Phase shifters and base station antennas

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a phase shifter and a base station antenna, wherein the phase shifter comprises: a first phase shifting circuit and a second phase shifting circuit; a first cavity, which comprises a first side wall, an intermediate side wall, a first top wall and a first bottom wall and is configured to accommodate the first phase shifting circuit; a second cavity, which comprises a second side wall, the intermediate side wall, a second top wall and a second bottom wall and is configured to accommodate the second phase shifting circuit, wherein the first cavity and the second cavity share the intermediate side wall and the first side wall, the intermediate side wall and the second side wall are parallel to each other; a first extension arm and a second extension arm, wherein the first extension arm is configured to extend from the first top wall toward a direction away from the second cavity and the second extension arm is configured to extend from the second top wall toward a direction away from the first cavity; and a groove, which is arranged at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall and extends along the longitudinal axis direction of the cavity.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communications, and in particular, to a phase shifter and a base station antenna including the phase shifter. Background Art

[0002] In today's mobile communication network coverage, the electrically-adjustable base station antenna is one of the key devices for network coverage. 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.

[0003] Traditional dielectric phase shifters mainly achieve the purpose of phase shifting by moving the phase shifting medium in the phase shifter cavity to change the propagation rate of the signal in the phase shifter, so that the signal output through the phase shifter forms a continuous linear phase difference. Therefore, the design of the phase shifting medium, stripline design and cavity structure form of this type of dielectric phase shifter are very critical.

[0004] The side of the conventional phase shifter with a cavity and a phase shifting medium facing the reflector is usually designed as a whole flat plate, which is difficult to process. In addition, since there is a large gap between the radiating oscillator on the other side of the reflector and the whole flat plate, an additional support is required to support the radiating oscillator, which also increases the corresponding manufacturing cost. Summary of the invention

[0005] Based on the understanding of the prior art, the inventor of the present disclosure has the idea of ​​slotting the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector plate, thereby dividing the entire plane into two smaller planes, thereby reducing the difficulty of processing and at the same time reducing the material used for the support parts, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost. In summary, the present disclosure proposes a new type of cavity phase shifter, which slots the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector plate.

[0006] Specifically, according to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a phase shifter is proposed, the phase shifter comprising:

[0007] a first phase shifting circuit and a second phase shifting circuit;

[0008] a first cavity, the first cavity comprising a first side wall, an intermediate side wall, a first top wall and a first bottom wall and configured to accommodate the first phase shifting circuit;

[0009] a second cavity, the second cavity comprising a second side wall, the middle side wall, a second top wall and a second bottom wall and configured to accommodate the second phase shifting circuit, wherein the first cavity and the second cavity share the middle side wall and the first side wall, the middle side wall and the second side wall are parallel to each other;

[0010] a first extension arm and a second extension arm, wherein the first extension arm is configured to extend from the first top wall toward a direction away from the second cavity and the second extension arm is configured to extend from the second top wall toward a direction away from the first cavity; and

[0011] A groove is provided at a connection between the first top wall and the second top wall and extends along a longitudinal axis direction of the cavity.

[0012] In this way, the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector, specifically at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall, is grooved, thereby dividing a large plane into two small planes, thereby reducing the difficulty of manufacturing. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiating vibrator can pass through the reflector and be partially accommodated in the groove, thereby reducing the distance between the radiating vibrator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter (i.e., the first top wall and the second top wall), thereby reducing the material used for the support member, and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the content of the present disclosure.

[0013] Preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the phase shifter further comprises: at least one first boss structure, the at least one first boss structure being arranged on the inner side of the first top wall; and / or at least one second boss structure, the at least one second boss structure being arranged on the inner side of the second top wall. In this way, the resonant frequency of the cavity phase shifter can be further increased by technical means of reducing the cavity volume, thereby ensuring that its resonant frequency does not fall within the working frequency band, thereby ensuring its superior working performance.

[0014] Preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the at least one first boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the first phase shifting circuit, and / or the at least one second boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the second phase shifting circuit.

[0015] Further preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the phase shifter further comprises: at least one third boss structure, the at least one third boss structure being arranged on the inner side of the first bottom wall; and / or at least one fourth boss structure, the at least one fourth boss structure being arranged on the inner side of the second bottom wall. In this way, the resonant frequency of the cavity phase shifter can be further increased by reducing the volume of the cavity, thereby ensuring that its resonant frequency does not fall within the working frequency band, thereby ensuring its superior working performance.

[0016] Preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the at least one third boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the first phase shifting circuit, and / or the at least one fourth boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the second phase shifting circuit.

[0017] Preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the phase shifter further comprises: a first phase shift medium, which is symmetrically arranged with respect to the first phase shift circuit; and a second phase shift medium, which is symmetrically arranged with respect to the second phase shift circuit.

[0018] More preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the first phase shifting medium is arranged on the inner side of the first top wall or on the inner side of the first bottom wall, and the second phase shifting medium is arranged on the inner side of the second top wall or on the inner side of the second bottom wall. In this way, the resonant frequency of the cavity phase shifter according to the present disclosure is further improved, thereby ensuring that its resonant frequency does not fall within the working frequency band, ensuring its superior working performance.

[0019] Preferably, in one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the effective width of the first phase-shifting medium is less than half of the width of the first cavity, and wherein the effective width of the second phase-shifting medium is less than half of the width of the second cavity. More preferably, in one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the distance between the first phase-shifting medium and the first top wall or the first bottom wall is less than one-quarter of the width of the first cavity, and wherein the distance between the second phase-shifting medium and the second top wall or the second bottom wall is less than one-quarter of the width of the second cavity.

[0020] Optionally or additionally, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, a first adapting protrusion is disposed on one side of the first phase shifting medium, and a second adapting protrusion is disposed on one side of the second phase shifting medium.

[0021] In addition, according to the second aspect of the present disclosure, a phase shifter is also proposed, the phase shifter comprising:

[0022] A first phase shifting unit, the first phase shifting unit comprising a first cavity; and

[0023] a second phase shifting unit, wherein the second phase shifting unit comprises a second cavity,

[0024] wherein the first cavity and the second cavity respectively include a top wall, a bottom wall arranged opposite to the top wall, and a pair of side walls located between the top wall and the bottom wall, and wherein the first phase shifting unit and the second phase shifting unit are arranged opposite to each other so that the side wall of the first cavity faces the side wall of the second cavity, the first cavity is provided with a first extension wall coupled to a reflection plate, and the second cavity is provided with a second extension wall coupled to the reflection plate,

[0025] A groove is formed between the first extension wall and the second extension wall, so that a plane of the first extension wall facing the reflection plate is disconnected from a plane of the second extension wall facing the reflection plate.

[0026] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the phase shifter further includes a connecting wall connecting the first extending wall and the second extending wall, and the first extending wall, the second extending wall and the connecting wall form the groove.

[0027] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the first cavity and the second cavity share a side wall, and wherein the first extension wall, the second extension wall and the shared side wall form the groove.

[0028] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, a stepped portion is provided at least at one of the intersections of the top wall and the side wall and the intersections of the bottom wall and the side wall.

[0029] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the first phase shifting unit further includes a first phase shifting circuit and a first phase shifting medium, wherein the first phase shifting circuit and the first phase shifting medium are disposed in the first cavity, and the first phase shifting medium is located between the first phase shifting circuit and the side wall of the first cavity, wherein the distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is H, and the direction in which the distance H is located is defined as the height direction, the height of the first phase shifting medium in the height direction is H1, and wherein the ratio of H1 to H is not greater than 1 / 3.

[0030] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the distance between a pair of side walls of the first cavity is W, and the direction of the distance W is defined as the width direction, wherein in the width direction, the width of the first cavity at the step portion is W1, and wherein the ratio of W1 to W is not less than 1 / 3.

[0031] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the top wall, the bottom wall and the side wall of the first cavity are arranged to form a first receiving cavity, and the first phase shifting unit further includes a first phase shifting circuit and a first phase shifting medium received in the first receiving cavity, wherein the first phase shifting medium is located between the side wall of the first cavity and the first phase shifting medium, and wherein the ratio of the effective volume of the first phase shifting medium to the volume of the first receiving cavity is not greater than 1 / 3.

[0032] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is H, and the minimum distance between the first phase-shifting medium and the bottom wall of the first cavity is no greater than 0.25H.

[0033] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is H, and the minimum distance between the first phase-shifting medium and the top wall of the first cavity is no greater than 0.25H.

[0034] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the ratio of the effective volume of the first phase-shifting medium to the volume of the first receiving chamber is no greater than 1 / 5.

[0035] In one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the first extension wall is formed by extending from the top wall of the first cavity toward a direction away from the second cavity, and the second extension wall is formed by extending from the top wall of the second cavity toward a direction away from the first cavity; the first extension wall, the top wall of the first cavity, the second extension wall and the top wall of the second cavity are coplanar.

[0036] Furthermore, according to the third aspect of the present disclosure, a base station antenna is proposed, which includes: the phase shifter according to the first aspect or the second aspect of the present disclosure; a radiating vibrator, wherein the reflecting plate is provided with an avoidance hole, and the radiating vibrator passes through the avoidance hole and is fixed on the phase shifter.

[0037] In summary, in the phase shifter according to the present disclosure, the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector, specifically at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall, is grooved, so that the first top wall and the second top wall can be manufactured separately and independently, thereby reducing the difficulty of processing. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiating vibrator can pass through the reflector and be partially accommodated in the groove, thereby reducing the distance between the radiating vibrator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter, that is, the first top wall and the second top wall, thereby reducing the material used for the support member, and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] The embodiments are shown and explained with reference to the accompanying drawings. These drawings are used to explain the basic principles, and only the aspects necessary for understanding the basic principles are shown. These drawings are not to scale. In the drawings, the same reference numerals represent similar features.

[0039] Figure 1 A schematic structural diagram of a cavity phase shifter 100 according to the present disclosure is shown;

[0040] Figure 2 A schematic structural diagram of a cavity phase shifter 200 according to the present disclosure is shown;

[0041] Figure 3 A schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 300 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0042] Figure 4A A schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400A according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0043] Figure 4B FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400B according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0044] Figure 4C FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400C according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0045] Figure 4D A schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400D according to another embodiment of the present disclosure is shown; and

[0046] Figure 5 A schematic structural diagram of a base station antenna 500 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0047] Other features, characteristics, advantages and benefits of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0048] In the following specific description of preferred embodiments, reference will be made to the attached drawings that form a part of the present disclosure. The attached drawings show specific embodiments that can implement the present disclosure by way of example. The illustrative embodiments are not intended to be exhaustive of all embodiments according to the present disclosure. It will be appreciated that other embodiments may be utilized, and structural or logical modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the following specific description is not restrictive, and the scope of the present disclosure is limited by the attached claims.

[0049] Based on the understanding of the prior art, namely that the processing difficulty of the existing cavity phase shifter on the side facing the reflector plate is relatively large and additional support parts that consume relatively more materials are required to support the radiating oscillator, the inventors of the present disclosure innovatively conceived of grooving the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector plate, thereby dividing the entire plane into two smaller planes, thereby reducing the processing difficulty and at the same time reducing the material used for the support parts, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost.

[0050] In summary, the present disclosure proposes a new type of cavity phase shifter, which grooves the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector. Specifically, according to the first aspect of the present disclosure, a phase shifter is proposed, the phase shifter comprising: a first phase shifting circuit and a second phase shifting circuit; a first cavity, the first cavity comprising a first side wall, an intermediate side wall, a first top wall and a first bottom wall and being configured to accommodate the first phase shifting circuit; a second cavity, the second cavity comprising a second side wall, the intermediate side wall, a second top wall and a second bottom wall and being configured to accommodate the second phase shifting circuit, wherein the first cavity and the second cavity share the intermediate side wall and the first side wall, the intermediate side wall and the second side wall are parallel to each other; a first extension arm and a second extension arm, wherein the first extension arm is configured to extend from the first top wall toward a direction away from the second cavity and the second extension arm is configured to extend from the second top wall toward a direction away from the first cavity; and a groove, the groove is arranged at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall and extends along the longitudinal axis direction of the cavity. In this way, the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector, specifically at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall, is grooved, thereby dividing a large plane into two small planes, thereby reducing the difficulty of processing. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiation vibrator can pass through the reflector and be partially accommodated in the groove, thereby reducing the distance between the radiation vibrator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter, that is, the first top wall and the second top wall, thereby reducing the material used for the support member, and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the content of the present disclosure.

[0051] The structure and working principle of the cavity phase shifter proposed according to the present disclosure will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0052] Figure 1 FIG. 1 shows a schematic structural diagram of a cavity phase shifter 100 according to the present disclosure. Figure 1It can be seen that the cavity phase shifter 100 proposed according to the present disclosure includes two phase shifting units, namely, a phase shifting unit 110 and a phase shifting unit 120. Specifically, the phase shifting unit 110 on the left side includes a phase shifting circuit 111, which is arranged in a cavity 112 formed by a top wall 1131, a bottom wall 1132, a side wall 1133 and an intermediate side wall arranged opposite to the side wall 1133; the phase shifting unit 120 on the right side includes a phase shifting circuit 121, which is arranged in a cavity 122 formed by a top wall 1231, a bottom wall 1232, a side wall 1233 and an intermediate side wall arranged opposite to the side wall 1233. Furthermore, in order to reduce the manufacturing difficulty of the top wall, a groove 130 is arranged at the connection between the top wall 1131 on the left side and the top wall 1231 on the right side. In this way, the two top walls 1131 and 1231 can be divided from a large surface into two relatively small surfaces, thereby reducing the difficulty of manufacturing. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiation vibrator can pass through the reflector (not shown in the figure) and be partially accommodated in the groove 130, thereby reducing the distance between the radiation vibrator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter, that is, the two top walls, thereby reducing the material used for the support member, and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the present disclosure.

[0053] In addition, in order to achieve a good connection with the reflector, the top wall can be extended outward to form an outward extending extension arm. Figure 1 As shown, the extension arms formed by the top walls 1131 and 1231 of the phase shifter 100 constitute a grounding feature with the reflector, and the included groove 130, i.e., a local depression at the top wall of the phase shifter cavity, makes it possible for only one side (the outer side) to form a grounding feature with the reflector for a single polarization of the phase shifter.

[0054] like Figure 1 As shown, the phase shifter 100 includes two phase shifting units 110 and 120, which correspond to the positive and negative polarizations of the radiation oscillator assembly respectively. For the phase shifter phase shifting unit 110 on the left, the top wall 1131 of the phase shifter phase shifting unit 110 extends to the left to form a grounding layer. Similarly, for the phase shifter phase shifting unit 120 on the right, the top wall 1231 of the phase shifter phase shifting unit 120 extends to the right to form a grounding layer. These two grounding layers enable the phase shifter 100 to be electrically connected to the reflector. The center plane of the groove 130 formed at the connection between the top wall 1131 and the top wall 1231 basically coincides with the center planes of the left and right phase shifter phase shifting units 110 and 120. In this way, the entire large surface is divided into two relatively small surfaces. For the same dimensional accuracy requirements, the small surface is easier to achieve during molding, and the process requirements are relatively low. In addition, due to the presence of the groove 130, the gap formed between the radiating oscillator and the phase shifter 100 can be reduced, thereby reducing the wall thickness of the oscillator support member, reducing the material used, and reducing the manufacturing cost.

[0055] The cavity of a traditional phase shifter with a phase-shifting medium is usually a square rectangular cavity. In order to further increase the resonant frequency of the cavity and optimize the overall performance of the phase shifter and even the base station antenna, the inventor of the present disclosure further proposed changing the shape of the cavity. Specifically, preferably, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, the phase shifter also includes at least one first boss structure, and the at least one first boss structure is arranged on the inner side of the first top wall; and / or at least one second boss structure, and the at least one second boss structure is arranged on the inner side of the second top wall. In this way, the resonant frequency of the cavity phase shifter can be further increased by technical means of reducing the volume of the cavity, thereby ensuring that its resonant frequency does not fall within the working frequency band, thereby ensuring its superior working performance.

[0056] Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a cavity phase shifter 200 according to the present disclosure. Figure 2 It can be seen that the cavity phase shifter 200 proposed according to the present disclosure includes two phase shifting units, namely, a phase shifting unit 210 and a phase shifting unit 220. Specifically, the phase shifting unit 210 on the left side includes a phase shifting circuit 211, which is arranged in a cavity 212 formed by a top wall 2131, a bottom wall 2132, a side wall 2133 and an intermediate side wall arranged opposite to the side wall 2133; the phase shifting unit 220 on the right side includes a phase shifting circuit 221, which is arranged in a cavity 222 formed by a top wall 2231, a bottom wall 2232, a side wall 2233 and an intermediate side wall arranged opposite to the side wall 2233. Furthermore, in order to reduce the manufacturing difficulty of the top wall, a groove 230 is arranged at the connection between the top wall 2131 on the left side and the top wall 2231 on the right side. In this way, a larger plane can be divided into two relatively smaller planes, thereby reducing the processing difficulty. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiating oscillator can pass through the reflecting plate (not shown in the figure) and be partially accommodated in the groove 230, thereby reducing the distance between the radiating oscillator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter, that is, the two top walls, and then being able to reduce the material used for the support member, further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the contents of the present disclosure.

[0057] In addition, in order to achieve a good connection with the reflector, the top wall can be extended outward to form an outward extending extension arm. Figure 2 As shown, the extension arms formed by the top walls 2131 and 2231 of the phase shifter 200 constitute a grounding feature with the reflector, and the included groove 230, i.e., a local depression at the top wall of the phase shifter cavity, makes it possible for only one side (the outer side) to form a grounding feature with the reflector for a single polarization of the phase shifter.

[0058] like Figure 2 As shown, the phase shifter 200 includes two phase shifting units 210 and 220, which correspond to the positive and negative polarizations of the radiation oscillator assembly respectively. For the phase shifter phase shifting unit 210 on the left, the top wall 2131 of the phase shifter phase shifting unit 210 extends to the left to form a grounding layer. Similarly, for the phase shifter phase shifting unit 220 on the right, the top wall 2231 of the phase shifter phase shifting unit 2200 extends to the right to form a grounding layer. These two grounding layers enable the phase shifter 200 to be electrically connected to the reflector. The center plane of the groove 230 formed at the connection between the top wall 2131 and the top wall 2231 basically coincides with the center planes of the left and right phase shifter phase shifting units 210 and 220. In this way, the entire large surface is divided into two relatively small surfaces. For the same dimensional accuracy requirements, the small surface is easier to achieve during molding, and the process requirements are relatively low. In addition, due to the presence of the groove 230, the gap formed between the radiation oscillator and the phase shifter 200 can be reduced, thereby reducing the wall thickness of the oscillator support member, reducing the material used, and reducing the manufacturing cost.

[0059] In addition to the above-mentioned groove 230, Figure 2 The cavity phase shifter 200 shown in the figure also changes the shape of the cavity, and its shape is not rectangular but has a boss structure to form a non-rectangular shape. Specifically, the boss structure 2134 or 2234 can be arranged on the inner side of the top wall 2131 or 2231, and it can be arranged symmetrically with respect to the phase shift circuit, for example. Figure 2 The positions shown are merely exemplary and non-restrictive. A person skilled in the art may also arrange the boss structure 2134 or 2234 on the inner side of the bottom wall 2132 or 2232, or arrange the boss structure on the inner side of the top wall 2131 or 2231 and the inner side of the bottom wall 2132 or 2232. In this way, the resonance frequency of the cavity phase shifter can be further improved by reducing the cavity volume, thereby ensuring that its resonance frequency does not fall within the working frequency band and ensuring its superior working performance. At least one of the intersection of the top wall and the side wall and the intersection of the bottom wall and the side wall is provided with a stepped portion, such as the boss structure 2134 or 2234.

[0060] From another perspective, based on Figure 2The phase shifter 200 shown includes two phase shifting units 210 and 220, the phase shifting unit 210 on the left side includes a first cavity 212, and the phase shifting unit 220 on the right side includes a second cavity 222. The first cavity 212 includes a top wall 2131, a bottom wall 2132 arranged opposite to the top wall 2131, and a pair of side walls (i.e., a side wall 2133 and another side wall 2135 arranged opposite to the side wall 2133) located between the top wall 2131 and the bottom wall 2132. The phase shifting unit 210 on the left side and the phase shifting unit 220 on the right side are arranged opposite to each other, so that the side wall of the first cavity faces the side wall of the second cavity, the top wall 2131 of the first phase shifting unit 210 extends in a direction away from the second phase shifting unit 220 to form a first extension wall coupled with a reflective plate, and the top wall 2231 of the second phase shifting unit 220 extends in a direction away from the first phase shifting unit 210 to form a second extension wall coupled with the reflective plate. Correspondingly, the second cavity 222 includes a top wall 2231, a bottom wall 2232 disposed opposite to the top wall 2231, and a pair of side walls (i.e., a side wall 2233 and another side wall 2135 disposed opposite to the side wall 2233) located between the top wall 2231 and the bottom wall 2232. It can be seen that the first phase shifting unit 210 and the second phase shifting unit 220 share a side wall 2135, and wherein the first extension wall, the second extension wall, and the shared side wall 2135 form the groove 230.

[0061] In other words, a groove 230 is formed between the first extension wall and the second extension wall so that the plane of the first extension wall facing the reflector is disconnected from the plane of the second extension wall facing the reflector. In other words, the phase shifter 200 also includes a connecting wall connecting the first extension wall and the second extension wall, and the first extension wall, the second extension wall and the connecting wall form the groove 230. By changing the shape of the phase shifter cavity so that at least one side is narrowed, the resonant frequency of the phase shifter cavity can be increased, keeping it away from the working frequency band to avoid affecting the performance of the phase shifter.

[0062] In this embodiment, the first extension wall, the top wall 2131 of the first cavity 212, the second extension wall, and the top wall 2231 of the second cavity 222 are coplanar. However, it is understood that in other embodiments, the first extension wall and the top wall 2131 of the first cavity 212 may not be coplanar, in which case the first extension wall may be formed by protruding outward from the top wall 2131, or by protruding outward from the side wall 2133 of the first cavity 212; in other embodiments, the second extension wall and the top wall 2231 of the second cavity 222 may not be coplanar, in which case the second extension wall may be formed by protruding outward from the top wall 2231, or by protruding outward from the side wall 2233 of the second cavity 222.

[0063] On the basis of the above-mentioned embodiment in which the groove is set, the technicians in this field can also further improve the resonant frequency of the cavity phase shifter by, for example, adding a phase-shifting medium. In the design of the phase-shifting medium, most of the existing phase shifters with phase-shifting media use an integral phase-shifting medium as the phase-shifting medium, which will occupy a large space in the cavity of the phase shifter and increase the loss of the phase shifter. In some application scenarios, the antenna gain will not meet the predetermined requirements, and the resonant frequency point in the cavity of the phase shifter will be reduced, so that it may fall into the working frequency band and affect the performance of the phase shifter.

[0064] In order to further optimize the performance of the cavity phase shifter according to the present disclosure, in one embodiment according to the present disclosure, the phase shifter further includes two first phase shifting media, and the two first phase shifting media are symmetrically arranged about the first phase shifting circuit. In addition, the phase shifter further includes two second phase shifting media, and the two second phase shifting media are symmetrically arranged about the second phase shifting circuit.

[0065] Figure 3 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a phase shifter 300 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3 It can be seen that the cavity phase shifter 300 proposed according to the present disclosure includes two phase shifting units, namely, a phase shifting unit 310 and a phase shifting unit 320. Specifically, the phase shifting unit 310 on the left side includes a phase shifting circuit 311, which is arranged in a cavity 312 formed by a top wall 3131, a bottom wall 3132, a side wall 3133 and an intermediate side wall arranged opposite to the side wall 3133; the phase shifting unit 320 on the right side includes a phase shifting circuit 321, which is arranged in a cavity 322 formed by a top wall 3231, a bottom wall 3232, a side wall 3233 and an intermediate side wall arranged opposite to the side wall 3233. The phase shifting circuit can be in the form of a PCB or a design such as aluminum tin plating or pure copper. The phase shifting medium can move in the cavity, thereby producing a phase change and adjusting the downtilt angle of the antenna unit.

[0066] Furthermore, in order to reduce the manufacturing difficulty of the top wall, a groove 330 is provided at the connection between the top wall 3131 on the left and the top wall 3231 on the right. In this way, a larger plane can be divided into two relatively smaller planes, thereby reducing the difficulty of processing. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiating vibrator can pass through the reflector and be partially accommodated in the groove 330, thereby reducing the distance between the radiating vibrator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter, that is, the two top walls, thereby reducing the material used for the support member, and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the content of the present disclosure.

[0067] In addition, in order to achieve a good connection with the reflector, the top wall can be extended outward to form an outward extending extension arm. Figure 3 As shown, the extension arms formed by the top walls 3131 and 3231 of the phase shifter 300 constitute a grounding feature with the reflector, and the included groove 330, i.e., a local depression at the top wall of the phase shifter cavity, makes it possible for only one side (the outer side) to form a grounding feature with the reflector for a single polarization of the phase shifter.

[0068] like Figure 3 As shown, the phase shifter 300 includes two phase shifting units 310 and 320, which correspond to the positive and negative polarizations of the radiating oscillator, respectively. For the phase shifter phase shifting unit 310 on the left, the top wall 3131 of the phase shifter phase shifting unit 310 extends to the left to form a grounding layer. Similarly, for the phase shifter phase shifting unit 320 on the right, the top wall 3231 of the phase shifter phase shifting unit 320 extends to the right to form a grounding layer. These two grounding layers enable the phase shifter 300 to be electrically connected to the reflector. The central plane of the groove 330 formed at the connection between the top wall 3131 and the top wall 3231 basically coincides with the central plane of the left and right phase shifter phase shifting units 310 and 320. In this way, the entire large surface is divided into two relatively small surfaces. For the same dimensional accuracy requirements, the small surface is easier to achieve during molding, and the process requirements are relatively low. In addition, due to the presence of the groove 330, the gap formed between the radiation oscillator and the phase shifter 300 can be reduced, thereby reducing the wall thickness of the oscillator support member, reducing the material used, and reducing the manufacturing cost.

[0069] In addition to the above components, Figure 1 and Figure 2 The difference is that according to Figure 3The phase shifter 300 shown also includes a phase shift medium. Specifically, the first phase shift unit 310 also includes a first phase shift medium 314, the first phase shift circuit 311 and the first phase shift medium 314 are arranged in the first cavity 312, and the first phase shift medium 314 is located between the first phase shift circuit 311 and the side wall of the first cavity 312, wherein the distance between the top wall 3131 and the bottom wall 3132 of the first cavity 310 is H, and the direction of the distance H is defined as the height direction, the height of the first phase shift medium 314 in the height direction is H1, and wherein the ratio of H1 to H is not greater than 1 / 3. At this time, preferably, the ratio of the effective volume of the first phase shift medium 314 to the volume of the receiving cavity 312 of the first cavity 310 is not greater than 1 / 3. Further, the ratio of the effective volume of the first phase shift medium 314 to the volume of the receiving cavity 312 of the first cavity 310 is not greater than 1 / 5. With such an arrangement, when the volume of the first phase-shifting medium 314 is further reduced, the position of the first phase-shifting medium 314 in the first cavity 310 can be flexible and changeable. The effective volume of the first phase-shifting medium 314 refers to the sum of the volumes of all media that cooperate with the first phase-shifting circuit 311 to affect the propagation speed of the signal in the first phase-shifting circuit 311. For example, the phase-shifting medium generally includes a plurality of phase-shifting medium elements and a connecting element that connects adjacent medium elements; wherein the phase-shifting medium element cooperates with the phase-shifting circuit to affect the propagation speed of the signal in the phase-shifting circuit; at this time, the effective volume of the phase-shifting medium is the sum of the volumes of all phase-shifting medium elements. If the distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is defined as H, the minimum distance between the first phase-shifting medium 314 and the bottom wall 3132 of the first cavity 310 is not greater than 0.25H. Alternatively, if the distance between the top wall 3131 and the bottom wall 3132 of the first cavity 310 is defined as H, the minimum distance between the first phase shifting medium 314 and the top wall 3131 of the first cavity is not greater than 0.25 H. In this way, the first phase shifting medium 314 can be away from the central area of ​​the first cavity 310. When the first phase shifting medium 314 is away from the central area of ​​the first cavity 310, the resonant frequency of the first cavity 310 can be shifted to a high frequency, thereby making the resonant frequency of the first cavity 310 away from the working frequency band of the phase shifter 300, so that the performance of the phase shifter 300 is better.

[0070] More preferably, the first phase shifting medium 314 is disposed on the inner side of the top wall 3131 or on the inner side of the bottom wall 3132, and the second phase shifting medium 324 is disposed on the inner side of the top wall 3231 or on the inner side of the bottom wall 3232. In this way, the resonant frequency of the cavity phase shifter according to the present disclosure is further improved, thereby ensuring that its resonant frequency does not fall within the working frequency band, thereby ensuring its superior working performance.

[0071] Preferably, the effective width of the first phase shifting medium 314 is less than half of the width of the first cavity 310, and wherein the effective width of the two second phase shifting media 324 is less than half of the width of the second cavity 320. More preferably, the distance between the first phase shifting medium 314 and the top wall 3131 or the bottom wall 3132 is less than one quarter of the width of the first cavity 310, and wherein the distance between the second phase shifting medium 324 and the top wall 3231 or the bottom wall 3232 is less than one quarter of the width of the second cavity 320.

[0072] Optionally or additionally, in an embodiment according to the present disclosure, a first adapting protrusion is disposed on one side of the first phase shifting medium, and a second adapting protrusion is disposed on one side of the second phase shifting medium.

[0073] Figure 2 The boss structure and Figure 3 The phase shifting media in the embodiment can be used in combination, and the combination form is as follows FIG. 4A to FIG. 4D As shown, Figure 4A FIG. 4 shows a schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4A The phase shifter shown in FIG. 4 includes both a boss structure 4134 and a phase shift medium 414. Figure 4B FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400B according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4C FIG. 4 shows a schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400C according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4D FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a phase shifter 400D according to yet another embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4B The phase shifter shown is Figure 4A The phase shifter shown differs in that the groove 430B is deeper. Figure 4C The phase shifter 400C and Figure 4D The difference between the phase shifter 400D shown and the aforementioned phase shifter is that the middle side wall is not shared, that is, the two phase shifter cavities are constructed independently, and the two independently constructed phase shifter cavities can be connected by a connecting piece located in the middle or flush with the bottom wall.

[0074] Furthermore, according to the third aspect of the present disclosure, a base station antenna is proposed, which includes: the phase shifter according to the first aspect or the second aspect of the present disclosure; a radiating element; and a reflecting plate, wherein the reflecting plate is provided with an avoidance hole, and the radiating element passes through the avoidance hole and is fixed on the phase shifter.

[0075] Figure 5FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a base station antenna 500 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5 It can be seen that the electrical connection end of the radiating element 550 will pass through the reflecting plate 540 to be connected to the phase shifter. Due to the presence of the groove 530, the gap between the radiating element 550 and the phase shifter cavity becomes smaller, thereby reducing the thickness of the support member and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the base station antenna 500 according to the contents of the present disclosure.

[0076] In summary, in the phase shifter according to the content of the present disclosure, the side of the cavity phase shifter facing the reflector, specifically at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall, is grooved, thereby dividing a relatively large surface into two relatively small surfaces, thereby reducing the difficulty of processing. In addition, at this time, the connection end of the radiating vibrator can pass through the reflector and be partially accommodated in the groove, thereby reducing the distance between the radiating vibrator and the upper extension edge of the cavity phase shifter, that is, the first top wall and the second top wall, thereby reducing the material used for the support member, and further reducing the manufacturing cost of the phase shifter proposed according to the content of the present disclosure.

[0077] Although different exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that different changes and modifications can be made that can achieve one or some of the advantages of the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. For those skilled in the art, other components that perform the same function may be appropriately replaced. It should be understood that the features explained herein with reference to specific figures may be combined with the features of other figures, even in those cases where this is not explicitly mentioned. In addition, the method of the present disclosure may be implemented in a software implementation using all appropriate processor instructions or in a hybrid implementation that utilizes a combination of hardware logic and software logic to obtain the same result. Such modifications to the scheme according to the present disclosure are intended to be covered by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A phase shifter, characterized in that: The phase shifter comprises: a first phase shifting circuit and a second phase shifting circuit; a first cavity, the first cavity comprising a first side wall, an intermediate side wall, a first top wall and a first bottom wall and configured to accommodate the first phase shifting circuit; a second cavity, the second cavity comprising a second side wall, the middle side wall, a second top wall and a second bottom wall and configured to accommodate the second phase shifting circuit, wherein the first cavity and the second cavity share the middle side wall and the first side wall, the middle side wall and the second side wall are parallel to each other; a first extension arm and a second extension arm, wherein the first extension arm is configured to extend from the first top wall toward a direction away from the second cavity and the second extension arm is configured to extend from the second top wall toward a direction away from the first cavity; and A groove is provided at the connection between the first top wall and the second top wall and extends along the longitudinal axis direction of the cavity and is used to accommodate the connection end of the radiation vibrator.

2. The phase shifter according to claim 1, characterized in that: The phase shifter also includes: at least one first boss structure, the at least one first boss structure being disposed on the inner side of the first top wall and being configured as a stepped portion facing the inside of the cavity; and / or At least one second boss structure is disposed on the inner side of the second top wall and is configured as a stepped portion facing the inside of the cavity.

3. The phase shifter according to claim 2, characterized in that: The at least one first boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the first phase shifting circuit, and / or the at least one second boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the second phase shifting circuit.

4. The phase shifter according to claim 1 or 3, characterized in that: The phase shifter also includes: at least one third boss structure, the at least one third boss structure being disposed on the inner side of the first bottom wall and being configured as a stepped portion facing the inside of the cavity; and / or At least one fourth boss structure is disposed on the inner side of the second bottom wall and is configured as a stepped portion facing the inside of the cavity.

5. The phase shifter according to claim 4, characterized in that: The at least one third boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the first phase shifting circuit, and / or the at least one fourth boss structure is symmetrically arranged with respect to the second phase shifting circuit.

6. The phase shifter according to claim 1, characterized in that The phase shifter also includes: two first phase-shifting media, the two first phase-shifting media being symmetrically arranged with respect to the first phase-shifting circuit; and Two second phase-shifting media are symmetrically arranged with respect to the second phase-shifting circuit.

7. The phase shifter according to claim 6, characterized in that: The two first phase shifting media are arranged on the inner side of the first top wall or on the inner side of the first bottom wall, and the two second phase shifting media are arranged on the inner side of the second top wall or on the inner side of the second bottom wall.

8. The phase shifter according to claim 6, characterized in that The effective width of the first phase shifting medium is less than half of the width of the first cavity, and wherein the effective width of the second phase shifting medium is less than half of the width of the second cavity.

9. The phase shifter according to claim 8, characterized in that The distance between the first phase shifting medium and the first top wall or the first bottom wall is less than one quarter of the width of the first cavity, and the distance between the second phase shifting medium and the second top wall or the second bottom wall is less than one quarter of the width of the second cavity.

10. The phase shifter according to claim 6, characterized in that A first adapting protrusion is disposed on one side of the first phase shifting medium, and a second adapting protrusion is disposed on one side of the second phase shifting medium.

11. A phase shifter, characterized in that: The phase shifter comprises: A first phase shifting unit, the first phase shifting unit comprising a first cavity; and a second phase shifting unit, wherein the second phase shifting unit comprises a second cavity, wherein the first cavity and the second cavity respectively include a top wall, a bottom wall arranged opposite to the top wall, and a pair of side walls located between the top wall and the bottom wall, and wherein the first phase shifting unit and the second phase shifting unit are arranged opposite to each other so that the side wall of the first cavity faces the side wall of the second cavity, the first cavity is provided with a first extension wall coupled to a reflection plate, and the second cavity is provided with a second extension wall coupled to the reflection plate, A groove is formed between the first extension wall and the second extension wall so that the plane of the first extension wall facing the reflection plate is disconnected from the plane of the second extension wall facing the reflection plate, and the groove is used to accommodate the connection end of the radiation vibrator.

12. The phase shifter according to claim 11, characterized in that The phase shifter further includes a connecting wall connecting the first extending wall and the second extending wall, and the first extending wall, the second extending wall and the connecting wall form the groove.

13. The phase shifter according to claim 11, characterized in that: The first cavity and the second cavity share a side wall, and the first extension wall, the second extension wall and the shared side wall form the groove.

14. The phase shifter according to claim 11, characterized in that: At least one of the intersections of the top wall and the side wall and the intersections of the bottom wall and the side wall is provided with a stepped portion facing the inside of the cavity.

15. The phase shifter according to claim 14, characterized in that The first phase shifting unit also includes a first phase shifting circuit and a first phase shifting medium, the first phase shifting circuit and the first phase shifting medium are arranged in the first cavity, the first phase shifting medium is located between the first phase shifting circuit and the side wall of the first cavity, wherein the distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is H, and the direction of the distance H is defined as the height direction, the height of the first phase shifting medium in the height direction is H1, and wherein the ratio of H1 to H is not greater than 1 / 3.

16. The phase shifter according to claim 14, characterized in that The distance between a pair of side walls of the first cavity is W, and the direction of the distance W is defined as the width direction, wherein in the width direction, the width of the first cavity at the step portion is W1, and wherein the ratio of W1 to W is not less than 1 / 3.

17. The phase shifter according to claim 11, characterized in that The top wall, the bottom wall and the side wall of the first cavity are arranged to form a first receiving cavity, and the first phase shifting unit further comprises a first phase shifting circuit and a first phase shifting medium received in the first receiving cavity, wherein the first phase shifting medium is located between the side wall of the first cavity and the first phase shifting circuit, and wherein the ratio of the effective volume of the first phase shifting medium to the volume of the first receiving cavity is not greater than 1 / 3.

18. The phase shifter according to claim 17, characterized in that The distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is H, and the minimum distance between the first phase-shifting medium and the bottom wall of the first cavity is no greater than 0.25H.

19. The phase shifter according to claim 17, characterized in that The distance between the top wall and the bottom wall of the first cavity is H, and the minimum distance between the first phase-shifting medium and the top wall of the first cavity is no greater than 0.25H.

20. The phase shifter according to claim 17, characterized in that The ratio of the effective volume of the first phase-shifting medium to the volume of the first receiving chamber is not greater than 1 / 5.

21. The phase shifter according to claim 11, characterized in that The first extension wall is formed by extending from the top wall of the first cavity toward a direction away from the second cavity, and the second extension wall is formed by extending from the top wall of the second cavity toward a direction away from the first cavity; the first extension wall, the top wall of the first cavity, the second extension wall and the top wall of the second cavity are coplanar.

22. A base station antenna, comprising: The phase shifter according to any one of claims 1 to 21; Radiating oscillator; as well as Reflective panels; The reflector is provided with an avoidance hole, and the radiation vibrator passes through the avoidance hole and is fixed on the phase shifter.

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