple rows and columns of radiating elements. For example, the base station antenna currently used includes an array with three or four columns of radiating elements. Two RF ports (per polarization) are coupled to all columns of radiating elements through a beamforming network such as a Butler Matrix. The beamforming network generates two separate antenna beams (per polarization) based on the RF signal input at the two RF ports (per polarization). The antenna beam generated by the two-dimensional array of radiating elements may have, for example, an azimuth HPBW value between about 27°-39°, and the pointing directions of the two antenna beams in the azimuth plane are generally about -27° and about 27°, respectively. These two-dimensional arrays of radiating elements can be used to split a 120° sector into two 60° sectors in the azimuth plane, wherein the first antenna beam and the second antenna beam generated by the array (at each polarization) are used to cover the corresponding first 60° sector and the second 60° sector. Splitting each 120° sector into two sub-sectors increases system capacity because each antenna beam provides coverage for a smaller area and can therefore provide higher antenna gain and / or allow frequency reuse within the 120° sector. Summary of the invention

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a multi-band base station antenna is provided, which includes a back panel, a first array, and a second array. The first array includes a plurality of radiating elements installed to extend forward from the back panel, and the radiating elements in the first array are arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein the uppermost horizontally extending row of the first array and the lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array each include a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the first array includes a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number. The second array includes a plurality of radiating elements installed to extend forward from the back panel and are vertically offset from each other. At least one radiating element in the uppermost horizontally extending row of the first array is not vertically aligned with any radiating element in the lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array.

[0008] In some embodiments, the leftmost vertically-extending column of the first array and the rightmost vertically-extending column of the first array may each have fewer radiating elements than at least one of the plurality of interior vertically-extending columns of the first array disposed between the leftmost vertically-extending column and the rightmost vertically-extending column of the first array.

[0009] In some embodiments, the uppermost radiating element in the second array can be horizontally adjacent to the first radiating element in the first array. In such embodiments, the second radiating element in the second array can likewise be horizontally adjacent to the second radiating element in the first array. In such embodiments, the first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array can be substantially vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically extending column of the first array. Additionally, the first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array can also or alternatively be horizontally offset from at least some other radiating elements in the second array and / or can be positioned further away from a vertical axis extending along a middle portion of the backplane than other radiating elements in the second array.

[0010] In some embodiments, the multi-band base station antenna may further include a third array including a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forward from a back panel, the radiating elements in the third array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein the uppermost horizontally extending row and the lowermost horizontally extending row of the third array each include a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the third array includes a second number of radiating elements. The antenna may also include a fourth array having a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forward from the back panel and vertically offset from each other. At least one radiating element in the lowermost horizontally extending row of the third array may not be vertically aligned with any radiating element in the uppermost horizontally extending row of the third array. In such an embodiment, the first array may be horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array may be horizontally spaced apart from the third array.

[0011] In some embodiments, the first array may be configured to operate in a first frequency band and the second array may be configured to operate in a second frequency band that at least partially overlaps the first frequency band.

[0012] According to a further embodiment of the present invention, a multi-band base station antenna is provided, the multi-band base station antenna comprising a first array having a plurality of radiating elements arranged in a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array comprises a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the first array comprises a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number. The antennas further comprise a second array having a plurality of radiating elements vertically offset from one another. A first radiating element in the second array is located approximately at an intersection between a first vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the first array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the first array.

[0013] In some embodiments, the first array may be configured to operate in a first frequency band and the second array may be configured to operate in a second frequency band that only partially overlaps the first frequency band.

[0014] In some embodiments, the second radiating element in the second array may be located approximately at the intersection between the first vertical axis and a second horizontal axis extending along the lowermost horizontally-extending row of the first array. In such embodiments, the first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array are the two uppermost radiating elements in the second array. The first radiating element and the second radiating element of the second array may be approximately vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically-extending column of the first array. Additionally, the first horizontally-extending row of the first array may be adjacent to the lowermost horizontally-extending row of the first array.

[0015] In some embodiments, the two uppermost radiating elements of the second array may be horizontally offset from at least some of the remaining radiating elements of the second array.

[0016] In some embodiments, all horizontally-extending rows of the first array having a first number of radiating elements may be closer to the center of the backplane than all horizontally-extending rows of the first array having a second number of radiating elements.

[0017] In some embodiments, the leftmost vertically-extending column of the first array may have fewer radiating elements than at least one of the other vertically-extending columns of the first array.

[0018] In some embodiments, the topmost radiating element in the second array can be horizontally adjacent to the first radiating element in the first array. In such embodiments, the second radiating element in the second array can be horizontally adjacent to the second radiating element in the first array. Additionally, the first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array can be substantially vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically extending column of the first array. In some embodiments, the first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array can be horizontally offset from at least some other radiating elements in the second array.

[0019] In some embodiments, the multi-band base station antenna may further include a third array including a plurality of radiating elements arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein an uppermost horizontally extending row of the third array includes a first number of radiating elements and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the third array includes a second number of radiating elements. The antenna may also include a fourth array having a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from one another. A first radiating element in the fourth array may be located approximately at an intersection between a second vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the third array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the third array.

[0020] In some embodiments, the first array may be horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array may be horizontally spaced apart from the third array.

[0021] According to a further embodiment of the present invention, a multi-band base station antenna is provided, which includes a first array having a plurality of radiating elements arranged in a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein the bottommost horizontally extending row of the first array includes a first number of radiating elements, and the topmost horizontally extending row of the other horizontally extending rows of the first array includes a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number. These antennas further include a third array mounted below the first array, the third array including a plurality of radiating elements arranged in a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein the topmost horizontally extending row of the third array includes the first number of radiating elements, and the bottommost horizontally extending row of the third array includes the second number of radiating elements.

[0022] In some embodiments, these multi-band base station antennas may further include a second array having a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from one another, wherein a first radiating element in the second array is approximately located at an intersection between a first vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the first array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the first array. The multi-band base station antenna may additionally include a fourth array having a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from one another, wherein a first radiating element in the fourth array is approximately located at an intersection between a second vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the third array and a second horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the third array.

[0023] In some embodiments, the first array may be horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array may be horizontally spaced apart from the third array.

[0024] In some embodiments, the first array and the third array may be configured to operate in a first frequency band, and the second array and the fourth array may be configured to operate in a second frequency band that only partially overlaps with the first frequency band. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] 1A is a schematic front view of a conventional multi-band base station antenna operating in three different frequency bands.

[0026] 1B is a schematic front view of another conventional multi-band base station antenna that is a modified version of the base station antenna in FIG. 1A .

[0027] 1C is a schematic front view of a conventional multi-band base station antenna that is another modified version of the base station antenna in FIG. 1A .

[0028] Figure 2-Figure 9 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna according to various embodiments of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a multi-band base station antenna is provided, which includes at least a first two-dimensional array of radiating elements operating in a first frequency band and a second array (which may be a linear array) of radiating elements operating in a second frequency band overlapping the first frequency band. These arrays of radiating elements are mounted to extend forward from a reflector. The radiating elements in the first array and the second array are arranged on the reflector in a new manner that can improve the isolation between the arrays while maintaining a good front-to-back ratio and improved and / or acceptable gain of each array.

[0030] In some embodiments, a multi-band base station antenna is provided that includes a first array having a plurality of radiating elements arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows. The uppermost horizontally extending row and the lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array each include a first number of radiating elements (e.g., 3), and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the first array includes a second number of radiating elements (e.g., 4), wherein the second number is greater than the first number. The antennas further include a second array having a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from one another. At least one radiating element in the uppermost horizontally extending row of the first array is not vertically aligned with any radiating element in the lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array.

[0031] In these multi-band base station antennas, both the leftmost vertically extending column and the rightmost vertically extending column of the first array can have fewer radiating elements than at least one of the interior vertically extending columns of the first array. Additionally, the two uppermost radiating elements in the second array can be horizontally adjacent to the corresponding first and second radiating elements in the first array. In some embodiments, the two uppermost radiating elements in the second array can be substantially vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically extending column of the first array. Additionally, the two uppermost radiating elements in the second array can be horizontally offset from at least some other radiating elements in the second array.

[0032] The multi-band base station antenna may also include a third array and a fourth array of radiating elements. The third array includes a plurality of radiating elements arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein the uppermost horizontally extending row and the lowermost horizontally extending row of the third array each include a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the third array includes a second number of radiating elements. The fourth array includes a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from each other. At least one radiating element in the lowermost horizontally extending row of the third array is not vertically aligned with any radiating element in the uppermost horizontally extending row of the third array. The first array may be horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array may be horizontally spaced apart from the third array. The first array may be mounted above the third array.

[0033] In other embodiments, a multi-band base station antenna is provided, again including a first array having a plurality of radiating elements arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array includes a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows in the first array includes a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number. The antenna further includes a second array including a plurality of radiating elements that are vertically offset from one another. A first radiating element in the second array is located approximately at an intersection between a first vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the first array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the first array. A second radiating element in the second array may be located approximately at an intersection between the first vertical axis and a second horizontal axis extending along a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array.

[0034] The first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array may be the two uppermost radiating elements in the second array, and the first horizontally extending row of the first array may be beside the lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array. In some embodiments, the first radiating element and the second radiating element of the second array may be substantially vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically extending column of the first array.

[0035] In some embodiments, two uppermost radiating elements of the second array may be horizontally offset from at least some of the remaining radiating elements of the second array. In some embodiments, all horizontally extending rows of the first array having a first number of radiating elements may be closer to a center of the backplane than all horizontally extending rows of the first array having a second number of radiating elements. In some embodiments, the uppermost radiating element in the second array is horizontally adjacent to a first radiating element in the first array.

[0036] Before describing specific example embodiments of multi-band base station antennas according to embodiments of the present invention, it is helpful to review current methods for implementing antennas with comparable arrays of radiating elements.

[0037] FIG. 1A is a schematic front view of a conventional multi-band base station antenna 100A operating in three different frequency bands. As shown in FIG. 1A , the base station antenna 100A includes five arrays 110-1, 110-2, 120-1, 120-2, 130-1 of radiating elements 112, 122, 132 mounted to extend forward from a backplane 102. Herein, when a number of identical elements are included in an antenna, the elements may be individually referenced by their full reference numerals (e.g., array 120-2) and may be collectively referenced by the first portion of their reference numerals (e.g., array 120). The backplane 102 includes a reflector surface 104 (also referred to herein as a reflector). The reflector 104 may include a metal sheet that serves as a ground plane for the radiating elements 112, 122, 132 and also redirects a large amount of the backward-directed radiation emitted by the radiating elements 112, 122, 132 to the front.

[0038] Array 110-1 is a two-dimensional array of radiating elements 112, including a plurality of rows 114 and a plurality of columns 116 of radiating elements 112. As shown in FIG. 1A, some rows 114 include three radiating elements 112, while other rows 114 include four radiating elements 112. The row 114 including three radiating elements 112 is at the top of the array (so adjacent to the top of the base station antenna 100A), while the row 114 with four radiating elements is closer to the center of the antenna 100A. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 112 can be configured to operate in the 1695MHz-2400MHz frequency band. Array 110-1 can be connected to four RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown). The feed network may include a beamforming network (e.g., a Butler matrix-based beamforming network) configured to generate a first antenna beam and a second antenna beam (at each of the two polarizations) in response to RF signals input at corresponding four RF ports, wherein each antenna beam is scanned in an azimuth plane away from the boresight pointing direction of the radiating element 112. The array 110-1 is configured to operate as a sector split array that generates two antenna beams (at each of the two polarizations for a total of four antenna beams) having an azimuth half-power beamwidth of approximately 27°-33°. U.S. Patent No. 9,831,548 describes the operation of a two-dimensional array of radiating elements (such as the array 110-1) for split sectors in more detail. The entire contents of U.S. Patent No. 9,831,548 are incorporated herein by reference. Array 110-2 may be identical to array 110-1, except that (1) array 110-2 is located at the bottom half of reflector 104, and (2) the orientation of array 110-2 is rotated 180° relative to the orientation of array 110-1. Thus, in array 110-2, rows 114 including three radiating elements 112 are at the bottom of the array (and therefore adjacent to the bottom of base station antenna 100A) rather than at the top of array 110-2 as in array 110-1, while rows 114 having four radiating elements 112 are closer to the center of antenna 100, and columns 116 having fewer radiating elements 112 are at the left side of array 110-2 rather than on the right side as in the case of array 110-1.

[0039] Array 120-1 is a linear array of radiating elements 122, including a total of eleven radiating elements 122 aligned along a vertical axis. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 122 can be configured to operate in the 1695MHz-2690MHz band or the 1427MHz-2690MHz band. Array 120-1 can be connected to two RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown). Array 120-1 is configured to generate two antenna beams (one at each of the two polarizations), each antenna beam providing coverage for a full 120° sector in the azimuth plane. Array 120-2 can be identical to array 120-1, except that (1) array 120-2 is located on the upper right side of reflector 104, rather than the lower left side of reflector 104.

[0040] Array 130-1 is a linear array of radiating elements 132, including a total of eleven radiating elements 132 aligned along a vertical axis extending along the center of reflector 104. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 132 can be configured to operate in the 694MHz-960MHz frequency band. Since the radiating elements 132 are designed to operate at lower frequencies, they may be referred to herein as "low-band" radiating elements, as other radiating elements disclosed herein that may be designed to operate in the 694MH-960MHz frequency band or other similar frequency bands. Array 130-1 can be connected to two RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown). Array 130-1 is configured to generate two antenna beams (one at each of the two polarizations), each antenna beam providing coverage for a full 120° sector in the azimuth plane.

[0041] Since both radiating element 112 and radiating element 122 are designed to operate at higher frequencies, they may be referred to herein as "high-band" radiating elements, as may other radiating elements disclosed herein that may be designed to operate in the 1427 MHz-2690 MHz band, or portions thereof. Radiating element 132 is schematically illustrated using a large X in FIG. 1 (and low-band radiating elements are also schematically illustrated in various other figures).

[0042] Array 120-2 is positioned very close to the right edge of reflector 104 to increase isolation between array 110-1 and array 120-2. As described above, the radiating elements 112, 122 in these arrays can be designed to operate in first and second frequency bands that overlap each other, so RF energy emitted by radiating element 112 of array 110-1 can have a tendency to couple to radiating element 122 of array 120-2, and vice versa. Although energy coupled from radiating element 112, 122 of one array 110-1, 120-2 to another array 110-1, 120-2 will tend to be re-radiated, the re-radiated energy tends to distort the antenna beam in an undesirable manner. Thus, increased isolation between array 110-1 and array 120-2 (and similarly, between array 110-2 and array 120-1) is generally desirable and can be achieved by increasing the physical distance between arrays 110-1, array 120-2, and array 110-2 and array 120-1. However, cellular operators prefer base station antennas with smaller widths, and therefore there are often commercially imposed limits on the acceptable width for a particular type of base station antenna. Thus, completely eliminating coupling between arrays 110-1, array 120-2, and between array 110-2 and array 120-1 is generally not possible.

[0043] Array 110-1 is vertically offset from array 110-2 (i.e., positioned above array 110-2), and the two arrays 110-1, 110-2 are also horizontally offset from each other so that the arrays are not completely aligned along the vertical axis. In addition, each array 120 is positioned very close to the left edge of the reflector 104 to increase the isolation between the array 120 and the array 110 adjacent thereto. The base station antenna 100A can provide an acceptable level of isolation between each array 110 and the adjacent array 120. However, the base station antenna 100A requires a relatively wide reflector 104 to allow the two arrays 110-1, 110-2 to be horizontally staggered relative to each other in the manner shown in FIG. 1A.

[0044] 1B is a front view of another conventional multi-band base station antenna 100B which is a modified version of the base station antenna 100A of FIG 1A. As shown in FIG 1B , the base station antenna 100B again includes five arrays 110'-1, 110'-2, 120-1, 120-2, 130-1 of radiating elements 112, 122, 132.

[0045] The base station antenna 100B differs from the base station antenna 100A in that the arrays 110-1, 110-2 of the base station antenna 100A are replaced with arrays 110'-1, 110'-2 in the base station antenna 100B. As shown in FIG. 1B , the arrays 110-1, 110-2 are not horizontally offset (staggered) from each other. Instead, each column 116 of the radiating elements 112 included in the array 110'-1 is vertically aligned with a column 116 of the radiating elements 112 of the array 110'-2. In addition, in the arrays 110'-1, 110'-2, the horizontally extending rows 114 including only three radiating elements 112 are centered along the vertical axis that bisects the arrays 110-1, 110-2, so the radiating elements 112 in the horizontally extending rows 114 including only three radiating elements 112 are not completely aligned in the columns 116. This arrangement results in an improved alignment of the phase centers of the radiating elements 112 of the arrays 110'-1, 110'-2.

[0046] Base station antenna 100B further differs from base station antenna 100A in that arrays 120-1 and 120-2 of base station antenna 100B are mounted along the side edges of the middle portion of reflector 104. As a result, each radiating element 122 in array 120-1 is horizontally aligned with a corresponding one of radiating elements 122 in array 120-2. In base station antenna 100B, each array 120 can be spaced farther from the edge of reflector 104 adjacent to array 120. This can improve the front-to-back performance of array 120. However, it can be seen in FIG. 1B that in order to keep the width of antenna 100B relatively narrow, each array 120 is located very close to a column 116 of radiating elements 112 in an adjacent array 110'. As a result, the isolation between each array 110' and the corresponding array of arrays 120 may be poor, and the antenna patterns of all arrays 110', 120 may be degraded due to poor isolation.

[0047] FIG1C is a front view of another conventional multi-band base station antenna 100C as another modified version of the base station antenna 100A of FIG1A. As shown in FIG1C, the base station antenna 100C includes five arrays 110-1, 110-2, 120-1, 120-2, 130-1 that are the same as the radiating elements 112, 122, 132 included in the base station antenna 100A. However, the base station antenna 100C is different from the base station antenna 100A in that both the array 110-1 and the array 110-2 are arranged on the right side of the reflector 104 (note that in other embodiments, the arrays 120 can alternatively be both arranged on the left side of the reflector 104), and are respectively mounted on the top and bottom of the antenna 100C so that the two linear arrays 110-1, 110-2 are vertically aligned with each other. Likewise, arrays 120-1 and 120-2 are both arranged on the left side of the reflector 104 (note that in other embodiments, arrays 120 can alternatively both be arranged on the right side of the reflector 104), and are mounted on the top and bottom of the antenna 100C, respectively, so that the two linear arrays 120-1, 120-2 are vertically aligned with each other.

[0048] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a base station antenna is provided having an array mounted on a reflector in a different arrangement that may provide better performance.

[0049] Figure 2 FIG. 2 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 As shown, the base station antenna 200 includes five arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2, 230-1 of radiating elements 212, 222, 232 mounted to extend forward from a backplane 202. The backplane 202 includes a reflector surface 204. The reflector 204 may include a metal sheet that serves as a ground plane for the radiating elements 212, 222, 232 and also redirects a large amount of the backward-directed radiation emitted by the radiating elements 212, 222, 232 to be directed forward.

[0050] Each radiating element 212, 222, 232 may be a dual-polarized radiating element including a first polarized radiator and a second polarized radiator. For example, each radiating element 212, 222, 232 may be a cross-dipole radiating element including a tilted -45° dipole radiator and a tilted +45° dipole radiator. However, it should be understood that in other embodiments, different types of radiating elements may be used to implement any of the arrays 210, 220, 230 (and this is true for all embodiments disclosed herein). Thus, for example, in other embodiments, the radiating elements 212, 222, 232 may be implemented as patch radiating elements, slot radiating elements, horn radiating elements, or any other suitable radiating elements, and these radiating elements may be single-polarized or dual-polarized radiating elements.

[0051] Arrays 210-1 and 210-2 are each two-dimensional arrays that include a plurality of horizontally extending rows 214 and vertically extending columns 216 of radiating elements 212. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 212 may be configured to operate in the 1695 MHz-2400 MHz frequency band. Figure 2 As shown, some of the horizontally extending rows 214 include three radiating elements 212, while other horizontally extending rows 214 include four radiating elements 212. However, two of the radiating elements 112 included in each of the arrays 110-1, 110-2 of the conventional base station antennas 100A-100C are omitted from the corresponding arrays 210-1, 210-2 of the base station antenna 200 and replaced with different radiating elements 222 that are part of the respective arrays 220-1, 220-2.

[0052] In particular, two radiating elements 112 included at the bottom of the leftmost vertically extending column 116 of the array 110-1 of the base station antenna 100A are omitted in the array 210-1. This creates a first open space 206-1 on the reflector 204. Similarly, two radiating elements 112 included at the top of the rightmost vertically extending column 116 of the array 110-2 are omitted in the array 210-2. This creates a second open space 206-2 on the reflector 204. As will be explained in further detail below, a first pair 223-1 of radiating elements 222 is mounted in the first open space 206-1 and a second pair 223-2 of radiating elements 222 is mounted in the second open space 206-2. The first pair 223-1 of radiating elements 222 mounted in the first open space 206-1 is coupled to a feed network for the array 220-1 and is therefore part of the array 220-1. Similarly, the second pair 223-2 of radiating elements 222 mounted in the second open space 206-2 is coupled to the feed network for the array 220-2 and is therefore part of the array 220-2. Figure 2As can be seen in the figure, the additional pair 223 of radiating elements 222 added to each array 220 is offset in the horizontal direction from the remaining radiating elements 222 in the corresponding array 220-1, 220-2. In the exemplary embodiment, the additional two radiating elements 222 added to each array 220 are offset in the horizontal direction from the remaining radiating elements 222 in the corresponding array 220-1, 220-2 by between 10mm-25mm.

[0053] Similar to the array 110 in the base station antennas 100A-100C, each array 210-1, 210-2 can be connected to four RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown). The feed network can include a beam forming network configured to generate a first antenna beam and a second antenna beam (at each of the two polarizations) in response to RF signals input at the four RF ports, wherein each antenna beam is scanned in the azimuth plane away from the boresight pointing direction of the radiating element 212, so that each array 210-1, 210-2 is configured to operate as a sector split array that generates two antenna beams (one at each of the two polarizations) with an azimuth half-power beamwidth of approximately 27°-33°.

[0054] Array 220-1 comprises a linear array including a single vertically extending column of radiating elements 222. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 222 may be configured to operate in the 1695 MHz-2690 MHz frequency band. In another example embodiment, each radiating element 222 may be configured to operate in the 1427 MHz-2690 MHz frequency band. Array 220-1 includes a total of thirteen radiating elements 222 (compared to the eleven radiating elements 122 included in each array 120 of base station antennas 100A-100C) because array 220-1 includes an additional pair 223-1 of radiating elements 222 mounted in first open space 206-1. Array 220-1 is mounted on reflector 204, below array 210-1. In this particular embodiment, array 220-1 is located close to the left side of reflector 204, but not quite as close as the leftmost vertically extending column 216 of array 210-1. As a result, the radiating elements 222 are generally aligned along a vertical axis extending between the two leftmost columns 216 of the array 210-1. However, an additional pair 223-1 of the radiating elements 222 mounted in the first open space 206-1 (i.e., the uppermost two radiating elements 222 of the array 220-1) may be offset in the horizontal direction from the remaining radiating elements 222 of the array 220-1. As a result, these upper two radiating elements 222 of the array 220-1 may be aligned, for example, underneath the leftmost vertically extending column 216 of the array 210-1.

[0055] Array 220-1 is connected to two RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown) and is configured to generate two antenna beams (one at each of the two polarizations), each providing coverage for a full 120° sector in the azimuth plane. Array 220-2 may be identical to array 220-1, except that array 220-2 is located on the upper right side of reflector 204 rather than the lower left side of reflector 204, and the orientation of array 220-2 is rotated 180° from the orientation of array 220-1. It should be noted that array 220-2 also includes thirteen radiating elements 222, as array 220-2 includes a second pair 223-2 of radiating elements 222 mounted in a second open space 206-2.

[0056] Array 230-1 is a single vertically extending column of radiating elements 232, aligned along a vertical axis that extends along the center of reflector 204. This can help minimize the azimuth beamwidth of the antenna beam generated by array 230-1. Array 230-1 includes a total of eleven radiating elements 232. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 232 can be configured to operate in the 694MHz-960MHz frequency band. Array 230-1 can be connected to two RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown). Array 230-1 is configured to generate two antenna beams (one at each of the two polarizations), each antenna beam providing coverage for a full 120° sector in the azimuth plane.

[0057] The base station antenna 200 may provide improved performance compared to the base station antennas 100A-100C. For example, the arrays 220-1, 220-2 in the base station antenna 200 each include thirteen radiating elements 222, rather than the eleven radiating elements 122 included in the arrays 120-1, 120-2 of the base station antennas 100A-100C. As a result, each array 220 may have a gain that is approximately 7-8% higher than the gain of each array 120. It can also be seen that all but two of the radiating elements 222 of each array 220 are spaced relatively far from the array 110, thereby maintaining good isolation performance. In addition, by horizontally offsetting some of the radiating elements in each array 220 from the remaining radiating elements 222, the trade-off between isolation and front-to-back ratio performance may be optimized. Omitting two radiating elements 212 in the arrays 210-2, 210-2 reduces the gain of each array 210 by approximately 3%, but such a reduction in gain is generally considered acceptable.

[0058] Since two radiating elements 212 are omitted from each array 210 (compared to the arrays 110 included in the conventional antennas 100A-100C), each array 210 has horizontally extending rows 214 of radiating elements 212 having only three radiating elements 212 at both the top and bottom of the array 210, while the middle of the array 210 may include horizontally extending rows 214 of radiating elements 212 each having four radiating elements 212. In addition, as Figure 2 As shown, the radiating elements 212 included in the horizontally-extending rows 214 of three radiating elements 212 each at the top of each array 210 are not vertically aligned with the radiating elements 212 included in the horizontally-extending rows 214 of three radiating elements 212 each at the bottom of each respective array 210. For example, in array 210-1, the three uppermost horizontally-extending rows 214 of radiating elements 212 are part of the left three vertically-extending columns 216, while the three lowermost horizontally-extending rows 214 of radiating elements 212 are part of the right three vertically-extending columns 216. This arrangement improves isolation between array 210-1 and array 220-2 while also leaving space on reflector 204 for adding two additional radiating elements 222 to array 220-1. Thus, the three lowermost horizontally-extending rows 214 of radiating elements 212 each include radiating elements 212 that are not vertically aligned with any radiating elements 212 in the two lowermost horizontally-extending rows 214 of radiating elements 212 .

[0059] Figure 3 FIG. 3 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 300 according to a further embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 As shown, the base station antenna 300 includes arrays 210-1, 210-2 of radiating elements 212, arrays 220-1, 220-2 of radiating elements 222, and array 330-1 of radiating elements 232. Each of the arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2, 330-1 is installed to extend forward from the back panel 202. The radiating elements 212, 222, 232 (and other elements except for the back panel 202) included in the base station antenna 300 are arranged in a manner that the radiating elements 212, 222, 232 ... Figure 7 The remaining embodiments of the present invention described below, except for the radiating element 732 included in the embodiment of the present invention, may be the same as the backplane 202 and the radiating elements 212, 222, 232 described above with reference to the base station antenna 200, respectively. As such, these elements are given the same reference numerals, and further description of these elements will be omitted. The arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2 in this particular embodiment are also the same as those in the base station antenna 200 described above. Figure 2 The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 200 are the same, so further description of these arrays will be omitted.

[0060] Base station antenna 300 differs from base station antenna 200 in that the radiating elements 232 included in the low-band array 330-1 of antenna 300 are horizontally staggered relative to each other. In particular, the top three radiating elements 232 are aligned along a vertical axis V1, wherein the vertical axis V1 extends along the right side of reflector 204, the six radiating elements 232 below the top two radiating elements are aligned along a vertical axis V2, wherein the vertical axis V2 extends along the middle of reflector 204, and the bottom three radiating elements 232 are aligned along a vertical axis V3, wherein the vertical axis V3 extends along the left side of reflector 204. By introducing this horizontal staggering in the radiating elements 232 of array 330-1, the azimuth beamwidth of the antenna beam generated by array 330-1 can be reduced. This allows the use of smaller radiating elements 232 (which have a slightly larger azimuth beamwidth). The use of smaller radiating elements 232 can reduce the cost of base station antenna 300 compared to the cost of base station antenna 200.

[0061] Figure 4 2 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 400 according to a further embodiment of the present invention. The base station antenna 400 includes six arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2, 430-1, 430-2 of radiating elements 212, 222, 232 mounted to extend forward from the back panel 202. The arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2 in this embodiment are Figure 2 The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 200 are the same, so further description of these arrays will be omitted.

[0062] The base station antenna 400 differs from the base station antenna 200 in that the base station antenna 400 includes two arrays 430-1, 430-2 of low-band radiating elements 232, rather than the single array 230-1 of low-band radiating elements 232 included in the base station antenna 200. Therefore, the base station antenna 400 can support operation in the frequency band of the additional low frequency band. The arrays 430-1, 430-2 are arranged on the left and right sides of the reflector 204 to ensure sufficient isolation between the two low-band arrays 430-1, 430-2. In some embodiments, a power coupler may be included in the base station antenna 400 for coupling some RF signal energy from the RF port connected to the array 430-1 to the radiating elements of the array 430-2, and vice versa. By coupling some of the RF energy between the arrays 430-1, 430-2, the azimuth beamwidth of the antenna beam formed by the arrays 430-1, 430-2 can be reduced, which allows the use of smaller (and therefore lower cost) radiating elements 232. The arrays 430-1, 430-2 can be configured to share RF energy in this manner by using the techniques disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2018 / 0375220 (the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference).

[0063] Figure 5 2 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 500 according to a further embodiment of the present disclosure. The base station antenna 500 includes five arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2, 530-1 of radiating elements 212, 222, 232 mounted to extend forward from the back panel 202. The arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2 in this embodiment are Figure 2 The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 200 are the same, so further description of these arrays will be omitted.

[0064] The base station antenna 500 differs from the base station antenna 200 in that the low-band array 530-1 of the antenna 500 includes a total of sixteen radiating elements 232, rather than the eleven low-band radiating elements 232 included in the base station antenna 200. Six low-band radiating elements 232 in the array 530-1 extend in a first column along the middle of the reflector 204 along the vertical axis V2. Another five low-band radiating elements 232 in the array 530-1 extend in a second column along the left side of the reflector 204 along the vertical axis V3. Two of the radiating elements 232 in the second column are located at the top of the reflector 204, while the other three radiating elements 232 in the second column are located at the bottom of the reflector 204. The last five low-band radiating elements 232 in the array 530-1 extend in a third column along the right side of the reflector 204 along the vertical axis V2. Two of the radiating elements 232 in the third column are located at the top of the reflector 204, while the other three radiating elements 232 in the third column are located at the bottom of the reflector 204. Each radiating element 232 in the second column is paired with a horizontally adjacent radiating element 232 in the third column. For example, the topmost radiating element 232 in the second column and the topmost radiating element 232 in the third column can both be connected to a first output of a feed network for the array 530-1. A power divider can be connected to a first output of the feed network for the array 530-1, the first output of the power divider being connected to the topmost radiating element 232 in the second column, and the second output of the power divider being connected to the topmost radiating element 232 in the third column. Other pairs of radiating elements 232 can be connected to the feed network for the array 530-1 in a similar manner (and each pair can be connected to a different output of the feed network, or more typically, two or more pairs can be connected to the same output of the feed network).

[0065] Array 530-1 effectively replaces each of the top two radiating elements 232 and the bottom three radiating elements 232 of array 230-1 with a corresponding pair of spaced-apart radiating elements 232. This serves to narrow the azimuth beamwidth of the antenna beam produced by array 530-1 compared to the azimuth beamwidth of the antenna beam produced by array 230-1, thereby allowing smaller radiating elements 232 to be used in base station antenna 500.

[0066] Figure 6 6 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 600 according to a further embodiment of the present invention. The base station antenna 600 includes five arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2, 630-1 of radiating elements 212, 222, 232 mounted to extend forward from the back panel 202. The arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2 in this embodiment are connected to the antenna 600. Figure 2The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 200 are the same, so further description of these arrays will be omitted.

[0067] Base station antenna 600 is similar to base station antenna 500, but differs from base station antenna 500 in that pairs of radiating elements 232 are located in the middle of array 630-1, rather than at the top and bottom of the array as in the case of array 530-1. Because the middle radiating elements in an array generally radiate at higher power levels, fewer radiating elements 232 may be required in array 630-1 (compared to array 530-1) to achieve the same reduction in azimuth beamwidth.

[0068] Figure 7 2 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 700 according to a further embodiment of the present invention. The base station antenna 700 includes five arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2, 730-1 of radiating elements 212, 222, 732 mounted to extend forward from the back panel 202. The arrays 210-1, 210-2, 220-1, 220-2 in this embodiment are connected to the antenna 700. Figure 2 The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 200 are the same, so further description of these arrays will be omitted.

[0069] The difference between base station antenna 700 and base station antenna 200 is that the low-band array 730-1 included in base station antenna 700 is implemented using a radiating element 732 including a full-wavelength dipole radiator, while the corresponding array 230-1 of base station antenna 200 is implemented using a radiating element 232 including a half-wavelength dipole radiator.

[0070] According to further embodiments of the present invention, multi-band base station antennas are provided in which the number of radiating elements included in a high-band linear array can be increased (e.g., from eleven radiating elements 122 to thirteen radiating elements 222 in the conventional base station antenna 100A-100C of FIGS. 1A-1C ) without reducing the number of radiating elements 212 included in a two-dimensional high-band array. These multi-band base station antennas can exhibit a 7%-8% increase in the gain of the high-band linear array without suffering any reduction in the gain in the two-dimensional high-band array, while also providing an acceptable level of isolation between different high-band arrays.

[0071] Figure 8 2 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 800 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The base station antenna 800 includes five arrays 810-1, 810-2, 220-1, 220-2, 230-1 of radiating elements 212, 222, 232 mounted to extend forward from the back panel 202. The arrays 220-1, 220-2, 230-1 in this embodiment are Figure 2 The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 200 are the same, so further description thereof is omitted here.

[0072] Arrays 810-1 and 810-2 are each two-dimensional arrays that include a plurality of horizontally extending rows 814 and vertically extending columns 816 of radiating elements 212. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 212 may be configured to operate in the 1695 MHz-2400 MHz frequency band. Figure 8 As shown, some rows 814 include three radiating elements 212, while other rows 814 include four radiating elements 212. However, compared to the arrays 210-1, 210-2 included in the base station antenna 200, in the base station antenna 800, the rows 814 including three radiating elements 212 of the arrays 810-1, 810-2 are disposed in the middle of the reflector 204 (i.e., at the bottom of the array 810-1 and at the top of the array 810-2), while the rows 814 with four radiating elements 212 are located at the top of the antenna 800 (for the array 810-1) or at the bottom of the antenna 800 (for the array 810-2). Therefore, the rows 814 including three radiating elements 212 of the array 810-1 are directly adjacent to the rows 814 including three radiating elements 212 of the array 810-2.

[0073] Each array 810-1, 810-2 can be connected to four RF ports (not shown) via a feed network (not shown). The feed network may include a beam forming network configured to generate a first antenna beam and a second antenna beam (at each of the two polarizations) in response to RF signals input at the four RF ports, wherein each antenna beam is scanned in the azimuth plane away from the boresight pointing direction of the radiating element 212, so that each array 810-1, 810-2 is configured to operate as a sector split array that generates two antenna beams (one at each of the two polarizations) with an azimuth half-power beamwidth of approximately 27°-33°.

[0074] By rearranging the position of the row 814 having three radiating elements 212 on the reflector 204, a first open area 806-1 is created on the left side of the reflector 204, and a second open area 806-2 is created on the right side of the reflector 204. As described above with reference to the base station antenna 200, two additional radiating elements 222 can be placed in each of these open areas 806 as part of the single-column high-band arrays 220-1 and 220-2 to increase the gain of those arrays. Obviously, since the row of array 810 including only three radiating elements 212 is placed in the middle of the antenna 800, the open areas 806-1, 806-2 are created without removing any radiating elements 212 from the arrays 810-1, 810-2. Thus, base station antenna 800 provides increased gain for arrays 220-1, 220-2 (because each of these arrays includes two additional radiating elements compared to conventional base station antennas 100A-100C) while maintaining the gain of arrays 810-1, 810-2.

[0075] like Figure 8 As shown, the additional pair of radiating elements 222 added to each of the arrays 220-1, 220-2 are offset in the horizontal direction from the remaining radiating elements 222 in the corresponding arrays 220-1, 220-2. In an exemplary embodiment, the additional two radiating elements 222 added to each array 220 are offset in the horizontal direction from the remaining radiating elements 222 in the corresponding arrays 220-1, 220-2 by between 10 mm and 25 mm.

[0076] The multi-band base station antenna 800 thus comprises a first array 810-1 of radiating elements 212, wherein the radiating elements 212 in the first array 810-1 are arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns 816 and a plurality of horizontally extending rows 814. The bottommost horizontally extending row 814 comprises three radiating elements 212, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows 814 comprises four radiating elements. The antenna 800 further comprises a second array 220-1 of radiating elements 222 that are vertically offset from one another, wherein a first radiating element 222 in the second array 220-1 is located approximately at an intersection between a first vertical axis extending along a first (here, leftmost) vertically extending column 816 of the first array 810-1 and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row (here, the bottom or next to the bottom row 814) of the first array 810-1.

[0077] It should also be noted that the bottom-most horizontally-extending row 814 of array 810-1 includes a first number (here, three) of radiating elements 212, and the top-most row of the other horizontally-extending rows 814 of array 810-1 includes a second number (here, four) of radiating elements 212, wherein the second number is greater than the first number. The top-most horizontally-extending row 814 of array 810-2 includes a first number (three) of radiating elements 212, and the bottom-most horizontally-extending row 814 of array 810-2 includes a second number (four) of radiating elements 212. Array 810-1 is mounted above array 810-2.

[0078] Fig. 9 2 is a front view of a multi-band base station antenna 900 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The base station antenna 900 includes six arrays 910-1, 910-2, 920-1, 920-2, 430-1, 430-2 of radiating elements 212, 222, 232 mounted to extend forward from the back panel 202. The arrays 430-1 and 430-2 in this embodiment are similar to Figure 4 The corresponding numbered arrays in the base station antenna 400 are the same, so further description thereof is omitted here.

[0079] Arrays 910-1 and 910-2 are both two-dimensional arrays that include multiple horizontally extending rows 914 and multiple vertically extending columns 916 of radiating elements 212. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 212 can be configured to operate in the 1695 MHz-2400 MHz frequency band. Arrays 910-1 and 910-2 are very similar to arrays 810-1, 810-2 of base station antenna 800, but in arrays 910-1 and 910-2, rows 914 that include only three radiating elements 212 are centered on reflector 204 so that the center radiating element 212 in each row is arranged along a vertical axis that bisects reflector 204. This approach is also shown in conventional base station antenna 100B of FIG. 1B. As a result, the radiating elements 212 in rows 914 that include only three radiating elements 212 are not vertically aligned with any radiating element 212 in rows 914 that include four radiating elements 212.

[0080] Arrays 920-1, 920-2 each include a linear array of radiating elements 222, the linear array including a single vertically extending column of radiating elements 222. In an example embodiment, each radiating element 222 can be configured to operate in the 1695MHz-2690MHz frequency band. In another example embodiment, each radiating element 222 can be configured to operate in the 1427MHz-2690MHz frequency band. In the depicted embodiment, each array 920 includes a total of eleven radiating elements 222. Array 920-1 is mounted on reflector 204 adjacent to array 910-1, near the left side of reflector 204, and array 920-2 is mounted on reflector 204 adjacent to array 910-2, near the right side of reflector 204.

[0081] It should be understood that this specification describes only a few example embodiments of the present invention and that the techniques described herein have applicability beyond the example embodiments described above.

[0082] Embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the present invention are shown. However, the present invention can be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided to make this disclosure thorough and complete and to fully convey the scope of the present invention to those skilled in the art. Similar reference numerals refer to similar elements throughout.

[0083] As used herein, a plurality of elements are “vertically aligned” if all of the elements in the plurality of elements are aligned along a vertically extending axis. Similarly, a plurality of elements are “horizontally aligned” if all of the elements in the plurality of elements are aligned along a horizontally extending axis. As used herein, elements are considered to be “vertically offset” from one another if they are at different heights in the vertical direction. Similarly, elements are considered to be “horizontally offset” from one another if they are at different positions along a horizontal axis (regardless of vertical position). As used herein, a first element is considered to be “horizontally adjacent” to a second element if the first element and the second element are located on a common horizontally extending axis and are in close proximity to one another without an element of the same type interposed therebetween.

[0084] It should be understood that although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, the first element may be called the second element, and similarly, the second element may be called the first element without departing from the scope of the present invention. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more related listed items.

[0085] It should be understood that when an element is referred to as being "on" another element, it may be directly on the other element, or there may be intervening elements. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on" another element, there are no intervening elements. It should also be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it may be directly connected or coupled to the other element, or there may be intervening elements. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly connected" or "directly coupled" to another element, there are no intervening elements. Other words used to describe relationships between elements should be interpreted in a similar manner (i.e., "between" versus "directly between," "adjacent" versus "directly adjacent," etc.).

[0086] The terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to also include plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should be further understood that the terms "include", "comprise" and "comprising" when used herein specify the presence of the features, operations, elements and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, operations, elements, components and / or groups thereof.

[0087] Aspects and elements of all of the embodiments disclosed above may be combined in any manner and / or with aspects or elements of other embodiments to provide multiple additional embodiments.

Claims

1. A multi-band base station antenna, include: Back panel; a first array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane, the radiating elements in the first array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein an uppermost horizontally extending row of the first array and a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array each comprise a first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the first array comprises a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number; as well as a second array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane and vertically offset from one another, and, Wherein at least one radiating element in an uppermost horizontally extending row of the first array is not vertically aligned with any radiating element in a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array.

2. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 1, in, The leftmost vertically-extending column of the first array and the rightmost vertically-extending column of the first array each have fewer radiating elements than at least one of the plurality of interior vertically-extending columns of the first array disposed between the leftmost vertically-extending column and the rightmost vertically-extending column of the first array.

3. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 2, in, An uppermost radiating element in the second array is horizontally adjacent to a first radiating element in the first array.

4. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 3, in, A second radiating element in the second array of radiating elements is horizontally adjacent to a second radiating element in the first array of radiating elements.

5. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 4, in, A first radiating element and a second radiating element of the second array of radiating elements are substantially vertically aligned with a leftmost vertically extending column of the first array.

6. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 5, in, First and second ones of the radiating elements in the second array are horizontally offset from at least some of the other radiating elements in the second array.

7. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 5, in, A first radiating element and a second radiating element of the second array are positioned farther from a vertical axis extending along a middle portion of the backplane than other radiating elements of the second array.

8. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 1, further comprising: a third array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane, the radiating elements in the third array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein an uppermost horizontally extending row and a lowermost horizontally extending row of the third array each comprise the first number of radiating elements, and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the third array comprises the second number of radiating elements; and a fourth array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane and vertically offset from one another, and, in, At least one radiating element in a lowermost horizontally-extending row of the third array is not vertically aligned with any radiating element in an uppermost horizontally-extending row of the third array.

9. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 8, in, The first array is horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array is horizontally spaced apart from the third array.

10. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 1, in, The first array is configured to operate in a first frequency band, and the second array is configured to operate in a second frequency band that at least partially overlaps with the first frequency band.

11. A multi-band base station antenna, comprising: Back panel; a first array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane, the radiating elements in the first array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array comprises a first number of radiating elements and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the first array comprises a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number; as well as a second array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane and vertically offset from one another, Wherein a first radiating element of the second array of radiating elements is located approximately at the intersection between a first vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the first array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the first array.

12. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 11, in, The first array is configured to operate in a first frequency band, and the second array is configured to operate in a second frequency band that only partially overlaps with the first frequency band.

13. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 12, in, A second one of the radiating elements in the second array is located substantially at the intersection of the first vertical axis and a second horizontal axis extending along a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array.

14. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 13, in, The first radiating element and the second radiating element in the second array are the two uppermost radiating elements in the second array.

15. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 14, in, The first of the first array of horizontally extending rows is adjacent to a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array.

16. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 14, in, The first and second radiating elements of the second array are substantially vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically extending column of the first array.

17. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 12, in, The two uppermost radiating elements of the second array are horizontally offset from at least some of the remaining radiating elements of the second array.

18. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 12, in, All horizontally-extending rows of the first array having the first number of radiating elements are closer to a center of the backplane than all horizontally-extending rows of the first array having the second number of radiating elements.

19. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 12, in, A leftmost vertically extending column of the first array has fewer radiating elements than at least one of the other vertically extending columns of the first array.

20. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 12, in, An uppermost radiating element in the second array is horizontally adjacent to a first radiating element in the first array.

21. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 20, in, A second radiating element in the second array of radiating elements is horizontally adjacent to a second radiating element in the first array of radiating elements.

22. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 21, in, The first and second ones of the radiating elements in the second array are substantially vertically aligned with the leftmost vertically extending column of the first array.

23. The multi-band base station antenna according to claim 22, in, The first and second ones of the radiating elements in the second array are horizontally offset from at least some of the other radiating elements in the second array.

24. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 11, further comprising: a third array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane, the radiating elements in the third array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein an uppermost horizontally extending row of the third array comprises the first number of radiating elements and at least one of the other horizontally extending rows of the third array comprises the second number of radiating elements; and a fourth array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane and vertically offset from one another, in, A first one of the radiating elements in the fourth array is located substantially at an intersection between a second vertical axis extending along a first one of the vertically extending columns of the third array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first one of the horizontally extending rows of the third array.

25. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 24, in, The first array is horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array is horizontally spaced apart from the third array.

26. A multi-band base station antenna, comprising: Back panel; a first array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane, the radiating elements in the first array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein a lowermost horizontally extending row of the first array comprises a first number of radiating elements and an uppermost row of other horizontally extending rows of the first array comprises a second number of radiating elements, wherein the second number is greater than the first number; as well as A third array is mounted below the first array, the third array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forward from the back panel, the radiating elements in the third array being arranged into a plurality of vertically extending columns and a plurality of horizontally extending rows, wherein the uppermost horizontally extending row of the third array comprises the first number of radiating elements and the lowermost horizontally extending row of the third array comprises the second number of radiating elements.

27. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 26, further comprising: include: a second array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane and vertically offset from one another; and Wherein a first radiating element of the second array of radiating elements is located approximately at the intersection between a first vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column of the first array and a first horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row of the first array.

28. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 27, further comprising: include: a fourth array comprising a plurality of radiating elements mounted to extend forwardly from the backplane and vertically offset from one another, Wherein, a first radiating element in the fourth array is approximately located at the intersection between a second vertical axis extending along a first vertically extending column in the vertically extending columns of the third array and a second horizontal axis extending along a first horizontally extending row in the horizontally extending rows of the third array.

29. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 28, in, The first array is horizontally spaced apart from the fourth array, and the second array is horizontally spaced apart from the third array.

30. The multi-band base station antenna of claim 28, in, The first and third arrays are configured to operate in a first frequency band, and the second and fourth arrays are configured to operate in a second frequency band that only partially overlaps with the first frequency band.

Images