Phase shifters and antennas

Abstract

The present invention discloses a phase shifter and an antenna, wherein the phase shifter includes a cavity, a phase shift circuit and a phase shift medium. At least one receiving cavity is formed in the cavity; the phase shift circuit is arranged in the receiving cavity, and the phase shift medium is slidably arranged in the receiving cavity. The ratio of the effective volume of the phase shift medium to the total volume of the receiving cavity is not greater than 1 / 3. In this way, the proportion of the phase shift medium in the cavity can be reduced, so that the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity drifts to a high frequency, and the resonant frequency of the cavity is prevented from falling into the working frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of mobile communications, and in particular to a phase shifter and an antenna. Background Art

[0002] In the coverage of mobile communication networks, the electrically-adjustable base station antenna is one of the key devices for covering the network, and the phase shifter is one of the most core components of the electrically-adjustable base station antenna. The performance of the phase shifter directly determines the performance of the electrically-adjustable antenna, which in turn affects the coverage quality of the network. Therefore, the importance of the phase shifter in the field of mobile base station antennas is self-evident. There is an existing type of dielectric phase shifter that mainly changes the propagation rate of the signal in the phase shifter by moving the medium in its cavity, so that the signal flowing through the phase shifter output forms a continuous linear phase difference, thereby achieving the purpose of phase shifting. It can be seen that the dielectric plate design, stripline design and cavity structure design of this type of dielectric phase shifter are all critical.

[0003] Most existing dielectric phase shifters use an integral dielectric plate, which occupies a large space in the cavity, increasing the loss of the phase shifter. In some application scenarios, the antenna gain does not meet the requirements. It also reduces the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity, causing it to fall into the working frequency band and affect the performance of the phase shifter. In addition, the traditional dielectric phase shifter cavity is a square rectangular cavity. In some application scenarios, this form will reduce the resonant frequency of the cavity, thereby deteriorating the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0004] Therefore, how to improve the technical defects existing in the prior art has always been a problem that ordinary technicians in this field need to solve urgently. Summary of the invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a phase shifter and an antenna, which can reduce the proportion of the phase shifting medium in the cavity, so that the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity drifts to a high frequency, avoiding the resonant frequency of the cavity from falling into the operating frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the antenna as a whole.

[0006] The technical solution provided by the present invention is as follows:

[0007] A phase shifter, comprising:

[0008] A cavity, wherein at least one receiving cavity is formed in the cavity;

[0009] A phase shift circuit is disposed in the receiving cavity;

[0010] A phase shifting medium is slidably disposed in the receiving cavity;

[0011] Wherein, the ratio of the effective volume of the phase-shifting medium to the total volume of the receiving chamber is not greater than 1 / 3.

[0012] In some embodiments, the cavity includes a first sub-plate and a second sub-plate disposed in parallel, and a first side plate and a second side plate connecting the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate; and

[0013] The effective width of the phase shifting medium is not greater than 1 / 3 of the distance between the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate.

[0014] In some embodiments, the cavity further includes at least one partition plate, one end of the partition plate is fixed to the first partition plate, and the other end of the partition plate is fixed to the second partition plate, so that at least two receiving cavities are formed inside the cavity.

[0015] In some embodiments, the phase shifting medium is located at one end of the phase shifting circuit close to the first sub-board or the second sub-board, and a gap is left between the phase shifting medium and the first sub-board or the second sub-board;

[0016] The size of the gap in the direction perpendicular to the first split plate is no greater than 1 / 4 of the distance between the first split plate and the second split plate.

[0017] In some embodiments, the ratio of the effective volume of the phase-shifting medium to the total volume of the receiving chamber is no greater than 1 / 5.

[0018] In some embodiments, at least one of the receiving cavities is provided with an inwardly narrowed stepped portion at one end close to the first split plate;

[0019] and / or

[0020] At least one of the receiving cavities is provided with an inwardly narrowed stepped portion at one end close to the second dividing plate.

[0021] In some embodiments, the first side panel and the second side panel are arranged in parallel, and a dimension of the step portion in a direction perpendicular to the first side panel is not less than 1 / 3 of a distance between the first side panel and the second side panel.

[0022] In some embodiments, the first sub-board is provided with a first slot corresponding to the receiving cavity, and the second sub-board is provided with a second slot corresponding to the receiving cavity, and the opposite ends of the phase shifting circuit are respectively clamped in the first slot and the second slot; and

[0023] The phase-shifting medium is provided with a docking portion for docking with a transmission structure, and is suitable for the transmission structure to drive the phase-shifting medium to slide relative to the phase-shifting circuit.

[0024] The present invention also provides an antenna, comprising:

[0025] A reflector, a vibrator assembly and a phase shifter provided by any of the above items;

[0026] The cavity includes a first sub-plate and a second sub-plate arranged in parallel, and a first side plate and a second side plate connecting the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate;

[0027] The reflective plate is located on a side of the first sub-plate away from the second sub-plate;

[0028] The first sub-plate corresponds to one end of the first side plate, and extends toward one end away from the second side plate to form an extension wall, and / or the first sub-plate corresponds to one end of the second side plate, and extends toward one end away from the first side plate to form an extension wall, and the first sub-plate, the extension wall and the reflector are coupled.

[0029] In some embodiments, the number of the phase shifter is one, and two receiving cavities are formed in the cavity;

[0030] or

[0031] The number of the phase shifters is two, and one receiving cavity is formed in the cavity, and the two phase shifters are fixedly connected by a connecting piece.

[0032] In some embodiments, a first groove is disposed on a side of the first sub-plate away from the second sub-plate, and the first groove separates a portion of the first sub-plate facing the reflective plate into a first surface and a second surface.

[0033] In some embodiments, the cavity further includes a partition plate, one end of the partition plate is fixed to the first partition plate, and the other end of the partition plate is fixed to the second partition plate, so that at least two receiving cavities are formed inside the cavity; and

[0034] The first groove is arranged corresponding to the partition plate, and the partition plate is provided with a second groove which is communicated with the first groove.

[0035] In some embodiments, the antenna further comprises:

[0036] The support member is provided with a mounting groove on the reflector plate, and the support member passes through the mounting groove to mount the vibrator assembly on the phase shifter.

[0037] The technical effects of the present invention are:

[0038] 1. In this patent, the ratio of the effective volume of the phase-shifting medium to the total volume of the containing cavity is no more than 1 / 3, which effectively reduces the proportion of the phase-shifting medium in the cavity, so that the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity drifts to high frequency, avoiding the resonant frequency of the cavity from falling into the operating frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna. Furthermore, when the volume of the phase-shifting medium is reduced, the position of the phase-shifting medium in the cavity can be flexible and changeable. When the phase-shifting medium is away from the central area of ​​the phase shifter cavity, the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity can be allowed to drift to a higher frequency again, so that the resonant frequency of the cavity is further away from the operating frequency band of the phase shifter, so that the performance of the phase shifter and the antenna is better.

[0039] 2. In this patent, the phase-shifting medium is located at one end of the phase-shifting circuit close to the first sub-board or the second sub-board. Compared with the phase-shifting medium fixed at the middle position of the phase-shifting circuit in the vertical direction of the first sub-board, the structural setting of this patent can reduce the equivalent capacitance of the phase-shifting medium, and further make the resonant frequency of the cavity drift to high frequency, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0040] 3. In this patent, by setting a stepped portion, the receiving cavity is narrowed at one end close to the first sub-plate and / or the second sub-plate, so that the resonant frequency of the cavity can drift to a high frequency, thereby preventing the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity from falling into the operating frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0041] 4. In this patent, a first groove is provided on the side of the first sub-plate away from the second sub-plate, so that the portion of the first sub-plate facing the reflector is divided into a first surface and a second surface. Under the same conditions, a smaller surface is easier to process and shape than the entire large surface, thereby reducing the difficulty of the process and saving production costs. In addition, this patent divides the portion of the first sub-plate facing the reflector into a first surface and a second surface, which can also reduce the gap formed between the vibrator and the phase shifter cavity, thereby reducing the wall thickness of the vibrator support and reducing the material used. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0042] The present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments:

[0043] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a cavity provided in one embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the provided cavity;

[0045] Figure 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the phase shifter provided by the present invention;

[0046] Figure 4It is a plan view of the phase shift circuit and the phase shift medium provided by the present invention;

[0047] Figure 5 is a plan view of the phase shifting medium provided by the present invention;

[0048] Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of the cavity, phase shift circuit and phase shift medium provided by the present invention;

[0049] Figure 7 It is a structural schematic diagram of Case 1 provided by the present invention;

[0050] Figure 8 It is a structural schematic diagram of Case 2 provided by the present invention;

[0051] Fig. 9 It is a structural schematic diagram of Case 3 provided by the present invention;

[0052] Fig.10 It is a structural schematic diagram of Case 4 provided by the present invention;

[0053] Fig.11 This is the electric field distribution diagram when the receiving cavity provided by the present invention has no phase-shifting medium;

[0054] Fig.12 This is an electric field distribution diagram when the phase-shifting medium in the receiving cavity provided by the present invention is close to the second side wall;

[0055] Fig.13 It is an electric field distribution diagram when the phase-shifting medium in the receiving cavity provided by the present invention is located in the middle position of the receiving cavity in the direction of the vertical line of the first side wall;

[0056] Fig.14 This is an electric field distribution diagram when the phase-shifting medium in the receiving cavity provided by the present invention almost fills the receiving cavity;

[0057] Fig.15 is a cross-sectional view of the receiving cavity of Case 5 provided by the present invention;

[0058] Fig.16 is a cross-sectional view of the receiving cavity of Case 6 provided by the present invention;

[0059] Fig.17 is a cross-sectional view of the receiving cavity of Case 7 provided by the present invention;

[0060] Fig.18 It is a three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the antenna provided by the present invention;

[0061] Fig.19 is a cross-sectional view of the antenna provided by the present invention;

[0062] Fig. 20is a cross-sectional view of a cavity provided in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0063] Fig.21 is a cross-sectional view of two cavities connected in one embodiment of the present invention;

[0064] Fig. 22 It is a cross-sectional view of two connected cavities provided in another embodiment of the present invention.

[0065] Description of Figure Numbers:

[0066] 100, cavity; 110, first dividing plate; 111, first slot; 112, extension wall; 113, first groove; 114, first surface; 115, second surface; 120, second dividing plate; 121, second slot; 130, first side plate; 140, second side plate; 150, partition plate; 151, second groove; 160, receiving cavity; 170, step portion;

[0067] 200, phase shift circuit;

[0068] 300, phase shifting medium; 310, docking portion; 320, body; 330, connecting block;

[0069] 400, reflector;

[0070] 500, vibrator assembly;

[0071] 600, support member;

[0072] 700. Connectors. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0073] In the following description, specific details such as specific system structures, technologies, etc. are provided for the purpose of illustration rather than limitation, so as to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present application. However, it should be clear to those skilled in the art that the present application may also be implemented in other embodiments without these specific details. In other cases, detailed descriptions of well-known systems, devices, circuits, and methods are omitted to prevent unnecessary details from obstructing the description of the present application.

[0074] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the specific implementation methods of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings and other implementation methods can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0075] In order to simplify the drawings, only the parts related to the invention are schematically shown in each figure, and they do not represent the actual structure of the product. In addition, in order to simplify the drawings and facilitate understanding, in some figures, only one of the parts with the same structure or function is schematically drawn or marked. In this article, "one" not only means "only one", but also means "more than one".

[0076] It should be further understood that the term “and / or” used in the specification and appended claims refers to any combination and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items, and includes these combinations.

[0077] In this document, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal communication of two components. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0078] In the embodiments shown in the drawings, the indications of directions (such as up, down, left, right, front and back) used to explain the structure and movement of the various components of the present invention are not absolute but relative. These descriptions are appropriate when these components are in the positions shown in the drawings. If the descriptions of the positions of these components change, the indications of these directions also change accordingly.

[0079] In addition, in the description of the present application, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only used to distinguish the description and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0080] According to a specific embodiment provided by the present invention, see Figures 1 to 3 and Figures 18 to 22 A phase shifter may include a cavity 100, a phase shift circuit 200 and a phase shift medium 300. At least one receiving cavity 160 is formed in the cavity 100, and the phase shift circuit is disposed in the receiving cavity 160. Meanwhile, the phase shift medium 300 is slidably disposed in the receiving cavity 160. At this time, the side wall of the receiving cavity 160 and the phase shift circuit 200 together constitute a stripline structure, and the side wall of the receiving cavity 160, the phase shift circuit 200 and the phase shift medium 300 together constitute a stripline structure partially containing a non-air medium.

[0081] The phase shift circuit 200 may be a PCB board, or a tinned aluminum or pure copper metal plate, etc.; the phase shift medium 300 is movably disposed in the cavity 100. When the phase shift medium 300 moves relative to the phase shift circuit 200, the phase shift medium 300 moves in the receiving cavity 160, thereby generating a phase change and adjusting the downtilt angle of the antenna unit.

[0082] It is worth noting that the ratio of the effective volume of the phase shifting medium 300 to the total volume of the accommodating cavity 160 in this embodiment is no more than 1 / 3, which can effectively reduce the proportion of the phase shifting medium 300 in the cavity 100, thereby causing the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity 100 to drift toward high frequency, thereby preventing the resonant frequency of the cavity from falling into the working frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0083] Specifically, see Figures 1 to 3 and Figures 18 to 20 The cavity 100 includes a first split plate 110 and a second split plate 120 arranged in parallel, and a first side plate 130 and a second side plate 140 connecting the first split plate 110 and the second split plate 120. At this time, the first split plate 110, the second split plate 120, the first side plate 130 and the second side plate 140 are jointly surrounded to form a receiving cavity 160, and the first split plate 110, the second split plate 120, the first side plate 130 and the second side plate 140 are made by integral molding.

[0084] In a specific embodiment, see Figures 1 to 3 and Figures 18 to 20 The cavity 100 may further include at least one partition plate 150, one end of the partition plate 150 is fixed to the first partition plate 110, and the other end is fixed to the second partition plate 120, so that at least two receiving cavities 160 are formed inside the cavity. The first partition plate 110, the second partition plate 120, the first side plate 130, the second side plate 140 and the partition plate 150 are preferably made of one piece.

[0085] Take the case where the cavity 100 includes a partition plate 150 to form two receiving cavities 160 as an example. In this case, the first partition plate 110, the first side plate 130, the second partition plate 120 and the partition plate 150 are jointly arranged to form one of the receiving cavities 160; the first partition plate 110, the second side plate 140, the second partition plate 120 and the partition plate 150 are jointly arranged to form the other receiving cavity 160. In this embodiment, the two receiving cavities 160 share one partition plate 150.

[0086] Specifically, see Figure 1 , Figure 6 and Figures 18 to 20The first sub-board 110 is provided with a first slot 111 corresponding to the receiving cavity 160, and the second sub-board 120 is provided with a second slot 121 corresponding to the receiving cavity 160. At this time, the opposite ends of the phase shifting circuit 200 are respectively inserted into the first slot 111 and the second slot 121, so that the phase shifting circuit 200 is fixed in the receiving cavity 160.

[0087] Specifically, see Figure 1 , Figure 6 and Figures 18 to 20 Each phase shifting circuit 200 is provided with at least one set of phase shifting media 300 , and each set of phase shifting media 300 has two phase shifting media 300 , which are respectively arranged on two opposite sides of the side wall of the phase shifting circuit 200 facing the receiving cavity 160 .

[0088] As a preference, see Figure 1 , Figures 4 to 6 The effective width b of the phase-shifting medium is not greater than 1 / 3 of the distance between the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate.

[0089] Generally speaking, the phase shift medium 300 is provided with a docking portion 310 for connecting to a transmission structure, so that the transmission structure drives the phase shift medium 300 to move relative to the phase shift circuit 200. At this time, after removing the above-mentioned docking portion 310 structure, the size of the phase shift medium 300 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 is the size of the effective width b of the phase shift medium 300, which can further reduce the proportion of the phase shift medium 300 in the cavity 100, thereby causing the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity 100 to drift toward high frequency, preventing the resonant frequency of the cavity 100 from falling into the working frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0090] Specifically, see Figure 1 and Figure 4 The phase-shifting medium 300 further includes a body 320 and a connecting block 330. The number of the body 320 is at least two, and the body 320 is slidably matched with the phase-shifting circuit 200 to realize the phase-shifting function of the phase-shifting medium 300; the connecting block 330 is used to connect two adjacent bodies 320. At this time, the docking portion 310 for connecting the transmission structure provided on the phase-shifting medium 300 can be connected with the body 320 and / or the connecting block 330. The total volume of the body 320 in the phase-shifting medium 300 is the effective volume.

[0091] The ratio of the effective volume of the phase shifting medium to the total volume of the receiving cavity is not greater than 1 / 5, so as to further reduce the proportion of the phase shifting medium 300 in the cavity 100, so that the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity 100 further drifts to high frequency, thereby making the resonant frequency of the cavity 100 further away from the working frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the antenna. In a preferred embodiment, see Figure 1 and Figure 6The phase shifting medium 300 is located at one end of the phase shifting circuit 200 close to the first sub-board 110 or the second sub-board 120 , and a gap is left between the phase shifting medium 300 and the first sub-board 110 or the second sub-board 120 .

[0092] Specifically, taking the size of the receiving cavity 160 as 500mm*50mm*9mm as an example, at this time, the size of the phase shift medium 300 is 120mm*9mm*3.7mm, and the number of the phase shift medium 300 is two, which are respectively arranged on opposite sides of the phase shift circuit 200 facing the side wall of the receiving cavity 160.

[0093] Case 1: See Figure 7 The size of the receiving cavity 160 is 500 mm*50 mm*9 mm, and the internal phase shifting medium 300 is arranged close to the second sub-plate 120 .

[0094] Case 2: See Figure 8 The size of the receiving cavity 160 is 500 mm*50 mm*9 mm, and the internal phase shifting medium 300 is arranged away from the second sub-plate 120 , but not to the middle position of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 .

[0095] Case 3: See Fig. 9 The size of the receiving cavity 160 is 500 mm*50 mm*9 mm, and the internal phase shifting medium 300 is located in the middle position of the first receiving cavity 110 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 .

[0096] Case 4: See Fig.10 The size of the receiving cavity 160 is 500 mm*50 mm*9 mm, and the internal phase shifting medium 300 almost fills the entire receiving cavity 160 .

[0097] Table 1

[0098] Mode1(GHz) Mode2(GHz) Mode3(GHz) Case 1 2.9312 3.0351 3.1020 Case 2 2.6375 2.8430 3.0563 Case 3 2.4964 2.7144 2.9986 Case 4 1.9348 1.9637 2.0109

[0099] At this time, Table 1 is the test data of the resonant frequency in the receiving cavity 160 of the above four cases. According to Table 1, it can be seen that when the phase shift medium 300 moves from the position close to the second sub-plate 120 to the middle position of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110, the fundamental mode frequency of the receiving cavity 160 will drift to a low frequency. In the process of the phase shift medium 300 moving from the edge of the receiving cavity 160 to the middle position of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110, although the phase shift medium 300 accounts for a small volume relative to the receiving cavity 160, there is still a drift of nearly 500MHz, which has a great impact on the design of the phase shifter structure. Therefore, based on this conclusion, when designing the phase shifter component, the phase shift medium 300 will be placed as close to the first sub-plate 110 or the second sub-plate 120 as possible. Taking the phase shift medium 300 close to the second sub-plate 120 as an example, the size of the gap between the phase shift medium 300 and the second sub-plate 120 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 is a≤1 / 4A; similarly, the phase shift medium 300 is also set close to the first sub-plate 110. In this way, the fundamental mode and high-order mode resonant frequencies of the cavity 100 structure can be kept away from the frequency band used by the phase shifter, avoiding the resonant frequency of the cavity from having adverse effects on the phase shifter, the feeding network itself, and the antenna using it.

[0100] In addition, it can be seen from Table 1 that when the proportion of the phase shifting medium 300 in the cavity 100 decreases, the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity 100 will drift toward high frequency, thereby preventing the resonant frequency of the cavity from falling into the operating frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0101] Specifically, when the phase-shifting medium 300 is located at different positions of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110, the fundamental mode and the high-order mode of the cavity 100 will be offset, and the corresponding principle can also be explained as follows:

[0102] For the receiving cavity 160, the electric field distribution therein is as follows Figures 11 to 14 As shown, when viewed along the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110, the field strength of the receiving cavity 160 near the center position of the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 is much higher than the field strength near the first sub-plate 110 or the second sub-plate 120. Therefore, when the phase shifting medium 300 is close to the center position of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110, its equivalent capacitance increases, thereby causing the resonant frequency to drift toward a low frequency.

[0103] Further, see Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figure 6 and Figures 18 to 22At least one receiving cavity 160 in the cavity body 100 is provided with a stepped portion 170 narrowing inwardly at one end close to the first split plate 110. That is, the two side walls of the receiving cavity 160 are respectively formed with oppositely arranged bosses at one end close to the first split plate 110, thereby forming the stepped portion 170.

[0104] In this embodiment, by providing an inwardly narrowed stepped portion 170 in the receiving cavity 160, the resonant frequency of the cavity 100 drifts toward high frequency, preventing the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity 100 from falling into the operating frequency band of the phase shifter, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0105] Specifically, taking the size of the accommodating cavity 160 as 500mm*50mm*9mm as an example, the distance between the first dividing plate 110 and the second dividing plate 120 is A=50mm, the first side plate 130 and the second side plate 140 are arranged in parallel, and the distance between the first side plate 130 and the second side plate 140 is E=9mm.

[0106] Case 5: See Fig.15 The receiving cavity 160 has a size of 500 mm*50 mm*9 mm, and is not filled with a medium.

[0107] Case 6: See Fig.16 The size of the receiving cavity 160 is 500mm*50mm*9mm, and there is no medium filled inside. At the same time, the end of the receiving cavity 160 close to the first sub-plate 110 is narrowed inward by 2mm, that is, the size of the step portion 170 of the receiving cavity 160 on the vertical line of the first side plate 130 is W=5mm, and the height of the step portion 170 of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 is H=7mm.

[0108] Case 7: See Fig.17 The size of the receiving cavity 160 is 500mm*50mm*9mm, and there is no medium filled inside. At the same time, the end of the receiving cavity 160 close to the first sub-plate 110 is narrowed inward by 2.5mm, that is, the size of the step portion 170 of the receiving cavity 160 on the vertical line of the first side plate 130 is W=4mm, and the height of the step portion 170 of the receiving cavity 160 in the vertical direction of the first sub-plate 110 is H=9mm.

[0109] Table 2

[0110] Mode1(GHz) Mode2(GHz) Mode3(GHz) Case 5 3.0148 3.0606 3.1365 Case 6 3.1838 3.2272 3.2965 Case 7 3.2468 3.2899 3.3595

[0111] At this time, Table 2 is the test data of the resonant frequency in the receiving cavity 160 of the above three cases. According to Table 2, it can be seen that by introducing the step structure to form the step portion 170, the resonant frequency of the cavity 100 can be drifted to high frequency, and the effect is obvious. That is, the structures of Case 6 and Case 7 can make the resonant frequency drift to high frequency by more than 130-200MHz compared with Case 5.

[0112] Therefore, narrowing the size of at least one end of the phase shifter cavity 100 is conducive to increasing the fundamental mode resonant frequency of the cavity 100 structure, making it away from the use frequency band, so that both the fundamental mode and the high-order mode are higher than the working frequency band used by the phase shifter, thereby avoiding the phase shifter cavity 100 from having adverse effects on the feeding network itself and the antenna using it. Specifically, the maximum width dimension of the phase shifting medium 300 in the direction perpendicular to the first sub-plate 110 is B, then H+B<A, and 0.5≤W<E.

[0113] Furthermore, while satisfying the above conditions, the dimension W of the step portion 170 in the direction perpendicular to the first side plate 130 should be no less than 1 / 3 of the distance E between the first side plate 130 and the second side plate 140, which can further increase the fundamental mode resonance frequency of the cavity 100 structure and avoid the phase shifter cavity 100 from having adverse effects on the feeding network itself and the operation of the antenna using it.

[0114] In contrast, at least one receiving cavity 160 is provided with a stepped portion 170 that narrows inwardly at one end close to the second sub-plate 120. At the same time, the size of the stepped portion 170 should satisfy H+B<A, and 0.5≤W<E. In this way, the resonant frequency of the cavity 100 can be further shifted to a high frequency, thereby ensuring the performance of the phase shifter and even the entire antenna.

[0115] Of course, in actual production, the step portion 170 may be provided only at one end of the receiving cavity 160 close to the first sub-plate 110, or only at one end of the receiving cavity 160 close to the second sub-plate 120, or at both ends of the receiving cavity 160 close to the first sub-plate 110 and the second sub-plate 120. No limitation is made herein and all are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0116] If two or more receiving cavities 160 are formed in the cavity 100 , the stepped portion 170 may be provided in only one or more of the receiving cavities 160 , which will not be described in detail here and are all within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0117] See also Figure 1 , Figure 6 , Fig.18 and Fig.19The present invention also provides an antenna, comprising a reflector 400, a vibrator assembly 500 and a phase shifter provided in any one of the above embodiments. In this case, the cavity comprises a first sub-board 110 and a second sub-board 120 arranged in parallel, and a first side board 130 and a second side board 140 connecting the first sub-board 110 and the second sub-board 120. The reflector 400 is located on a side of the first sub-board 110 away from the second sub-board 120. The antenna also includes a support member 600, the reflector 400 is provided with an installation groove, the support member 600 passes through the installation groove, and the vibrator assembly 500 is installed on the cavity 100 of the phase shifter.

[0118] Among them, see Figure 1 and Figures 19 to 22 The first sub-plate 110 corresponds to one end of the first side plate 130, and extends toward one end away from the second side plate 140 to form an extension wall 112, and / or, the first sub-plate 110 corresponds to one end of the second side plate 140, and extends toward one end away from the first side plate 130 to form an extension wall 112, and the first sub-plate 110, the extension wall 112 and the reflective plate 400 are coupled.

[0119] Specifically, see Figure 1 and Figures 19 to 20 If the number of phase shifters is one and two receiving cavities 160 are formed in the cavity 100, then the two receiving cavities 160 correspond to the positive and negative polarizations of different vibrator assemblies 500 respectively, and the first split plate 110 corresponds to one end of the first side plate 130 and the second side plate 140, and extends in a direction away from each other to form an extension wall 112.

[0120] See also Fig. 20 and Fig. 22 If there are two phase shifters, and each cavity 100 has a receiving cavity 160, the two phase shifters are fixedly connected by a connector 700, respectively corresponding to the positive and negative polarizations of different vibrator components 500. At this time, the first split plates 110 of the two phase shifters extend unilaterally in a direction away from each other to form an extension wall 112.

[0121] As a preference, see Figure 1 , Fig.18 and Fig.19 A first groove 113 is provided on one side of the first sub-plate 110 away from the second sub-plate 120, and the first groove 113 separates the portion of the first sub-plate 110 facing the reflector 400 into a first surface 114 and a second surface 115. The first surface 114 corresponds to one receiving cavity 160, and the second surface 115 corresponds to another receiving cavity 160, forming unilateral polarization.

[0122] In this embodiment, a large plane is divided into two relatively small planes by providing the first groove 113. Compared with the entire large plane, the smaller plane is easier to process and shape, thereby reducing the process difficulty and saving production costs.

[0123] In addition, this embodiment divides the portion of the first split plate 110 contacting the reflector 400 into a first surface 114 and a second surface 115, which can also reduce the gap between the vibrator and the phase shifter cavity 100, thereby reducing the wall thickness of the vibrator support 600 and reducing the material consumption.

[0124] Specifically, see Fig. 20 If the number of phase shifters is one and the cavity 100 includes a partition plate 150 so that two receiving cavities 160 are formed in the cavity 100 , then the first groove 113 should be set corresponding to the partition plate 150 , and the partition plate 150 is provided with a second groove 151 connected to the first groove 113 .

[0125] In the above embodiments, the description of each embodiment has its own emphasis. For parts that are not described or recorded in detail in a certain embodiment, reference can be made to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.

[0126] It should be noted that the above embodiments can be freely combined as needed. The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention. It should be pointed out that for ordinary technicians in this technical field, several improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the principle of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications should also be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A phase shifter, characterized in that: include: A cavity, the cavity comprising a first sub-plate and a second sub-plate arranged in parallel, and a first side plate and a second side plate connecting the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate, and at least one receiving cavity is formed in the cavity; A phase shift circuit is disposed in the receiving cavity; A phase shifting medium is slidably disposed in the receiving cavity; The ratio of the effective volume of the phase-shifting medium to the total volume of the receiving chamber is not greater than 1 / 5, and the effective width of the phase-shifting medium is not greater than 1 / 3 of the distance between the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate.

2. The phase shifter according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cavity further includes at least one partition plate, one end of which is fixed to the first partition plate, and the other end of which is fixed to the second partition plate, so that at least two receiving cavities are formed inside the cavity.

3. The cavity according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The phase shift medium is located at one end of the phase shift circuit close to the first sub-board or the second sub-board, and a gap is left between the phase shift medium and the first sub-board or the second sub-board; The size of the gap in the direction perpendicular to the first split plate is no greater than 1 / 4 of the distance between the first split plate and the second split plate.

4. The phase shifter according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: At least one of the receiving chambers is provided with an inwardly narrowed stepped portion at one end close to the first dividing plate; and / or At least one of the receiving cavities is provided with an inwardly narrowed stepped portion at one end close to the second dividing plate.

5. The phase shifter according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first side plate and the second side plate are arranged in parallel, and the dimension of the step portion in the direction perpendicular to the first side plate is not less than 1 / 3 of the distance between the first side plate and the second side plate.

6. The phase shifter according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The first sub-board is provided with a first card slot corresponding to the receiving cavity, and the second sub-board is provided with a second card slot corresponding to the receiving cavity, and the opposite ends of the phase shifting circuit are respectively clamped in the first card slot and the second card slot; and The phase-shifting medium is provided with a docking portion for docking with a transmission structure, and is suitable for the transmission structure to drive the phase-shifting medium to slide relative to the phase-shifting circuit.

7. An antenna, characterized in that: include: A reflector, a vibrator assembly and a phase shifter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6; The cavity includes a first sub-plate and a second sub-plate arranged in parallel, and a first side plate and a second side plate connecting the first sub-plate and the second sub-plate; The reflective plate is located on a side of the first sub-plate away from the second sub-plate; The first sub-plate corresponds to one end of the first side plate, and extends toward one end away from the second side plate to form an extension wall, and / or the first sub-plate corresponds to one end of the second side plate, and extends toward one end away from the first side plate to form an extension wall, and the first sub-plate, the extension wall and the reflector are coupled.

8. The antenna according to claim 7, characterized in that: The number of the phase shifter is one, and two receiving cavities are formed in the cavity; or The number of the phase shifters is two, and one receiving cavity is formed in the cavity, and the two phase shifters are fixedly connected by a connecting piece.

9. The antenna according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that: A first groove is disposed on a side of the first sub-plate away from the second sub-plate, and the first groove separates a portion of the first sub-plate facing the reflector into a first surface and a second surface.

10. The antenna according to claim 9, characterized in that: The cavity further includes a partition plate, one end of which is fixed to the first partition plate, and the other end of which is fixed to the second partition plate, so that at least two receiving cavities are formed inside the cavity; and The first groove is arranged corresponding to the partition plate, and the partition plate is provided with a second groove which is communicated with the first groove.

11. The antenna according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that: Also includes: The support member is provided with a mounting groove on the reflector plate, and the support member passes through the mounting groove to mount the vibrator assembly on the phase shifter.

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