Cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection

Abstract

The present invention provides a cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on radio frequency vertical interconnection. SMP connectors, SBMA connectors, SMA connectors and low-frequency micro-rectangular connectors are designed on a multi-layer microwave board and an intermediate shielding box in the form of vertical surface mounting to achieve vertical interconnection of signals. At the same time, by adopting a multi-layer microwave board, 16 receiving down-conversion channels, 1-to-16 power division amplification of a local oscillator signal and 1-to-16 power division of a calibration signal are horizontally distributed, thereby achieving blind vertical interconnection with a front-end antenna and plugging with a back-end digital acquisition module, realizing stable amplitude and phase input of microwave signals in the vertical direction of the tile, and realizing stable amplitude and phase output of intermediate frequency signals in the vertical direction, further reducing costs and realizing cable-free design of tiles, increasing reliability, making the volume and weight of the receiving tile much smaller than that of a traditional brick-type receiving component, and increasing the convenience of maintenance and replacement.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of active phased array radar receiving tiles, and in particular to a cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on radio frequency vertical interconnection. Background Art

[0002] Each antenna unit of the active phased array radar antenna array contains active circuits, and the transmit / receive assembly (T / R assembly) is a key component of the active phased array radar. Depending on the purpose, the active phased array can be composed of hundreds or thousands of T / R modules. These T / R modules play an important role in the performance of the array, and their cost accounts for about 50% of the cost of the active phased array antenna. The traditional brick-structured microwave T / R assembly occupies a large volume and weight. During installation, many RF phase-stabilized cables are required to connect the antenna and the RF tile. The RF phase-stabilized cables are expensive, which is not conducive to the low cost of the phased array radar; in addition, it also brings certain difficulties to the replacement and maintenance of the radar hardware; at the same time, if the local oscillator power division circuit and the calibration power division circuit need to be integrated, an additional PCB substrate or power division tile is required, and then the T / R assembly and the power division tile are assembled together with screws. As a result, the assembly is very thick and the assembly is more troublesome.

[0003] The emergence of LTCC has made phased array radar tiles using sintering technology a reality. The multi-layer LTCC substrate integrates the passive power distribution part into the substrate, which has a high degree of integration and a small size. However, the process consistency requirements for LTCC are very high, and the most fatal disadvantage is that the internal circuit cannot be debugged and repaired after the LTCC is finished. If the substrate is large and has many circuits, the yield rate will be relatively low. These disadvantages make the cost of LTCC tiles high. Currently, only a few domestic research institutes have the conditions to produce them, and they have not yet been widely adopted by the industry.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a multi-channel receiving tile that does not require an RF phase-stabilized cable (i.e., RF Cableless) to be connected to the phased array antenna array surface; at the same time, it is required to be as easy to repair and replace as traditional T / R components, and to have low cost. Summary of the invention

[0005] Based on this, it is necessary to provide a cableless 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection to address the above technical problems.

[0006] A cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection, comprising: a shielding box, a multi-layer microwave board, an SMP connector, an SBMA connector, an SMA connector, a double-row pin and a low-frequency micro-rectangular connector; wherein the shielding box comprises a top shielding cover, a middle shielding box and a bottom shielding cover; the multi-layer microwave board is divided into a first multi-layer microwave board and a second multi-layer microwave board; the SMA connector comprises an SMA1 connector, an SMA2 connector and an SMA3 connector; the SMP connector is installed on the front of the first multi-layer microwave board, and the top shielding cover is provided with a through hole corresponding to the SMP connector; the front of the first multi-layer microwave board is provided with 16 vertically surface-mounted SMP connectors and 16 down-conversion receiving channels, and the back of the first multi-layer microwave board is provided with a local oscillator signal and its 1-to-16 power division network; the front of the second multi-layer microwave board is provided with an RF calibration signal and its 1-to-16 power division network, and the back of the second multi-layer microwave board is provided with a radio frequency calibration signal and its 1-to-16 power division network The surface is provided with a power supply and a control circuit; 16 SBMA connectors are vertically installed on the back of the intermediate shielding box; the SBMA connector passes through the first multi-layer microwave board, reaches the front of the first multi-layer microwave board, and corresponds to the lower frequency receiving channel one by one, and the SBMA connector passes through the second multi-layer microwave board and the bottom shielding cover; the SMA1 connector is vertically surface-mounted on the back of the second multi-layer microwave board and passes through the bottom shielding cover; the SMA2 connector is vertically surface-mounted on the back of the first multi-layer microwave board and passes through the intermediate shielding box, the second multi-layer microwave board and the bottom shielding cover; the SMA3 connector is vertically surface-mounted on the front of the second multi-layer microwave board and passes through the bottom shielding cover; the two ends of the double-row needle are respectively welded on the first multi-layer microwave board and the second multi-layer microwave board; the low-frequency micro rectangular connector is vertically surface-mounted on the back of the second multi-layer microwave board and passes through the bottom shielding cover.

[0007] In one of the embodiments, a front-end antenna is further included, and the front-end antenna is provided with 16 output interfaces, and the SMP connector corresponds one-to-one with the output interfaces of the front-end antenna.

[0008] In one of the embodiments, a back-end digital acquisition module is also included, and the low-frequency micro rectangular connector contains a plurality of pins that can be plugged into the back-end digital acquisition module.

[0009] In one of the embodiments, the shielding box further includes shielding ribs, which are disposed between the top shielding cover and the first multi-layer microwave board and are used to form the 16 lower-frequency receiving channels into separate small cavities.

[0010] In one embodiment, the top shielding cover, the first multi-layer microwave board, the second multi-layer microwave board and the bottom shielding cover are all connected to the middle shielding box by screw connection.

[0011] In one of the embodiments, the first multi-layer microwave board is provided with a radio frequency through hole, and the radio frequency through hole is used to carry the down-conversion receiving channel.

[0012] In one of the embodiments, the local oscillator signal is designed in the form of equal amplitude and equal phase on the back side of the first multi-layer microwave board, and the local oscillator signal is input through the SMA2 connector.

[0013] In one of the embodiments, the radio frequency calibration signal is designed in the form of equal amplitude and equal phase on the front side of the second multi-layer microwave board; the radio frequency calibration signal is input through the SMA3 connector.

[0014] In one of the embodiments, a clock signal is also provided on the back side of the second multi-layer microwave board, and the clock signal is input through the SMA1 connector.

[0015] In one of the embodiments, a boss is provided on the back of the intermediate shielding box, and the SBMA connector is mounted on the boss through its own flange.

[0016] The above-mentioned cableless 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection realizes vertical interconnection of signals by designing SMP connectors, SBMA connectors, SMA connectors and low-frequency micro-rectangular connectors in the form of vertical surface mounting on the multi-layer microwave board and the intermediate shielding box. At the same time, by adopting a multi-layer microwave board, 16 receiving down-conversion channels, 1-to-16 power division amplification of the local oscillator signal and 1-to-16 power division of the calibration signal are horizontally distributed, thereby realizing blind vertical interconnection with the front-end antenna and docking with the back-end digital acquisition module, realizing the input of microwave signals with stable amplitude and phase in the vertical direction of the tile, and realizing the vertical output of intermediate frequency signals with stable amplitude and phase, further reducing costs and realizing the cableless design of tiles, increasing reliability, making the volume and weight of the receiving tiles much smaller than traditional brick-type receiving components, and increasing the convenience of maintenance and replacement. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection in one embodiment;

[0018] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structural splitting of the front and back sides of a cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection in one embodiment;

[0019] Figure 3 is a schematic structural diagram of a first multi-layer microwave board in one embodiment;

[0020] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of the front and back sides of the middle shielding box in one embodiment;

[0021] Figure 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a second multi-layer microwave board in one embodiment;

[0022] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a top shielding cover in one embodiment;

[0023] Figure 7 FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a bottom shielding cover in an embodiment.

[0024] In the accompanying drawings, there are a top shielding cover 11, shielding ribs 111, through holes 112, middle shielding boxes 12, bosses 121, bottom shielding cover 13, a first multi-layer microwave board 21, a second multi-layer microwave board 22, an SMP connector 3, an SBMA connector 4, an SMA1 connector 51, an SMA2 connector 52, an SMA3 connector 53, a low-frequency micro rectangular connector 6, an SBMA connector avoidance groove A, a low-frequency micro rectangular connector avoidance groove B, and an SMA connector avoidance groove C. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below through specific implementation methods in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not used to limit the present invention.

[0026] The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection provided by the present application mainly realizes the down-conversion of the RF signal received by the front-end antenna to the intermediate frequency signal and provides it to the back-end digital acquisition module. At the same time, the present invention has its own local oscillator power division and internal calibration signal power division functions. Therefore, the present invention includes 16 receiving down-conversion channels, 1 local oscillator 1-to-16 power division function (including source amplification and filtering), 1 RF calibration signal 1-to-16 power division function, secondary power conversion and filtering function, and digital control function of 16 down-conversion channels.

[0027] In one embodiment, Figure 1-Figure 7 As shown, a cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection is provided, including a shielding box, a multi-layer microwave board, an SMP connector 3, an SBMA connector 4, an SMA connector, a double-row pin and a low-frequency micro-rectangular connector 6; wherein the shielding box includes a top shielding cover 11, a middle shielding box 12 and a bottom shielding cover 13; the multi-layer microwave board is divided into a first multi-layer microwave board 21 and a second multi-layer microwave board 22; the SMA connector includes an SMA1 connector 51, an SMA2 connector 52 and an SMA3 connector 53.

[0028] The SMP connector 3 is installed on the front side of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 , and the top shielding cover 11 is provided with a through hole 112 corresponding to the SMP connector 3 .

[0029] The front of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 is provided with 16 down-frequency receiving channels, and the back of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 is provided with a local oscillator signal and a 1-to-16 power division network; the front of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 is provided with 16 vertical surface-mounted SMP connectors 3. The front of the second multi-layer microwave board 22 is provided with a radio frequency calibration signal and a 1-to-16 power division network, and the back of the second multi-layer microwave board 22 is provided with a power supply and a control circuit.

[0030] Sixteen SBMA connectors 4 are vertically installed on the back of the middle shielding box 12; the SBMA connectors 4 pass through the first multi-layer microwave board 21, reach the front of the first multi-layer microwave board 21, and correspond one-to-one with the lower frequency receiving channels, and the SBMA connectors 4 pass through the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and the bottom shielding cover 13; a boss 121 is provided on the back of the middle shielding box 12, and the SBMA connectors 4 are installed on the boss 121 through their own flanges.

[0031] The SMA1 connector 51 is vertically mounted on the back of the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and passes through the bottom shielding cover 13; a clock signal is also provided on the back of the second multi-layer microwave board 22, and the clock signal is input through the SMA1 connector 51. The SMA2 connector 52 is vertically mounted on the back of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 and passes through the intermediate shielding box 12, the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and the bottom shielding cover 13; the local oscillator signal is designed in the form of equal amplitude and equal phase on the back of the first multi-layer microwave board 21, and the local oscillator signal is input through the SMA2 connector 52. The SMA3 connector 53 is vertically mounted on the front of the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and passes through the bottom shielding cover 13; the RF calibration signal is designed in the form of equal amplitude and equal phase on the front of the second multi-layer microwave board 22; the RF calibration signal is input through the SMA3 connector 53.

[0032] The two ends of the double-row needle are respectively welded on the first multi-layer microwave board 21 and the second multi-layer microwave board 22. The low-frequency micro rectangular connector 6 is vertically attached to the back of the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and passes through the bottom shielding cover 13.

[0033] The bottom shielding cover 13 is provided with corresponding slots, namely Figure 7 The A, C, and B avoidance grooves are used to allow the SBMA connector 4, the SMA connector, and the low-frequency micro rectangular connector 6 to pass through. The intermediate shielding box 12 and the second multi-layer microwave board 22 are provided with corresponding slots to allow the corresponding SBMA connector 4 and SMA connector to pass through.

[0034] Specifically, all SMA connectors, whose full name is Sub-Miniature-A, are a typical microwave high-frequency connector. They are often used for signal input and output in radio frequency circuits. The surface mount in the text is also called surface mounting technology, abbreviated as SMT. SBMA connectors are a type of radio frequency connector. Specifically, it contains two large multi-layer microwave boards, both of which adopt a full-board design, in which the 16 down-conversion receiving channels on the first multi-layer microwave board 21 are evenly distributed horizontally on the front, and the radio frequency signal comes from the SMP connector 3 (first multi-layer microwave board 21) mounted on the front, while the local oscillator signal and its 1-to-16-way power division network are arranged on the back of the first multi-layer microwave board 21. The local oscillator power division network adopts an equal amplitude and equal phase design, and is provided to the 16 down-conversion receiving channels on the front through the radio frequency through hole. The input of the local oscillator signal comes from the back of the entire tile through the SMA2 connector 52. The SMA2 connector 52 is surface mounted to the back of the first multi-layer microwave board 21. Openings are left in the middle shielding box, the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and the bottom shielding cover to make room for the SMA2 connector 52.

[0035] The intermediate frequency output of the down-conversion receiving channel of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 is output vertically from the back through 16 SBMA connectors 4. The SBMA connector 4 is installed on the back of the middle shielding box through its own flange. The middle shielding box has a special design for installing the boss 121 of the SBMA connector 4. Through the length of the connector itself, it is directly connected to the front down-conversion first multi-layer microwave board 21 through the wall, and openings are left on the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and the bottom shielding cover to make room for the SBMA connector 4. This design avoids the use of microwave signal transition interfaces, maximizes the vertical output of the intermediate frequency signal with stable amplitude and phase, and realizes the plug-in with the back-end digital acquisition module, avoiding the use of a large number of expensive RF lines, and further reducing costs.

[0036] The RF calibration signal and its 1-to-16 power division network are distributed on the front of the second multi-layer microwave board 22. The RF calibration signal also adopts an equal amplitude and equal phase design. The RF calibration signal is provided to the 16 down-conversion receiving channels of the first multi-layer microwave board 21 vertically through the middle shielding box via a microwave insulator. The impedance of the microwave insulator is 50Ω, which achieves a good match with the RF microstrip lines on the first multi-layer microwave board 21 and the second multi-layer microwave board 22. The input of the RF calibration signal comes from the SMA3 connector 53 at the bottom, and the SMA3 connector 53 is vertically surface-mounted on the front of the second multi-layer microwave board 22.

[0037] The back of the second multi-layer microwave board 22 is the power supply and control. The power supply and control signals between the two multi-layer microwave boards are independently interconnected vertically through double-row pins, while avoiding interference; one end of the double-row pin is welded on the first multi-layer microwave board 21, and the other end is welded on the second multi-layer microwave board 22. Since each down-conversion channel contains 3 digitally controlled attenuators, each attenuator has 4 control lines, plus the power line and the ground line, there are a total of 15 low-frequency lines; for the 16-channel tile, the low-frequency power supply and control lines from the first multi-layer microwave board 21 to the second multi-layer microwave board 22 are as high as 240 low-frequency lines. If the traditional high-temperature wire manual welding method is adopted, the manual welding amount is huge and the reliability is not high. The 16PIN double-row pin adopted by the present invention can be welded on the first multi-layer microwave board 21 at one end and on the second multi-layer microwave board 22 at the other end, which is convenient and fast, with high assembly efficiency and more reliable than traditional high-temperature wire welding. It further saves the manpower and time cost of tile assembly and the time cost of rework. Therefore, in this sense, the improvement of assembly efficiency during large-scale production reduces the cost of tiles in disguise.

[0038] In one embodiment, a front-end antenna is further included, and 16 output interfaces are provided on the front-end antenna, and the SMP connector 3 corresponds to the output interfaces of the front-end antenna one by one. Specifically, the SMP connector 3 corresponds to the output interfaces of the 16 front-end antennas one by one, and blind pairing with the front-end array antenna is realized, and the input of microwave signals with stable amplitude and phase in the vertical direction is realized, avoiding the use of a large number of expensive RF phase-stabilizing cables, realizing the cable-free R tile (i.e., receiving tile), increasing reliability and reducing costs.

[0039] In one embodiment, a rear-end digital acquisition module is also included, and the low-frequency micro-rectangular connector 6 contains a plurality of pins, which can be plugged with the rear-end digital acquisition module. Specifically, the low-frequency micro-rectangular connector 6 adopts a micro-rectangular plug-in interface (low-frequency connector), which contains a plurality of pins and can be plugged with the rear-end digital acquisition module to realize vertical cable-free input of power signals and control signals at the same time.

[0040] In one embodiment, the shielding box further includes a shielding rib 111, which is disposed between the top shielding cover 11 and the first multi-layer microwave board 21, and is used to form the 16 lower frequency receiving channels into separate small cavities. Specifically, a special shielding rib 111 is designed on the side of the top shielding cover 11 facing the shielding box, and the shielding rib 111 is directly contacted and installed on the ground copper sheet on the first multi-layer microwave board 21, and the contact part has no solder resistance, so as to ensure a good combination of the shielding rib 111 and the first multi-layer microwave board 21. In addition, the conductive adhesive can be used to strengthen the bonding, so that the 16 channels on the first multi-layer microwave board 21 can form separate small cavities, thereby reducing mutual interference and increasing isolation between channels.

[0041] In one embodiment, the top shielding cover 11, the first multi-layer microwave board 21, the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and the bottom shielding cover 13 are all connected to the middle shielding box 12 by screw connection. Specifically, the top shielding cover 11, the first multi-layer microwave board 21, the second multi-layer microwave board 22 and the bottom shielding cover 13 are all installed on the middle shielding box 12 by screws, which is convenient for disassembly and maintenance in the development project, and further reduces the cost.

[0042] In one embodiment, the first multi-layer microwave board 21 is provided with a radio frequency through hole, and the radio frequency through hole is used to carry the down-conversion receiving channel. Specifically, the 16 down-conversion receiving channels on the front are provided through specially optimized radio frequency through holes. Since the thickness of the multi-layer microwave board is only 1.2 mm, the amplitude consistency of the specially designed radio frequency through hole is less than 0.1 dB and the phase consistency is less than 2°, which can meet the actual use requirements.

[0043] In the above embodiment, the SMP connector, SBMA connector, SMA connector and low-frequency micro rectangular connector are all designed in the form of vertical surface mounting on the multi-layer microwave board and the intermediate shielding box to achieve vertical interconnection of signals. At the same time, by adopting a multi-layer microwave board, 16 receiving down-conversion channels, a 1-to-16 power division amplification of the local oscillator signal and a 1-to-16 power division of the calibration signal are horizontally distributed, thereby achieving blind vertical interconnection with the front-end antenna and plugging with the back-end digital acquisition module, realizing the input of microwave signals with stable amplitude and phase in the vertical direction of the tile, and realizing the vertical output of the intermediate frequency signal with stable amplitude and phase, further reducing costs and realizing the cableless design of the tile, increasing reliability, making the volume and weight of the receiving tile much smaller than that of the traditional brick-type receiving component, and increasing the convenience of maintenance and replacement.

[0044] The above contents are further detailed descriptions of the present invention in combination with specific implementation methods, and it cannot be determined that the specific implementation of the present invention is limited to these descriptions. For ordinary technicians in the technical field to which the present invention belongs, several simple deductions or substitutions can be made without departing from the concept of the present invention, which should be regarded as falling within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection, characterized in that: include: Shielded boxes, multi-layer microwave boards, SMP connectors, SBMA connectors, SMA connectors, double-row pins and low-frequency micro rectangular connectors; The shielding box includes a top shielding cover, a middle shielding box and a bottom shielding cover; the multi-layer microwave board is divided into a first multi-layer microwave board and a second multi-layer microwave board; the SMA connector includes an SMA1 connector, an SMA2 connector and an SMA3 connector; The SMP connector is mounted on the front side of the first multilayer microwave board, and the top shielding cover is provided with a through hole corresponding to the SMP connector; The front side of the first multi-layer microwave board is provided with 16 vertical surface-mounted SMP connectors and 16 down-conversion receiving channels, and the back side of the first multi-layer microwave board is provided with a local oscillator signal and a 1-to-16 power division network; A radio frequency calibration signal and a 1:16 power division network thereof are provided on the front side of the second multi-layer microwave board, and a power supply and a control circuit are provided on the back side of the second multi-layer microwave board; 16 SBMA connectors are vertically installed on the back of the intermediate shielding box; the SBMA connectors pass through the first multi-layer microwave board, reach the front of the first multi-layer microwave board, and correspond one-to-one with the down-conversion receiving channels, and the SBMA connectors pass through the second multi-layer microwave board and the bottom shielding cover; The SMA1 connector is vertically surface-mounted on the back of the second multi-layer microwave board and passes through the bottom shielding cover; The SMA2 connector is vertically attached to the back of the first multi-layer microwave board and passes through the middle shielding box, the second multi-layer microwave board and the bottom shielding cover; the SMA3 connector is vertically attached to the front of the second multi-layer microwave board and passes through the bottom shielding cover; Two ends of the double-row needles are respectively welded on the first multi-layer microwave board and the second multi-layer microwave board; The low-frequency micro rectangular connector is vertically attached to the back of the second multi-layer microwave board and passes through the bottom shielding cover; It also includes a front-end antenna, which is provided with 16 output interfaces, and the SMP connector corresponds to the output interfaces of the front-end antenna one by one; The back-end digital acquisition module, the low-frequency micro rectangular connector contains a plurality of pins and can be plugged into the back-end digital acquisition module.

2. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: The shielding box further comprises shielding ribs, which are arranged between the top shielding cover and the first multi-layer microwave board and are used to form the 16 down-conversion receiving channels into separate small cavities.

3. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: The top shielding cover, the first multi-layer microwave board, the second multi-layer microwave board and the bottom shielding cover are all connected to the middle shielding box by screw connection.

4. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first multi-layer microwave board is provided with a radio frequency through hole, and the radio frequency through hole is used to carry the down-conversion receiving channel.

5. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: The local oscillator signal is designed in the form of equal amplitude and equal phase on the back side of the first multi-layer microwave board, and the local oscillator signal is input through the SMA2 connector.

6. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: The radio frequency calibration signal is designed in the form of equal amplitude and equal phase on the front side of the second multi-layer microwave board; the radio frequency calibration signal is input through the SMA3 connector.

7. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: A clock signal is also provided on the back of the second multi-layer microwave board, and the clock signal is input through the SMA1 connector.

8. The cable-free 16-channel receiving tile based on RF vertical interconnection according to claim 1, characterized in that: A boss is provided on the back of the intermediate shielding box, and the SBMA connector is mounted on the boss through its own flange.

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