Antenna structure, beam switching method and network equipment

Abstract

The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communications, and in particular to an antenna structure, a beam switching method, and a network device. The antenna structure provided in the embodiments of the present application includes: a vertically polarized antenna assembly includes: a first vertically polarized vertical plate plugged into the antenna bottom plate, a vertical radiation unit arranged on the front of the first vertically polarized vertical plate and located at the center axis position of the first vertically polarized vertical plate, and a vertical feeding unit fed with the vertical radiation unit; a first metal floor is arranged at the center axis position of the back of the first vertically polarized vertical plate; a horizontally polarized antenna assembly includes: a horizontal dielectric plate plugged into the first vertically polarized vertical plate, a horizontal radiation unit coaxially arranged at the front position of the horizontal dielectric plate with the vertical radiation unit, and a horizontal feeding unit fed with the horizontal radiation unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communications, and in particular to an antenna structure, a beam switching method, and a network device. Background Art

[0002] Today, the rapid development of smart terminal devices and mobile Internet services has led to a rapid increase in people's demand for the real-time and mobile availability of various online data services. Compared with mobile cellular networks, wireless local area networks (Wireless Local Area Network, referred to as "WLAN") have the advantages of broadband and low price. They have been widely used in various scenarios such as homes, enterprises, campuses and urban public places, and have become the most popular last-mile network access technology. The development of wireless terminal devices and the rapid growth of wireless data traffic have brought new opportunities and challenges to WLAN technology. Its current status can no longer fully adapt to the increasingly dense number of users and the explosive growth of data. At present, omnidirectional beam antennas are used to improve the coverage direction of antennas, or directional beams are used to meet network needs in densely populated areas.

[0003] However, the antennas that currently provide both horizontal and vertical omnidirectional beams have complex structures and large sizes, resulting in high antenna costs; the maximum gain of horizontally polarized beams and vertically polarized beams is low, for example, the maximum gain is 2dBi, which cannot meet network requirements. Summary of the invention

[0004] The main purpose of the embodiments of the present application is to propose an antenna structure, a beam switching method and a network device, which can improve the beam coverage of the antenna and improve the throughput.

[0005] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, an embodiment of the present application provides an antenna structure, including: an antenna base plate, a vertical polarization antenna assembly plugged into the antenna base plate, and a horizontal polarization antenna assembly plugged into the vertical polarization antenna assembly; the vertical polarization antenna assembly includes: a first vertical polarization vertical plate plugged into the antenna base plate, a vertical radiation unit arranged on the front of the first vertical polarization vertical plate and located at the central axis position of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, and a vertical feeding unit fed with the vertical radiation unit; a first metal floor is arranged at the central axis position of the back side of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, wherein the vertical radiation unit, the first metal floor and the vertical feeding unit jointly generate a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam; the horizontal polarization antenna assembly includes: a horizontal dielectric plate plugged into the first vertical polarization vertical plate, a horizontal radiation unit coaxially arranged at the front position of the horizontal dielectric plate with the vertical radiation unit, and a horizontal feeding unit fed with the horizontal radiation unit, wherein the horizontal radiation unit and the horizontal feeding unit jointly generate a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam.

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, an embodiment of the present application also provides a beam switching method, which is applied to the above-mentioned antenna structure, and the method includes: obtaining coding information corresponding to the specified direction to be switched, and the coding information is used to indicate the state of the beam switching structure; according to the coding information, adjusting the state of the beam switching structure to realize mutual switching between a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and a horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction.

[0007] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, an embodiment of the present application also provides a network device, including: the above-mentioned antenna structure; at least one processor connected to the antenna structure; and a memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein the memory stores instructions that can be executed by at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor so that the at least one processor can execute the above-mentioned beam switching method.

[0008] The antenna structure proposed in the present application is provided with a vertically polarized antenna component and a horizontally polarized antenna component. The vertically polarized antenna component generates a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam through a first metal floor, a vertical radiation unit, and a vertical feeding unit. The structure of the vertically polarized antenna component is simple. The horizontal radiation unit in the horizontally polarized antenna component is coaxially arranged with the vertical radiation unit, which can reduce the interference between the horizontally polarized antenna component and the vertically polarized antenna component and improve the coverage of the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and the vertically polarized omnidirectional beam. The antenna structure can receive and send data at the same time, which improves the throughput rate of the antenna. The vertically polarized antenna component and the horizontally polarized antenna component are connected in a plug-in manner, which has a simple structure and can realize a dual-polarized omnidirectional beam without an overly large structure, thereby reducing the cost of the antenna. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an antenna structure provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0010] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a partial structure of an antenna provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0011] Figure 3 is a top view of an antenna base plate provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0012] Figure 4 is a bottom view of an antenna base plate provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0013] Figure 5 is a front plan view of a first vertically polarized vertical plate provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0014] Figure 6 is a back plan view of a first vertically polarized vertical plate provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 7 is a front plan view of a second vertically polarized vertical plate provided according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 8 is a back plan view of a second vertically polarized vertical plate provided according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] Fig. 9 is a top view of a horizontally polarized antenna assembly provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Fig.10 is a bottom view of a horizontally polarized antenna assembly provided according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Fig.11 is a schematic diagram of an antenna structure provided according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Fig.12 is a front view of a choke plate provided according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Fig.13 is a back view of a choke plate provided according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Fig.14 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a horizontally polarized antenna assembly provided according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Fig.15 is a schematic diagram of a beam switching structure provided according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Fig.16 is a schematic diagram of a beam switching structure provided according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Fig.17 is a flow chart of a beam switching method provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Fig.18 is a schematic diagram of the positions of four diodes of a horizontally polarized antenna assembly provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Fig.19 is a schematic diagram of S parameters under five radiation states provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Fig. 20 is a gain pattern under five radiation states provided by the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Fig.21 is a schematic diagram of simulated main lobe gain of a horizontally polarized antenna assembly provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Fig. 22 is a schematic diagram of the positions of four groups of diodes on a vertical reflector provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Fig.23 is a schematic diagram of S parameters under nine radiation states provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Fig.24 is a gain pattern under nine radiation states provided by a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Fig.25 is a schematic diagram of simulated main lobe gain of a vertically polarized antenna assembly provided according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Fig.26 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network device provided according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] To make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that in the present application, many technical details are proposed in order to enable the reader to better understand the present application. However, even without these technical details and various changes and modifications based on the following embodiments, the technical scheme claimed in the present application can also be implemented. The division of the following embodiments is for the convenience of description, and the specific implementation of the present application should not be construed as any limitation, and the various embodiments can be combined and referenced with each other under the premise of no contradiction.

[0036] The first embodiment of the present invention relates to an antenna structure, which includes: an antenna base plate, a vertical polarization antenna assembly plugged into the antenna base plate, and a horizontal polarization antenna assembly plugged into the vertical polarization antenna assembly; the vertical polarization antenna assembly includes: a first vertical polarization vertical plate plugged into the antenna base plate, a vertical radiation unit arranged on the front of the first vertical polarization vertical plate and located at the central axis position of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, and a vertical feeding unit fed with the vertical radiation unit; a first metal floor is arranged at the central axis position of the back of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, wherein the vertical radiation unit, the first metal floor and the vertical feeding unit jointly generate a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam; the horizontal polarization antenna assembly includes: a horizontal dielectric plate plugged into the first vertical polarization vertical plate, a horizontal radiation unit coaxially arranged at the front position of the horizontal dielectric plate with the vertical radiation unit, and a horizontal feeding unit fed with the horizontal radiation unit, wherein the horizontal radiation unit and the horizontal feeding unit jointly generate a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam.

[0037] The antenna structure proposed in the present application is provided with a vertically polarized antenna component and a horizontally polarized antenna component. The vertically polarized antenna component generates a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam through a first metal floor, a vertical radiation unit, and a vertical feeding unit. The structure of the vertically polarized antenna component is simple. The horizontal radiation unit in the horizontally polarized antenna component is coaxially arranged with the vertical radiation unit, which can reduce the interference between the horizontally polarized antenna component and the vertically polarized antenna component and improve the coverage of the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and the vertically polarized omnidirectional beam. The antenna structure can receive and send data at the same time, which improves the throughput rate of the antenna. The vertically polarized antenna component and the horizontally polarized antenna component are connected in a plug-in manner, which has a simple structure and can realize a dual-polarized omnidirectional beam without an overly large structure, thereby reducing the cost of the antenna.

[0038] In the following example, we will combine the attached Figures 1 to 10 The antenna structure is introduced.

[0039] The antenna structure in this example can be installed in a network device, for example, a wireless router. The application scenario of this antenna structure can be a home, or it can be used in stations, airports, stadiums, theaters, campuses, large corporate offices, computer rooms, ships, etc. where there is frequent flow of people, complex terrain, and limited space resources. Figure 1 , Figure 2 1 is a schematic diagram of the antenna structure. The antenna structure includes: an antenna base plate 101, a vertically polarized antenna component 102, and a horizontally polarized antenna component 103. For ease of understanding, the above three structures are introduced in this example in order from bottom to top of the antenna structure.

[0040] Structure 1: The structure of the antenna base plate 101 is as follows Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the Figure 3 is a top view of the antenna base plate 101, Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a bottom view of the antenna base plate 101 .

[0041] Specifically, the antenna base plate 101 includes a first dielectric plate 1011 and a copper clad layer 1012 on the upper surface of the first dielectric plate 1011; the first dielectric plate 1011 is a FR-4 dielectric plate with a thickness of 1 mm; the FR-4 dielectric plate is a common material for PCB, which is easy to process and has low cost. The antenna base plate 101 is used to assist the feed routing of the vertical polarization antenna assembly and the horizontal polarization antenna assembly 103, and the antenna base plate 101 can be used as a component to support the vertical polarization antenna assembly and the horizontal polarization antenna assembly 103. A plurality of air holes 1013 can be opened on the antenna base plate 101, and the air holes 1013 are used as routing holes for the feed cables of the horizontal polarization antenna assembly, and the hole radius of the air holes 1013 can be 1 mm. The air holes 1014 are used as routing holes for the feed cables of the vertical radiation units on the vertical polarization antenna assembly 103, and the hole radius of the air holes 1014 can be 2 mm. Since the vertically polarized antenna assembly is plugged into the antenna base plate 101, the plug-in structure in this example may adopt a pin structure, and a pin hole 1015 for pin connection may be provided on the antenna base plate, and the hole radius of the pin hole 1015 matches the pin of the pin structure. For example, if the radius of the pin is 0.4 mm, then the corresponding hole radius of the pin hole 1015 may be 0.4 mm.

[0042] Structure 2: vertically polarized antenna assembly.

[0043] The vertically polarized antenna assembly 102 includes a first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021 plugged into the antenna base plate 101, a vertical radiating unit 1022 arranged on the front of the first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021 and located at the central axis position of the first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021, and a vertical feeding unit 1023 that feeds the vertical radiating unit 1022; a first metal floor 1024 is arranged at the central axis position of the back side of the first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021, wherein the vertical radiating unit 1022, the first metal floor 1024 and the vertical feeding unit 1023 jointly generate a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam.

[0044] The structure of the first vertical polarization plate 1021 is as follows: Figure 5 , Figure 6 shown. Figure 5 is a front plan view of the first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021, Figure 6 It is a top view of the back side of the first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021.

[0045] The first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021 is composed of a FR-4 dielectric plate, and the thickness of the dielectric plate of the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021 can be 1mm. The vertical radiation unit 1022 can be a monopole antenna for radiating electromagnetic waves. The shape of the monopole antenna 1022 includes any one of the following: rectangular, square, circular or elliptical. In this example, the shape of the monopole antenna 1022 is taken as a rectangle. The size of the monopole antenna 1022 can be 13mm×2.8mm. The vertical feeding unit 1023 can be a microstrip feeder, and the size of the microstrip feeder 1023 can be 5mm×3mm. A first metal floor 1024 is provided at the central axis position on the back side of the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021. The shape of the first metal floor 1024 can be various. For example, the shape of the first metal floor 1024 can be a trapezoidal, rectangular, square, circular, elliptical or the like. In this example, the first metal floor 1024 takes a trapezoidal shape as an example. Figure 6 As shown in FIG. 1 , the size of the upper base, the size of the lower base, and the height of the first metal floor 1024 in this example may be 3 mm, 14 mm, and 5 mm, respectively.

[0046] In one example, the antenna structure further includes a beam switching structure; the beam switching structure is disposed on the vertically polarized antenna assembly, and is used for switching between a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam and a vertically polarized directional beam in a specified direction. Alternatively, the beam switching structure is disposed on the horizontally polarized antenna assembly, and is used for switching between a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and a horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction. Alternatively, the beam switching structure is disposed on the horizontally polarized antenna assembly and the vertically polarized antenna assembly, and is used for switching between a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and a horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction, and for switching between a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam and a vertically polarized directional beam in a specified direction.

[0047] In one example, the beam switching structure may include: a vertical reflector group, the vertical reflector group is arranged around the vertical radiation unit 1022; the vertical reflector group includes at least one vertical reflector 1025; the vertical reflector 1025 includes at least four vertical reflection units 10251, and every two vertical reflection units 10251 are connected through a first switch element 10252. Figure 5-6 Introduce the vertical reflector set.

[0048] Specifically, in this example, the vertical reflection units 10251 in the vertical reflector 1025 are arranged vertically in a row and are perpendicular to the vertical radiation units 1022. Figure 5 and Figure 6The combined vertical reflector group includes 4 vertical reflectors. On the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021, the vertical reflector 1025 surrounds the vertical radiation unit 1022. Two vertical reflectors 1025 may be symmetrically arranged based on the center position on the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021. In this example, the vertical reflector 1025 may be in a rectangular shape, and the size of the vertical reflector 1025 may be 16 mm×1.5 mm. Each reflector includes 4 vertical reflection units 10251, and the 4 vertical reflection units 10251 are connected by a first switch element 10252, and the first switch element 10252 may be a PIN diode.

[0049] When the vertical reflector 1025 is in the first operating state, the vertical reflector 1025 is used to switch the direction of the vertically polarized omnidirectional beam to a vertically polarized directional beam in a specified direction, and the first operating state is a state in which each first switch element 10252 in the vertical reflector is turned on; when the vertical reflector is in the second operating state, the vertical reflector 1025 is used to switch the vertically polarized directional beam in a specified direction to a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam, and the second operating state is a state in which any one of the first switch elements 10252 in the vertical reflector 1025 is in a disconnected state.

[0050] Specifically, when all the first switch elements 10252 are turned on, the vertical reflector 1025 is in a first operating state. If one of the first switch elements 10252 in the vertical reflector 1025 is disconnected, the vertical reflector 1025 is in a second operating state. A corresponding bias line 10253-1 is also symmetrically arranged on the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021. One end of the bias line 10253 provides a bias voltage to the first switch element 10252 through the metallized through-hole 212, and the other end of the bias line 10253 is grounded through a pin. The radius of the metallized through-hole 212 can be 0.2 mm, wherein the bias line 10253-3 is a pin of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly. The pin hole 25 and the pin hole 26 are used to connect the curved pins, and the radius can be 0.4 mm.

[0051] In one example, a first slot structure 1026 is provided at the middle position of the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021; the vertical polarization antenna assembly 102 also includes: a second vertical polarization vertical plate 1027 plugged into the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021 through the first slot structure 1026; at least one vertical reflector 1025 is provided around the center position on the front of the second vertical polarization vertical plate 1027; a first bias line 10253-2 is provided at a position on the back side 1027 of the second vertical polarization vertical plate that matches the vertical reflector 1025, and the first bias line 10253-2 provides a bias voltage for the first switching element in the vertical reflector 1025.

[0052] Specifically, a first pin structure is provided on the vertical polarization antenna assembly, and a first socket structure matching the first pin structure is provided on the horizontal polarization antenna assembly; a second pin structure is provided on the vertical polarization antenna assembly, and a second socket structure matching the second pin structure is provided on the antenna bottom plate. The first slot structure 1026 is used for plugging the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021 with the second vertical polarization vertical plate 1027. Pin holes 25 and 26 can be provided on the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021 for connecting curved pins, and the radius can be 0.4 mm. The pin hole and the pin form a first pin structure, and the first pin structure corresponds to the pin hole 1015 of the antenna bottom plate.

[0053] Combine the following Figure 7 , Figure 8 The second vertical polarization standoff 1027 is introduced. Figure 7 is a front plan view of the second vertically polarized vertical plate 1027, Figure 8 This is a top view of the back side of the second vertically polarized vertical plate 1027.

[0054] Specifically, the second vertical polarization vertical plate 1027 is composed of a FR-4 dielectric plate, and the thickness of the dielectric plate can be 1mm. Two symmetrically placed vertical reflectors 1025 are used to change the beam pointing direction, and their size can be 16mm×1.5mm. Each vertical reflector 1025 is divided into four vertical reflection units 10251, which are connected in the middle by a first switching element 10252, such as a PIN diode. When the diode is turned on, the vertical reflector 1025 is in the first operating state, otherwise it is in the second operating state. One end of the symmetrically placed bias line 10253-1 provides a bias voltage to the first switching element 10252 through the metallized through-hole 312, and the other end is grounded through a pin. The bias line 35 is a pin of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly. The radius of the metallized through-hole 312 can be 0.2mm. The third slot structure 1026-1 and the first slot structure 1026 are used to realize the assembly and plugging of the first vertical polarization plate 1021 and the second vertical polarization plate 1027. The pin holes 33 and 34 are used to connect the curved pins, and the radius is 0.4 mm.

[0055] Working principle of vertical polarization antenna assembly: The central structure of vertical polarization antenna is monopole antenna, microstrip feeder and first metal floor, and the peripheral structure is a vertical reflector group composed of four vertical reflectors. Among them, the central structure monopole antenna, microstrip feeder and first metal floor can work together to generate omnidirectional beam, radiate vertical polarization wave and cover 360°; when any vertical reflector in the peripheral structure is in the first operating state, it can generate vertical polarization directional beam.

[0056] Structure three: horizontally polarized antenna assembly.

[0057] The specific structure of the horizontal polarization antenna assembly 103 is as follows: Fig. 9 , Fig.10 As shown, Fig. 9 is a top view of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly 103, Fig.10 FIG. 1 is a bottom view of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly 103 .

[0058] The horizontally polarized antenna assembly 103 includes: a horizontal dielectric plate 1031 plugged into the first vertically polarized vertical plate 1021, a horizontal radiating unit 1032 coaxially arranged with the vertical radiating unit 1022 at the front position of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031, and a horizontal feeding unit 1033 feeding the horizontal radiating unit 1032, wherein the horizontal radiating unit 1032 and the horizontal feeding unit 1033 jointly generate a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam.

[0059] If a beam switching structure is provided in the horizontal polarization antenna assembly, in order to provide a bias voltage for the beam switching structure, a second bias line as a pin of the horizontal polarization antenna can be provided on the first vertical polarization vertical plate 1021. The radius of the metallized through hole 212 is 0.2 mm.

[0060] In an example, the horizontal radiation unit 1032 is an antenna ring printed on the front surface of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 ; the antenna ring includes four arc metal microstrips spaced apart from each other, and each metal microstrip is connected to the horizontal feeding unit 1033 .

[0061] Specifically, the material of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 is FR-4, the radius of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 can be 30 mm, the thickness can be 1 mm, and an Alford antenna ring is printed on the upper layer of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 to generate a circumferential horizontally polarized radiation wave. In this example, the antenna ring includes 4 segments of circular arc metal microstrips spaced apart from each other, and the sector angle of each circular arc metal microstrip can be set to 63.5°. The inner diameter of the antenna ring is 12 mm and the outer diameter is 16 mm; the horizontal feeding unit 1033 can be a power divider.

[0062] In an example, a second metal floor 1034 is provided on the back side of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031, at a position opposite to the horizontal radiation unit 1032; the horizontal polarization antenna assembly 103 also includes: a short-circuit branch 1035; the short-circuit branch 1035 is connected to the second metal floor 1034 through the first metallized hole 112 on the horizontal dielectric plate 1031, and the short-circuit branch 1035 is used to assist the impedance matching of the horizontal feeding unit 1033 and the horizontal radiation unit 1032.

[0063] Specifically, the short-circuit branch 1035 is located on the power divider to improve the impedance matching between the power divider and the antenna loop and expand the antenna bandwidth. The size of the short-circuit branch 1035 can be 3mm×0.7mm. The short-circuit branch 1035 passes through the first metallized hole 112, penetrates the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 and is connected to the second metal floor 1034. The radius of the first metallized through hole 112 can be 0.3mm. In addition, there are four symmetrical air holes 19 on the horizontal dielectric plate 1031. The air holes 19 are pin holes with a radius of 0.4mm.

[0064] The beam switching structure may include a horizontal reflector assembly. The following describes a case where a horizontal reflector assembly is arranged on a horizontal polarization antenna assembly. Fig. 9 , Fig.10 .

[0065] In one example, a horizontal reflector group is arranged around a horizontal radiation unit 1032; the horizontal reflector group includes at least one horizontal reflector 1036; the horizontal reflector 1036 includes at least two horizontal reflection units 10361, and each two horizontal reflection units are connected by a second switch element 10362; when the horizontal reflector 10361 is in a third operating state, the horizontal reflector 10361 is used to switch the direction of a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam to a horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction, and the third operating state is a state in which each second switch element 10362 in the horizontal reflector 1036 is turned on; when the horizontal reflector 1036 is in a fourth operating state, the horizontal reflector 1036 is used to switch the horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction to a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam, and the fourth operating state is a state in which any second switch element 10362 in the horizontal reflector 1036 is in a disconnected state.

[0066] Specifically, the front side of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 is also provided with: a second bias line 1037 connected to the horizontal reflector 1036, which is used to provide a bias voltage for the second switch element 10362 in the horizontal reflector 1036. The horizontal dielectric plate 1031 is provided with four symmetrical horizontal reflectors 1036 for changing the beam direction. The fan angle of each horizontal reflector 1036 can be 21°, the outer diameter is 26mm, and the inner diameter is 24mm. The middle of the horizontal reflector 1036 is connected by a second switch element 10362. The second switch element 10362 can be a PIN diode. The second bias line 1037 provides a bias voltage to control the on and off of the second switch element 10362. When the second switch element 10362 is in the on state, the horizontal reflector 1036 is in the third operating state. When the second switch element 10362 is disconnected, the horizontal reflector 1036 is in the fourth operating state. The radius of the air hole 19 can be 0.4mm, which is used to insert the pin 11( Figure 2), and connected to the second bias line 1037. The horizontal polarization antenna assembly is fed by a coaxial line with a diameter of 1 mm. The inner conductor of the coaxial line passes through an air hole 114 with a radius of 0.35 mm and is connected to the pad 113 on the front of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031. The pad radius can be 1.5 mm. The outer conductor is directly connected to the second metal floor 1034 on the back of the horizontal dielectric plate 1031. The second metal floor 1034 can be circular, and the circular floor radius is 10 mm. It can be understood that the horizontal dielectric plate 1031 can be set to be circular, and the antenna base plate 101 can be set to be square.

[0067] Working principle of the horizontal polarization antenna assembly: The central structure of the horizontal polarization antenna assembly is the Alford antenna ring, and the peripheral structure is a horizontal reflector group consisting of four horizontal reflectors. Among them, the central structure Alford antenna ring can provide an omnidirectional beam, generate horizontally polarized radiation waves and cover 360°; when the peripheral structure horizontal reflector is in the third operating state, it can generate a horizontally polarized directional beam.

[0068] The second embodiment of the present invention relates to an antenna structure. The antenna structure in this embodiment is a further improvement of the first embodiment. The main improvement is that this embodiment further includes: a choke plate 104. The schematic diagram of the antenna structure is shown in FIG. Fig.11 shown.

[0069] The choke plate 104 is plugged into the antenna base plate 101 and is located between the first vertical polarization plate 1021 and the second vertical polarization plate 1027; the choke plate 104 includes a dielectric plate 1041 plugged into the antenna base plate 101 and a copper clad layer 1042 covering the dielectric plate 1041; an inverted L-shaped second gap structure is etched on the copper clad layer 1042.

[0070] Specifically, Fig.12 and Fig.13 They are the front view and the back view of the choke plate 104. The choke plate 104 is composed of a 1 mm thick FR-4 dielectric board 1041 and a surface copper layer 1042, and an inverted L-shaped second slit 1043 is etched on the copper layer 1042. The pin hole 1044 is used to insert the pin 1045, thereby fixing the choke plate 104 and the antenna base plate 101 together. The radius of the pin hole 1044 can be 0.4 mm.

[0071] The choke plate 104 can suppress the secondary radiation generated by the induced current on the surface of the outer conductor of the coaxial cable.

[0072] The third embodiment of the present invention relates to an antenna structure, which is substantially the same as the first embodiment and the second embodiment, except that six horizontal reflectors are provided in the present embodiment, and the structure of the horizontal polarization antenna assembly is as follows: Fig.14 shown.

[0073] Specifically, the number of horizontal reflectors can be set as needed, and can be 1, 2 or more than 2. In this example, in order to increase the number of directional beams, 6 horizontal reflectors are taken as an example to illustrate that 6 horizontal reflectors are evenly arranged around the horizontal radiation unit on the horizontal dielectric plate.

[0074] Similarly, the number of vertical reflectors can be multiple, for example, 6, which will not be described in detail here. In addition, the shapes of the horizontal reflectors and vertical reflectors can be multiple, for example, trapezoidal or triangular. Fig.15 and Fig.16 shown.

[0075] It can be understood that the sizes of the vertical reflector and the horizontal reflector can be set as needed and are not limited to the sizes listed in this application.

[0076] A fourth embodiment of the present invention relates to a beam switching method, the process of which is as follows: Fig.17 As shown, including:

[0077] Step 401: Obtain coding information corresponding to a specified direction to be switched, where the coding information is used to indicate a state of a beam switching structure.

[0078] Specifically, the method is used to control the antenna structure in the first to third embodiments. In this example, electromagnetic power is obtained by coaxial line feeding, and the operation of the beam switching structure is controlled by turning on and off the switch element in the beam switching structure. The switch element is a PIN diode, which enables the diode to have two digital coding states of "0" and "1". By controlling the "0" and "1" states of the diode, a digital coding scheme for the antenna is formed, thereby controlling the beam pointing in the antenna radiation pattern and realizing a radiation pattern in a specified direction.

[0079] Step 402: According to the coding information, the state of the beam switching structure is adjusted to achieve mutual switching between the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and the horizontally polarized directional beam in the specified direction.

[0080] According to the coding information, the conduction and disconnection of the diode can be controlled to form the coding information, thereby obtaining the corresponding designated beam.

[0081] To facilitate understanding, the beam switching process is introduced below using a specific example.

[0082] (1) Implementation method of horizontally polarized antenna beam switching.

[0083] The positions of the four diodes (D1, D2, D3, D4) of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly are as follows: Fig.18When the diode is applied with a forward voltage, it is in the on state 1, otherwise it is in the off state 0. Table 1 shows the horizontal polarization antenna beam switching control method, including 5 coding states and their generated directional pattern characteristics (1 omnidirectional beam and 4 directional beams). Fig.19 The S parameters under five radiation states are given (S21 and S22 are shown in the figure). Fig. 20 The gain patterns under five radiation states are given. Fig.18 and Fig.19 It can be seen that the reflection coefficient of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly in this example is lower than -10dB from 5.15GHz to 5.925GHz, and switching between omnidirectional beams and four directional beams is achieved. Fig.21 The simulated main lobe gain of the horizontally polarized antenna assembly in this example under each coding scheme shown in Table 1 is given. As can be seen from the figure, the main lobe gain of each beam tested at 5.5 GHz is greater than 4.1 dBi, and the peak gain is 5 dBi.

[0084] The corresponding relationship between the beam pointing and the coding information is preset, as shown in Table 1.

[0085]

[0086] Table 1 Horizontal polarization antenna beam switching control method

[0087] (2) Vertically polarized antenna beam switching implementation method.

[0088] Each reflector of the vertical polarization antenna is connected through three diodes. When the three diodes are all applied with forward voltage, the reflector works, otherwise it does not work. The three diodes on each vertical reflector form a group. The positions of the four groups of diodes (Dg1, Dg2, Dg3, Dg4) are as follows: Fig. 22 When the diode is applied with a forward voltage, it is in the on state 1, otherwise it is in the off state 0. Table 2 shows the vertical polarization antenna beam switching control method, including 9 coding states and the directional pattern characteristics generated by them (1 omnidirectional beam and 8 directional beams). Fig.23 The S parameters under nine radiation states are given (parameters S21 and S22 are shown in the figure). Fig.24 The gain patterns under 9 radiation states are given. Fig.23 and Fig.24 It can be seen that the reflection coefficient of the vertically polarized antenna designed in the present invention is lower than -10dB at 5.15GHz to 5.925GHz, and the switching between the omnidirectional beam and 8 directional beams is realized. Fig.25 The simulated main lobe gain of the vertically polarized antenna assembly in this example under each coding scheme shown in Table 2 is given. Fig.25It can be seen that the vertically polarized antenna in this example has a main lobe gain greater than 3.6dBi and a peak gain of 4.6dBi at 5.5GHz under the coding scheme given in Table 2. The correspondence between the vertical beam pointing and the coding information is preset, as shown in Table 2:

[0089]

[0090]

[0091] Table 2 Vertical polarization antenna beam scanning control method

[0092] In this implementation, switching between omnidirectional beams and 8 types of directional beams is achieved, and it has the characteristics of dual polarization and high gain, high anti-interference and good stability, and is suitable for wireless local area network systems.

[0093] A fifth embodiment of the present invention relates to a network device, the structure of which is shown in FIG. Fig.26 As shown, the electronic device includes: at least one processor 501; and a memory 502 communicatively connected to the at least one processor 501; wherein the memory 502 stores instructions that can be executed by the at least one processor 501, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor 501 so that the at least one processor 501 can execute the above-mentioned fault location method.

[0094] Among them, the memory and the processor are connected in a bus manner, and the bus may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, and the bus links various circuits of one or more processors and memories together. The bus can also link various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits together, which are all well known in the art, so they are not further described in this article. The bus interface provides an interface between the bus and the transceiver. The transceiver can be one element or multiple elements, such as multiple receivers and transmitters, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices on a transmission medium. The data processed by the processor is transmitted on a wireless medium through an antenna, and further, the antenna also receives data and transmits the data to the processor.

[0095] The processor is responsible for managing the bus and general processing, and can also provide various functions, including timing, peripheral interfaces, voltage regulation, power management, and other control functions. Memory can be used to store data used by the processor when performing operations.

Claims

1. An antenna structure, characterized in that: include: An antenna base plate, a vertically polarized antenna assembly plugged into the antenna base plate, and a horizontally polarized antenna assembly plugged into the vertically polarized antenna assembly; The vertical polarization antenna assembly comprises: a first vertical polarization vertical plate plugged into the antenna bottom plate, a vertical radiation unit arranged on the front of the first vertical polarization vertical plate and located at the central axis position of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, and a vertical feeding unit fed with the vertical radiation unit; a first metal floor is arranged at the central axis position of the back of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, wherein the vertical radiation unit, the first metal floor and the vertical feeding unit jointly generate a vertically polarized omnidirectional beam, a first slot structure is arranged at the middle position of the first vertical polarization vertical plate, and a second vertical polarization vertical plate plugged into the first vertical polarization vertical plate through the first slot structure; The horizontal polarization antenna assembly comprises: a horizontal dielectric plate plugged into the first vertical polarization vertical plate, a horizontal radiating unit coaxially arranged at the front position of the horizontal dielectric plate with the vertical radiating unit, and a horizontal feeding unit fed with the horizontal radiating unit, wherein the horizontal radiating unit and the horizontal feeding unit jointly generate a horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam; A choke plate is inserted into the antenna bottom plate and is located between the first vertical polarization vertical plate and the second vertical polarization vertical plate.

2. The antenna structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: Beam switching structure; The beam switching structure is arranged on the vertically polarized antenna assembly, and is used for switching between the vertically polarized omnidirectional beam and the vertically polarized directional beam in a specified direction; or, The beam switching structure is arranged on the horizontally polarized antenna assembly, and is used for switching between the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and the horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction; or, The beam switching structure is arranged on the horizontal polarization antenna assembly and the vertical polarization antenna assembly.

3. The antenna structure according to claim 2, characterized in that: The beam switching structure includes: a vertical reflector group, wherein the vertical reflector group is arranged around the vertical radiation unit; The vertical reflector group includes at least one vertical reflector; The vertical reflector comprises at least 4 vertical reflection units, and every two vertical reflection units are connected via a first switch element; When the vertical reflector is in a first operating state, the vertical reflector is used to switch the direction of the vertically polarized omnidirectional beam to a vertically polarized directional beam in a specified direction, and the first operating state is a state in which each of the first switching elements in the vertical reflector is turned on; When the vertical reflector is in a second operating state, the vertical reflector is used to switch the vertically polarized directional beam in the specified direction to the vertically polarized omnidirectional beam, and the second operating state is that any one of the first switching elements in the vertical reflector is in a disconnected state.

4. The antenna structure according to claim 3, characterized in that: At least one of the vertical reflectors is arranged around the center position on the front side of the second vertical polarization vertical plate; A first bias line is disposed at a position on the back side of the second vertical polarization vertical plate that matches the vertical reflector. The first bias line provides a bias voltage for the switching element in the vertical reflector.

5. The antenna structure according to claim 3, characterized in that: The vertical reflection units in the vertical reflector are arranged vertically in a row and are perpendicular to the vertical radiation units.

6. The antenna structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The choke plate includes a dielectric plate plugged into the antenna bottom plate and a copper clad layer covering the dielectric plate; An inverted L-shaped second gap structure is etched on the copper cladding layer.

7. The antenna structure according to claim 2, characterized in that: A second metal floor is provided on the back side of the horizontal medium plate at a position opposite to the horizontal radiation unit; The horizontally polarized antenna assembly further comprises: a short-circuited branch; The short-circuit branch is connected to the second metal floor through a first metallized hole on the horizontal dielectric board, and the short-circuit branch is used to assist the impedance matching between the horizontal feeding unit and the horizontal radiating unit.

8. The antenna structure according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that: The beam switching structure comprises: a horizontal reflector group, wherein the horizontal reflector group is arranged around the horizontal radiation unit; The horizontal reflector group includes at least one horizontal reflector; The horizontal reflector comprises at least two horizontal reflection units, and every two of the horizontal reflection units are connected via a second switch element; When the horizontal reflector is in a third operating state, the horizontal reflector is used to switch the direction of the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam to a horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction, and the third operating state is a state in which each of the second switch elements in the horizontal reflector is turned on; When the horizontal reflector is in a fourth operating state, the horizontal reflector is used to switch the horizontally polarized directional beam in the specified direction to the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam, and the fourth operating state is that any one of the second switch elements in the horizontal reflector is in a disconnected state.

9. The antenna structure according to claim 8, characterized in that: The front side of the horizontal dielectric plate is also provided with: a second bias line connected to the horizontal reflector, which is used to provide a bias voltage for the second switch element in the horizontal reflector.

10. The antenna structure according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The horizontal radiation unit is an antenna ring printed on the front surface of the horizontal dielectric plate; The antenna ring includes four sections of circular arc metal microstrips spaced apart from each other, and each section of the metal microstrip is connected to the horizontal feeding unit.

11. The antenna structure according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The vertically polarized antenna assembly is provided with a first pin structure, and the horizontally polarized antenna assembly is provided with a first socket structure matching the first pin structure; The vertically polarized antenna assembly is provided with a second pin structure, and the antenna bottom plate is provided with a second socket structure matching the second pin structure.

12. The antenna structure according to claim 2, characterized in that: The shape of the beam switching structure includes any one of the following: rectangular, square, circular or elliptical.

13. The antenna structure according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The vertical radiating unit is a monopole antenna; The shape of the monopole antenna includes any one of the following: rectangular, square, circular or elliptical.

14. A beam switching method, characterized in that: Applied to the antenna structure according to any one of claims 2 to 9, the method comprises: Acquire coded information corresponding to the specified direction to be switched, where the coded information is used to indicate a state of the beam switching structure; According to the coding information, the state of the beam switching structure is adjusted to achieve mutual switching between the horizontally polarized omnidirectional beam and the horizontally polarized directional beam in a specified direction.

15. A network device, characterized in that: include: The antenna structure according to any one of claims 1 to 13; at least one processor coupled to the antenna structure; as well as, a memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein, The memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor to enable the at least one processor to perform the beam switching method according to claim 14.

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