Antenna control method, antenna module and communication device

Abstract

The embodiment of the present application relates to an antenna control method, an antenna module and a communication device. The antenna control method includes: when the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold, obtaining the field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located; determining the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determining the target phases corresponding to each antenna in the target antenna array, the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device; controlling each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals with corresponding target phases, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold. Based on the above method, the peak gain of the communication device in a specific direction can be improved, thereby improving the communication quality of the communication device in transmitting and receiving signals in the current communication environment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of radio frequency technology, and in particular, to an antenna control method, an antenna module and a communication device. Background Art

[0002] With the rapid growth of information, users' demands for communication equipment are also increasing. However, when a communication device is communicating with a peer device, the communication quality often changes due to factors such as the location of the peer device, building obstruction, etc. In some cases, the above situation may even cause obvious freezes during communication, which greatly affects the user experience. Summary of the invention

[0003] Based on this, it is necessary to provide an antenna control method, antenna module and communication device that can improve communication quality in response to the above technical problems.

[0004] In a first aspect, the present application provides an antenna control method, comprising:

[0005] When the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold, acquiring field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located;

[0006] Determine a target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine target phases corresponding to antennas in the target antenna array, wherein the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device;

[0007] Control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at the corresponding target phases, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

[0008] In a second aspect, the present application provides an antenna module, including:

[0009] Multiple antennas;

[0010] A control module, used to obtain field strength distribution information of a communication environment in which the communication device is located when the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold; determine a target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine target phases corresponding to each antenna in the target antenna array, wherein the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device; and control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals with each corresponding target phase, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

[0011] In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication device, comprising the antenna module as described above.

[0012] The above antenna control method can determine whether the communication device is in a weak signal scenario based on the current signal strength and the first strength threshold. When it is determined to be in a weak signal scenario, multiple corresponding antennas are selected according to the communication environment to form a target antenna array, and the target phase of each antenna is determined, so that the signals received and sent by the multiple antennas in the target antenna array are effectively superimposed to improve the peak gain of the communication device in a specific direction, thereby improving the communication quality of the communication device receiving and sending signals in the current communication environment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the related technologies, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the related technical descriptions are briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0014] Figure 1 A diagram of an application environment of an antenna control method according to an embodiment;

[0015] Figure 2 One of the flow charts of the antenna control method according to an embodiment;

[0016] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the antenna position of a communication device;

[0017] Figure 4 A flowchart of controlling a scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to a plurality of scanning phase combinations to obtain electric field strengths in a plurality of directions; and obtaining field strength distribution information according to the electric field strengths in a plurality of directions according to an embodiment;

[0018] Figure 5 A flowchart of the steps of an embodiment for determining a target antenna array according to field strength distribution information and preset radiation patterns of each antenna;

[0019] Figure 6 A flowchart of determining target phases corresponding to each antenna in the target antenna array in one embodiment;

[0020] Figure 7 A flowchart of the steps of an embodiment for determining a target antenna array according to a target radiation direction and a preset radiation pattern of each antenna;

[0021] Figure 8 The second schematic diagram of the antenna position of a communication device;

[0022] Fig. 9 A flow chart of determining a target antenna array according to a target radiation direction and preset radiation patterns of each candidate antenna according to an embodiment;

[0023] Fig.10 is a structural schematic diagram of an antenna module according to an embodiment;

[0024] Fig.11 FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the internal structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

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

[0026] It is understood that the terms "first", "second", etc. used in this application may be used herein to describe various elements, but these elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish a first element from another element. For example, without departing from the scope of this application, a first intensity threshold may be referred to as a second intensity threshold, and similarly, a second intensity threshold may be referred to as a first intensity threshold. Both the first intensity threshold and the second intensity threshold are intensity thresholds, but they are not the same intensity threshold.

[0027] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of the present application, the meaning of "multiple" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined. In the description of the present application, the meaning of "several" is at least one, such as one, two, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0028] Figure 1 FIG. 1 is an application environment diagram of an antenna control method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 The antenna control method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to Figure 1 In the application environment shown in FIG. 1 , the communication device 102 communicates with the peer device 104 via an antenna. The communication device 102 may be, but is not limited to, various personal computers, laptops, smart phones, tablet computers, IoT devices, and portable wearable devices. IoT devices may be smart speakers, smart TVs, smart air conditioners, smart car-mounted devices, etc. Portable wearable devices may be smart watches, smart bracelets, head-mounted devices, etc. The peer device 104 may be, but is not limited to, base stations, routers, etc.

[0029] Figure 2 This is one of the flow charts of an antenna control method according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1 The communication device 102 in FIG. 1 is taken as an example for explanation. The antenna type includes but is not limited to an IFA antenna (Inverted-FAntenna) or a PIFA antenna (Planar Inverted F-shaped Antenna). Figure 2 , the antenna control method includes steps 202 to 206.

[0030] Step 202: When the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold, obtain field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located.

[0031] The signal strength of the communication device corresponds to the function supported by the antenna. For example, if the antenna is a WIFI antenna, the signal strength is the current WIFI signal strength of the communication device.

[0032] Specifically, the signal strength is used to evaluate the current communication quality of the communication device. Optionally, the signal strength can be a specific value of an evaluation index such as the received signal strength (RSSI) and the received power, and the signal strength can also be a strength level divided by preset rules. Exemplarily, if the signal strength includes four strength levels, one grid, two grids, three grids and four grids are displayed on the user interface from weak to strong. Moreover, the first strength threshold is set corresponding to the setting method of the signal strength. For example, when the strength level is one grid or two grids, it can be determined that the current signal strength is less than the first strength threshold. Among them, the first strength threshold can be the signal strength that can guarantee the basic communication function, and the basic communication function is, for example, the function of sending and receiving text messages instantly. The first strength threshold can also be adaptively adjusted according to the current traffic demand of the communication device, and the traffic demand can be determined according to the type of application currently running on the communication device. For example, if the currently running application is an e-book type application, it can be determined that the traffic demand is low, and a lower first strength threshold is set.

[0033] Step 204: determine a target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine target phases corresponding to the antennas in the target antenna array.

[0034] Among them, the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device. Field strength distribution information refers to the distribution information of electric field strength. It can be understood that the closer the area is to the signal transmission source, the greater the electric field strength is, that is, based on the field strength distribution information, the direction of the opposite device can be known. Accordingly, during the communication process, if the signal gain in the direction of the opposite device is increased, the signal quality of the communication device in the current communication environment can be effectively improved. Therefore, based on the hardware structure of multiple antennas, by controlling at least some of the antennas to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at the target phase, signals in certain directions can be constructively interfered, and signals in other directions can be destructively interfered, thereby achieving control of the direction of signal transmission and reception. This process can also be called beamforming. Among them, the target phases of different antennas in the target antenna array can be the same or different, which is determined according to the actual communication environment.

[0035] For example, Figure 3 This is one of the antenna position diagrams of a communication device, refer to Figure 3 , the communication device includes two antennas, namely ANT1 and ANT2. Table 1 shows the peak gain of the field pattern superimposed when ANT1 and ANT2 have different phase combinations. Referring to Table 1, Port1 refers to the phase of the ANT1 receiving and transmitting signal, and Port2 refers to the phase of the ANT2 receiving and transmitting signal. For example, if the phases of the ANT1 and ANT2 receiving and transmitting signals are both 0, the peak gain of the field pattern formed by the superposition of ANT1 and ANT2 receiving and transmitting signals in the form of an antenna array is 0.664dBi, that is, the gain of the superimposed field pattern in the maximum gain direction is 0.664dBi. Among them, when the phase of the ANT1 receiving and transmitting signal is 0 and the phase of the ANT2 receiving and transmitting signal is 90, the peak gain of the superimposed field pattern is 2.95dBi, which is 2.286dBi higher than the peak gain of the (0,0) phase combination. It can be seen that by determining the appropriate target phase for each antenna, the peak gain of the target antenna array can be effectively improved, thereby improving the communication quality of the communication device.

[0036] Table 1 Peak gain of ANT1 and ANT2 after field superposition at different combination phases

[0037]

[0038] Step 206: Control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at the target phases corresponding to each other, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

[0039] Specifically, interference may occur between signals radiated by different antennas, wherein if there is constructive interference of signals in the direction where the opposite device is located, the signal strength of the communication device can be improved. Moreover, the higher the degree of match between the direction of the constructive interference and the direction where the opposite device is located, the greater the signal strength when the communication device communicates with the opposite device. In an exemplary manner, each antenna can be controlled to operate at a corresponding target phase by generating a phase modulation signal. Specifically, the phase modulation signal is used to transmit to a phase modulation module connected to each antenna to instruct the phase modulation module to perform corresponding phase modulation. The phase modulation module may include a plurality of phase shifters, and each antenna of the communication device is connected to each phase shifter in a one-to-one correspondence. Each phase shifter is used to respectively receive a phase modulation signal carrying corresponding target phase information, and phase modulate the signal received and sent by the connected antenna according to the target phase information, thereby adjusting the direction in which the signal undergoes constructive interference and destructive interference. It should be noted that when the target antenna array includes only part of the antennas of the communication device, the remaining antennas of the communication device may be used to receive other signals or may not receive signals, which is not limited in this embodiment.

[0040] In this embodiment, based on a relatively simple antenna structure, the above-mentioned antenna control method can be used to determine whether the communication device is in a weak signal scenario according to the current signal strength and the first strength threshold of the communication device. When it is determined that the communication device is in a weak signal scenario, multiple corresponding antennas are selected according to the communication environment to form a target antenna array, and the target phase of each antenna is determined, so that the signals received and sent by the multiple antennas in the target antenna array are effectively superimposed to improve the peak gain of the communication device in a specific direction, thereby improving the communication quality of the communication device receiving and sending signals in the current communication environment, and meeting the communication needs of the user. It should be noted that this embodiment does not limit the reason why the signal strength of the communication device is less than the first strength threshold. Exemplarily, the reason for insufficient signal strength may be that only one antenna is currently receiving and sending signals, or that the communication environment changes when multiple antennas are receiving and sending signals together, but as long as the communication device includes multiple antennas, the antenna control method of this embodiment can be used to control at least part of the antennas of the communication device.

[0041] In one of the embodiments, obtaining field strength distribution information of a communication environment in which a communication device is located includes the following steps: controlling a scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to a plurality of scanning phase combinations to obtain electric field strengths in a plurality of directions, the plurality of directions corresponding one-to-one to the plurality of scanning phase combinations, the scanning antenna array including at least two antennas of the communication device, the scanning phase combination including phases corresponding one-to-one to the antennas in the scanning antenna array; obtaining field strength distribution information according to the electric field strengths in a plurality of directions.

[0042] Among them, beam scanning refers to the process of detecting the signal strength in multiple directions in the communication environment by changing the signal receiving direction of the scanning antenna array. Specifically, by changing the phase of each antenna in the scanning antenna array, the present embodiment can adjust the signal receiving direction. Taking the scanning antenna array including two antennas ANT1 and ANT2 as an example, the processor first controls ANT1 and ANT2 to send and receive signals with a scanning phase combination (α1, β1) to obtain the electric field strength in one direction, and then controls ANT1 and ANT2 to send and receive signals with a scanning phase combination (α2, β2) to obtain the electric field strength in another direction, and so on, until the detection of the electric field strength in all directions to be scanned is completed. It can be understood that the number of antennas in the scanning antenna array and the number of scanning phase combinations can be set according to the requirements of scanning accuracy. For example, when the scanning accuracy requirement is high, a larger number of antennas are selected for scanning, or a larger number of scanning phase combinations are set. In this embodiment, by cooperating with multiple antennas in the scanning antenna array, field strength distribution information can be accurately obtained without increasing the complexity of each antenna monomer.

[0043] It is understandable that, in the ideal case where the antenna is not blocked, the scanning result obtained by beam scanning is only affected by the communication environment. That is, even if different antennas are selected to form a scanning antenna array, the signal strength in the same direction obtained by scanning should be the same. Therefore, in the above ideal case, there is no need to make special selections for the antennas in the scanning antenna array, and any antenna in the communication device can be used to form a scanning antenna array. However, in the non-ideal case where some antennas are blocked, multiple unobstructed antennas should be selected to form a scanning antenna array to ensure the accuracy of the field strength distribution information. In this embodiment, multiple unobstructed antennas can be determined in any manner, which is not limited here. For example, the user's holding position can be determined based on the touch position of the screen to determine whether the antenna is blocked.

[0044] Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a flowchart of controlling a scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to multiple scanning phase combinations to obtain electric field strengths in multiple directions; and obtaining field strength distribution information according to the electric field strengths in multiple directions. Figure 4 In one embodiment, the above steps include steps 402 to 408.

[0045] Step 402: Control the scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to a plurality of first scanning phase combinations to obtain first electric field intensities in a plurality of directions within a first angle range.

[0046] Exemplarily, the first angle range can be a 360° range, and the multiple directions include six directions of the communication device: up, down, left, right, front, and back. Taking the communication device as a mobile phone as an example, for the convenience of subsequent explanation, a three-dimensional coordinate is established with the mobile phone as the center. The upper direction refers to the direction from the microphone to the receiver, which can be defined as the (0, 1, 0) direction. The lower direction refers to the direction from the receiver to the microphone, which can be defined as the (0, -1, 0) direction. The front direction refers to the direction from the back cover to the display screen, which can be defined as the (0, 0, -1) direction. The rear direction refers to the direction from the display screen to the back cover, which can be defined as the (0, 0, 1) direction. The left direction can be defined as the (-1, 0, 0) direction. The right direction is set opposite to the left direction and can be defined as the (1, 0, 0) direction.

[0047] Step 404: determine a second angle range according to the multiple first electric field intensities.

[0048] The second angle range is smaller than the first angle range, and the second angle range at least covers a direction corresponding to a maximum value among multiple first electric field intensities.

[0049] Step 406: Control the scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to multiple second scanning phase combinations to obtain second electric field strengths in multiple directions within a second angle range.

[0050] Among them, the number of the second scanning phase combinations is greater than the number of the first scanning phase combinations. Exemplarily, if the direction corresponding to the maximum value in the first electric field strength is the left direction, beam scanning can be further performed on 9 directions, namely (-1, 0, 0), (-1, 0, 1), (-1, 1, 1), (-1, 0, 1), (-1, -1, 1), (-1, -1, 0), (-1, -1, -1), (-1, 0, -1) and (-1, 1, -1), so as to obtain a more refined scanning result.

[0051] Step 408: Acquire field intensity distribution information according to the multiple second electric field intensities.

[0052] In this embodiment, based on multiple first electric field strengths, the direction of the opposite device can be preliminarily determined, and the direction of the opposite device is located in the second angle range. By using a larger number of second scanning phase combinations, a higher density beam scan can be performed on multiple directions within the second angle range, thereby reducing the angle range that needs to be scanned, obtaining a more accurate scanning result at a faster beam scanning speed, and then obtaining accurate field strength distribution information.

[0053] Furthermore, the electric field strengths in multiple directions obtained by beam scanning can be interpolated to obtain the electric field strengths in undetected directions. Still further, data fitting can be performed on the electric field strengths in multiple directions obtained by beam scanning to obtain a field strength distribution diagram. Based on the above steps, more accurate field strength distribution information can be obtained, thereby improving the accuracy of selecting the target antenna array and calculating the target phase. Among them, the specific contents of the interpolation algorithm and the data fitting algorithm are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0054] In one of the embodiments, determining the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information includes the following steps: determining the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information and a preset radiation pattern of each antenna.

[0055] Among them, the preset radiation pattern can be understood as an inherent property of the antenna. If the antenna structure does not change, the preset radiation pattern will not change. The preset radiation pattern can be pre-stored in the memory before the communication device leaves the factory, and directly called by the processor when needed, so as to quickly and accurately determine the target antenna array. Specifically, the multiple antennas constituting the target antenna array can be determined first, and then the target phase of each antenna can be determined. In an exemplary manner, the field intensity distribution information can be matched with the preset radiation pattern, and the antenna with a higher similarity between the preset radiation pattern and the field intensity distribution information can be determined to constitute the target antenna array. For example, multiple antennas with a similarity greater than a similarity threshold can be used to constitute the target antenna array. In another exemplary manner, multiple antennas with a high similarity between the preset radiation patterns can be selected to constitute the target antenna array to increase the peak gain after the pattern is superimposed. In another exemplary manner, when there is a high similarity between the preset radiation patterns of a large number of antennas, the preset radiation pattern of the above antenna can be further matched with the field intensity distribution information to determine that some of the antennas constitute the target antenna array.

[0056] It is understandable that in other embodiments, multiple antennas constituting the target antenna array and the target phase of each antenna therein may also be determined simultaneously. For example, a traversal calculation may be performed based on the preset radiation patterns and optional phase combinations of all antennas to obtain the superimposed patterns under various combinations, so that the combination of multiple superimposed patterns with the highest degree of matching with the field intensity distribution information may be determined to constitute the target antenna array, and the target phase of each antenna therein may be determined.

[0057] Figure 5 This is a flowchart of the steps of an embodiment for determining the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information and the preset radiation field pattern of each antenna, with reference to Figure 5 In one embodiment, the above steps include steps 502 to 505.

[0058] Step 502: determine the target radiation direction according to the field intensity distribution information.

[0059] Among them, the target radiation direction is the direction of the signal wave, and the target radiation direction can also be understood as the direction of the opposite device. Therefore, the direction with the largest signal strength in the field strength distribution information can be obtained as the target radiation direction. For example, if the data processing method of performing data fitting on the electric field strength in multiple directions obtained by beam scanning is adopted, the maximum signal strength can be determined according to the fitting curve obtained by data fitting, and the target radiation direction corresponding to the maximum signal strength can be inferred by the fitting curve.

[0060] Step 504: determine the target antenna array according to the target radiation direction and the preset radiation pattern of each antenna.

[0061] In this embodiment, the gain of the antenna in each direction can be obtained according to the preset radiation pattern. Therefore, it can be determined that the antennas with larger gain in the target radiation direction constitute the target antenna array, thereby improving the communication quality of the target antenna array.

[0062] Figure 6 is a flowchart of determining the target phases corresponding to each antenna in the target antenna array in one embodiment, with reference to Figure 6 In one embodiment, the above steps include steps 602 to 604.

[0063] Step 602: determine a target phase difference according to a preset timing of each antenna in the target antenna array receiving and transmitting a signal, so that constructive interference is generated when the signals received and transmitted by each antenna have the target phase difference.

[0064] Specifically, the frequencies of the signals transmitted and received by each antenna in the target antenna array are the same, but the preset timing of the transmitted signals is not exactly the same. For example, under the preset timing, the peak position of the signal transmitted by a certain antenna may correspond to the trough position of the signal transmitted by another antenna. It can be understood that, based on the principle of wave interference, when the peak positions of multiple signals coincide, the multiple signals will constructively interfere, thereby generating the maximum amplitude, which is equal to the sum of the amplitudes of each signal. Therefore, it is necessary to adjust the phase of each signal based on the preset timing so that the peaks of the signals transmitted by each antenna coincide. Accordingly, the target phase difference when adjusting each signal is determined by the preset timing. Taking the target antenna array including three antennas as an example, the target phase difference can be that the phase of the ANT2 transmitted signal is 30° later than the phase of the ANT1 transmitted signal, and the phase of the ANT3 transmitted signal is 15° later than the phase of the ANT2 transmitted signal.

[0065] Step 604: determine each of the target phases according to the target phase difference.

[0066] Among them, the difference between each of the target phases satisfies the target phase difference. That is, the target phase of each antenna can be determined according to the target phase difference. For example, taking the phase difference obtained in the previous step as an example, it can be determined that the phase of the ANT1 radiation signal is 0°, the phase of the ANT2 radiation signal is 30°, and the phase of the ANT3 radiation signal is 45°. It can be understood that although the multiple antennas in the target antenna array can produce constructive interference based on the preset phase difference, the maximum gain direction of the signal after constructive interference is determined by the preset radiation pattern and amplitude of each antenna. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the maximum gain direction after constructive interference based on the preset radiation pattern of each antenna. Moreover, the amplitude of the signal radiated by each antenna can be determined according to the preset radiation pattern and the target radiation direction, so as to more accurately adjust the maximum gain direction of the target antenna array so that the maximum gain direction of the target antenna array points to the target radiation direction. It should be noted that the maximum gain direction of the target antenna array points to the target radiation direction, including that the maximum gain direction of the target antenna array coincides with the target radiation direction, and also includes that the angle between the maximum gain direction and the target radiation direction is less than the angle error threshold. Therefore, in this step, the target phase and amplitude of each antenna can be further determined based on the preset radiation field pattern, so that the signal after constructive interference superposition can accurately point to the target radiation direction, thereby obtaining a higher signal gain and improving the communication quality of the communication equipment.

[0067] Figure 7 The steps of an embodiment are a flowchart for determining a target antenna array according to a target radiation direction and a preset radiation pattern of each antenna, with reference to Figure 7 In one embodiment, the above steps include steps 702 to 704.

[0068] Step 702: Determine multiple antennas located on the same side as candidate antennas.

[0069] Step 704: determine the target antenna array according to the target radiation direction and the preset radiation pattern of each candidate antenna.

[0070] The middle frame of the communication device includes a plurality of circumferentially closed and connected side edges. Specifically, due to the antenna structure, multiple antennas located on the same side edge usually have more similar field patterns. Figure 8 This is the second schematic diagram of the antenna position of a communication device, reference Figure 8, the communication device includes three antennas, namely ANT1, ANT2 and ANT3. Table 2 shows the peak gain of the field patterns of ANT1 and ANT3 after superposition at different combination phases. Referring to Table 1, Port1 refers to the phase of the ANT1 receiving and transmitting signal, and Port3 refers to the phase of the ANT3 receiving and transmitting signal. For example, if the phases of the ANT1 and ANT3 receiving and transmitting signals are both 0, the peak gain of the field pattern formed by the superposition of ANT1 and ANT3 receiving and transmitting signals in the form of an antenna array is 0.721dBi. Among them, when the phase of the ANT1 receiving and transmitting signal is 0 and the phase of the ANT3 receiving and transmitting signal is 90, the peak gain of the field pattern formed by superposition is 1.52dBi, which is only 0.799dBi higher than the peak gain of the (0,0) phase combination. By comparing Table 1 and Table 2, it can be seen that the antenna position has a great influence on the peak gain after the field pattern is superimposed. The maximum peak gain of the antenna combination method using ANT1 and ANT3 is still 1.43dBi less than the maximum peak gain of the antenna combination method using ANT1 and ANT2, resulting in insufficient improvement in communication quality when ANT1 and ANT3 work together. Therefore, in this embodiment, by selecting multiple antennas located on the same side as alternative antennas and determining the target antenna array from the alternative antennas, the amount of calculation required for determining the target antenna array can be effectively reduced without affecting the calculation results, thereby improving the computational efficiency of the antenna control method.

[0071] Table 2 Peak gain of ANT1 and ANT3 after field superposition at different phase combinations

[0072]

[0073]

[0074] Fig. 9 FIG. 1 is a flowchart of determining a target antenna array according to a target radiation direction and a preset radiation pattern of each candidate antenna according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 9 In one embodiment, the above steps include step 902 and at least one of step 904 and step 906.

[0075] Step 902: when the number of candidate antennas is greater than two, obtain the remaining power of the communication device.

[0076] Specifically, since the target antenna array needs to include at least two antennas, if there are only two alternative antennas, all the alternative antennas can be selected to form the target antenna array. However, if the number of alternative antennas is greater than two, some or all of the antennas can be selected to form the target antenna array, thereby controlling the antenna more flexibly. It is understandable that the more antennas there are in the target antenna array, the greater the power consumption of the target antenna array, but the better the directionality when sending and receiving signals. Therefore, appropriate antenna selection can be made based on the current remaining power, thereby effectively balancing the relationship between power consumption and communication quality.

[0077] Step 904: when the remaining power is less than the power threshold, two candidate antennas are selected according to the target radiation direction and the preset radiation pattern of each candidate antenna to form a target antenna array.

[0078] Step 906: When the remaining power is greater than or equal to the power threshold, all candidate antennas are selected to form a target antenna array.

[0079] Specifically, if the remaining power is less than the power threshold, two candidate antennas are selected to form the target antenna array, thereby improving the communication quality of the communication device to a certain extent without excessively increasing power consumption. If the remaining power is greater than or equal to the power threshold, the maximum number of available antennas can be selected to achieve the best network performance and improve the user experience.

[0080] In one of the embodiments, the number of antennas in the target antenna array can be determined based on the gain information in the target radiation direction. Exemplarily, a gain threshold can be used as an evaluation index. If the gain of a target antenna array including two antennas in the target radiation direction is greater than or equal to the gain threshold, only two antennas can be used to form the target antenna array. In another exemplary embodiment, if the difference between the gain of a target antenna array including n antennas in the target radiation direction and the gain of a target antenna array including n+1 antennas in the target radiation direction is less than the gain difference threshold, it means that adding antennas will not significantly improve the gain of the target antenna array in the target radiation direction, and only n antennas can be used to form the target antenna array.

[0081] In one of the embodiments, the antenna control method further includes the following steps: when the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to a second strength threshold, controlling a target antenna among multiple antennas of the communication device to transmit and receive signals, the second strength threshold is greater than the first strength threshold, and the signal strength of the target antenna is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold. Specifically, if the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the second strength threshold, it means that the current communication environment is better, and even if only one antenna is used to transmit and receive signals, it is sufficient to meet the user's communication needs. Therefore, the communication device is switched to a single-antenna communication working state, thereby reducing the power consumption of the communication device and extending the standby time of the communication device.

[0082] It should be understood that, although the steps in each flowchart are displayed in sequence according to the indication of the arrows, these steps are not necessarily executed in sequence according to the order indicated by the arrows. Unless there is a clear description in this article, the execution of these steps is not strictly limited in order, and these steps can be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least a part of the steps in each flowchart can include multiple sub-steps or multiple stages, and these sub-steps or stages are not necessarily executed at the same time, but can be executed at different times, and the execution order of these sub-steps or stages is not necessarily to be carried out in sequence, but can be executed in turn or alternately with other steps or at least a part of the sub-steps or stages of other steps.

[0083] Fig.10 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an antenna module according to an embodiment, Fig.10 In one embodiment, the antenna module includes multiple antennas and a control module. The control module is used to obtain field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located when the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold; determine the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine the target phases corresponding to each antenna in the target antenna array, and the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device; control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at the corresponding target phases, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

[0084] In this embodiment, by adopting the above structure and the control logic of the control module, it is possible to determine whether the communication device is in a weak signal scenario according to the current signal strength of the communication device and the first strength threshold. When it is determined to be in a weak signal scenario, multiple corresponding antennas are selected according to the communication environment to form a target antenna array, and the target phase of each antenna is determined, so that the signals received and sent by the multiple antennas in the target antenna array are effectively superimposed to improve the peak gain of the communication device in a specific direction, thereby improving the communication quality of the communication device receiving and sending signals in the current communication environment.

[0085] In one of the embodiments, the control module is also used to generate a phase modulation signal according to the target antenna array, and the antenna module also includes a phase modulation module, which is respectively connected to each antenna and the control module. The phase modulation module is used to receive the phase modulation signal, and modulate the phase of each antenna when receiving and transmitting the signal to the corresponding target phase according to the phase modulation signal, so that each antenna in the target antenna array can simultaneously transmit and receive signals with each corresponding target phase. Among them, the phase modulation module can include multiple phase shifters, and the multiple phase shifters are respectively connected to the multiple antennas in a one-to-one correspondence. Furthermore, a matching circuit can be connected between the phase shifter and the corresponding antenna to achieve impedance matching and improve the RF performance of the antenna module.

[0086] In one embodiment, an antenna control device is provided, including a field strength distribution acquisition module, a target array determination module and a signal generation module. The field strength distribution acquisition module is used to obtain field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located when the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold. The target array determination module is used to determine the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine the target phases corresponding to each antenna in the target antenna array, wherein the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device. The signal generation module is used to control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at the corresponding target phases, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

[0087] In one embodiment, the antenna control device also includes a single antenna control module, which is used to control a target antenna among multiple antennas of the communication device to send and receive signals when the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to a second strength threshold, the second strength threshold is greater than the first strength threshold, and the signal strength of the target antenna is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

[0088] The division of the various modules in the above-mentioned antenna control device is only for illustration. In other embodiments, the antenna control device can be divided into different modules as needed to complete all or part of the functions of the above-mentioned antenna control device. For the specific definition of the antenna control device, please refer to the definition of the antenna control method above, which will not be repeated here. The various modules in the above-mentioned antenna control device can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware and a combination thereof. The above-mentioned modules can be embedded in or independent of the processor in the communication device in the form of hardware, or can be stored in the memory of the communication device in the form of software, so that the processor can call and execute the operations corresponding to the above modules.

[0089] In one of the embodiments, a communication device is provided, including the antenna module as described above.

[0090] In one embodiment, the communication device further includes a middle frame, and the middle frame includes a plurality of sides that are circumferentially closed and connected. At least two antennas of the antenna module are located on the same side. In this embodiment, by locating at least two antennas on the same side, the field pattern similarity between the multiple antennas on the same side can be improved, thereby improving the directivity of the field pattern after superposition, and improving the signal strength when the multiple antennas on the same side form a target antenna array.

[0091] In one of the embodiments, the angle between the maximum gain directions of at least two antennas located on the same side is less than 45°. Specifically, by adjusting the angle between the maximum gain directions of at least two antennas located on the same side, the field patterns of the two antennas can be made more similar, so that the directivity of the field pattern after superposition is better, thereby further improving the signal strength when multiple antennas located on the same side form a target antenna array.

[0092] In one embodiment, a communication device is provided, including multiple antennas, a phase modulation module, a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor implements the steps of the above method when executing the computer program.

[0093] In one embodiment, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a terminal, and its internal structure diagram may be as follows: Fig.11 As shown. The communication device includes a processor, a memory, a communication interface, a display screen and an input device connected through a system bus. Among them, the processor of the communication device is used to provide computing and control capabilities. The memory of the communication device includes a non-volatile storage medium and an internal memory. The non-volatile storage medium stores an operating system and a computer program. The internal memory provides an environment for the operation of the operating system and the computer program in the non-volatile storage medium. The communication interface of the communication device is used to communicate with an external terminal in a wired or wireless manner, and the wireless manner can be achieved through WIFI, a mobile cellular network, NFC (near field communication) or other technologies. When the computer program is executed by the processor, an antenna control method is implemented. The display screen of the communication device can be a liquid crystal display screen or an electronic ink display screen, and the input device of the communication device can be a touch layer covering the display screen, or a button, a trackball or a touchpad set on the housing of the communication device, or an external keyboard, touchpad or mouse, etc.

[0094] Those skilled in the art will understand that Fig.11 The structure shown in the figure is only a block diagram of a partial structure related to the scheme of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation on the communication device to which the scheme of the present application is applied. The specific communication device may include more or fewer components than those shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or have a different arrangement of components.

[0095] In one embodiment, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps in the above method embodiments are implemented.

[0096] In one embodiment, a computer program product is provided, including a computer program, which implements the steps in the above method embodiments when executed by a processor.

[0097] Those skilled in the art can understand that all or part of the processes in the above-mentioned embodiments can be completed by instructing the relevant hardware through a computer program, and the computer program can be stored in a non-volatile computer-readable storage medium. When the computer program is executed, it can include the processes of the embodiments of the above-mentioned methods. Among them, any reference to the memory, database or other medium used in the embodiments provided in this application can include at least one of non-volatile and volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can include read-only memory (ROM), magnetic tape, floppy disk, flash memory, optical memory, high-density embedded non-volatile memory, resistive random access memory (ReRAM), magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM), ferroelectric random access memory (FRAM), phase change memory (PCM), graphene memory, etc. Volatile memory can include random access memory (RAM) or external cache memory, etc. As an illustration and not limitation, RAM can be in various forms, such as static random access memory (SRAM) or dynamic random access memory (DRAM). The database involved in each embodiment provided in this application may include at least one of a relational database and a non-relational database. Non-relational databases may include distributed databases based on blockchains, etc., but are not limited to this. The processor involved in each embodiment provided in this application may be a general-purpose processor, a central processing unit, a graphics processor, a digital signal processor, a programmable logic device, a data processing logic device based on quantum computing, etc., but are not limited to this.

[0098] The technical features of the above embodiments may be combined arbitrarily. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0099] The above embodiments only express several implementation methods of the embodiments of the present application, and the descriptions thereof are relatively specific and detailed, but they cannot be understood as limiting the scope of the invention patent. It should be pointed out that, for those of ordinary skill in the art, several variations and improvements can be made without departing from the concept of the embodiments of the present application, and these all belong to the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the patent of the embodiments of the present application shall be subject to the attached claims.

Claims

1. An antenna control method, characterized in that: include: When the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold, acquiring field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located; Determine a target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine a target phase difference according to a preset timing of each antenna in the target antenna array receiving and transmitting a signal, so that constructive interference is generated when the signals received and transmitted by each antenna have the target phase difference; The target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device; Determine each of the target phases according to the target phase difference, wherein the difference between each of the target phases satisfies the target phase difference; Control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at the corresponding target phases, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

2. The antenna control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The obtaining of field strength distribution information of the communication environment where the communication device is located includes: Controlling a scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to a plurality of scanning phase combinations to obtain electric field strengths in a plurality of directions, wherein the plurality of directions correspond one-to-one to the plurality of scanning phase combinations, respectively, the scanning antenna array comprises at least two antennas of the communication device, and the scanning phase combination comprises phases corresponding one-to-one to the antennas in the scanning antenna array; The field intensity distribution information is obtained according to the electric field intensity in multiple directions.

3. The antenna control method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The control scanning antenna array performs beam scanning according to a plurality of scanning phase combinations to obtain electric field strengths in a plurality of directions; Acquiring the field intensity distribution information according to the electric field intensity in multiple directions includes: Controlling the scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to a plurality of first scanning phase combinations to obtain first electric field strengths in a plurality of directions within a first angle range; determining a second angle range according to the first electric field strengths, wherein the second angle range is smaller than the first angle range; Controlling the scanning antenna array to perform beam scanning according to a plurality of second scanning phase combinations to obtain second electric field strengths in a plurality of directions within a second angle range, wherein the number of the second scanning phase combinations is greater than the number of the first scanning phase combinations; The field intensity distribution information is acquired according to a plurality of the second electric field intensities.

4. The antenna control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The determining the target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information comprises: The target antenna array is determined according to the field intensity distribution information and the preset radiation pattern of each antenna.

5. The antenna control method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The determining the target antenna array according to the field intensity distribution information and the preset radiation pattern of each antenna includes: Determine a target radiation direction according to the field intensity distribution information, wherein the target radiation direction is an incoming wave direction of the signal; The target antenna array is determined according to the target radiation direction and the preset radiation pattern of each antenna.

6. The antenna control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: The step of determining the target antenna array according to the target radiation direction and the preset radiation pattern of each antenna includes: Determine multiple antennas located on the same side as candidate antennas, wherein the middle frame of the communication device includes multiple sides that are circumferentially closed and connected; The target antenna array is determined according to the target radiation direction and the preset radiation pattern of each of the candidate antennas.

7. The antenna control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The controlling each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at each of the target phases corresponding to each other comprises: A phase modulation signal is generated according to the target antenna array, and the phase modulation signal is used to control each antenna in the target antenna array to simultaneously transmit and receive signals at each of the target phases corresponding to each other.

8. An antenna module, characterized in that: include: Multiple antennas; A control module, configured to obtain field strength distribution information of a communication environment where the communication device is located when the signal strength of the communication device is less than a first strength threshold; Determine a target antenna array according to the field strength distribution information, and determine a target phase difference according to a preset timing of each antenna in the target antenna array receiving and transmitting a signal, so that constructive interference is generated when the signals received and transmitted by each antenna have the target phase difference; The target phases are determined according to the target phase difference, the difference between the target phases satisfies the target phase difference, and the target antenna array includes at least two antennas of the communication device; each antenna in the target antenna array is controlled to simultaneously transmit and receive signals with each corresponding target phase, so that the signal strength of the communication device is greater than or equal to the first strength threshold.

9. The antenna module according to claim 8, characterized in that: The control module is further used to generate a phase modulation signal according to the target antenna array, and the antenna module also includes: A phase modulation module is connected to the control module and each antenna respectively. The phase modulation module is used to receive the phase modulation signal and modulate the phase of each antenna when sending and receiving signals to the corresponding target phase according to the phase modulation signal, so that each antenna in the target antenna array can send and receive signals simultaneously with each corresponding target phase.

10. A communication device, characterized in that: Comprising the antenna module as described in claim 8 or 9.

11. The communication device according to claim 10, characterized in that Also includes: A middle frame, comprising a plurality of side edges connected in a circumferentially closed manner; Wherein, at least two antennas of the antenna module are located on the same side.

12. The communication device according to claim 10, characterized in that The angle between the maximum gain directions of at least two antennas located on the same side is less than 45°.

Images