Beam reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna, control system and method

Abstract

This invention provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna, a control system, and a method, relating to the field of smart reconfigurable reflective array antennas. It includes at least one reflective array surface, which is composed of several array elements. Each array element includes a first dielectric substrate, a reflective ground plane, a second dielectric substrate, and a third dielectric substrate arranged sequentially from top to bottom. An air cavity is provided between the first dielectric substrate and the reflective ground plane. A metal patch is provided on the upper surface of the first dielectric substrate. A feed horn antenna is located directly above the smart reflective array surface and is used to excite the reflective array surface. This invention addresses the shortcomings of current smart reflective array antennas, such as narrow bandwidth and small beam scanning angle, as well as the complexity of the smart reflective array antenna control system, which requires a large number of GPIO interfaces to control the reconfigurable reflective array antenna.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of reconfigurable reflective array antennas, and more specifically, to a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna, control system, and method. Background Technology

[0002] Intelligent reflective array antennas (RIS or IRS), as a novel type of high-gain antenna, combine the high efficiency of space-fed parabolic antennas and the low profile of microstrip array antennas, becoming another new type of antenna to replace traditional high-gain antennas. Intelligent reflective array antennas introduce reconfigurable technology into the array elements, allowing the phase compensation of the elements to be changed while maintaining the antenna's physical structure, thereby altering the phase distribution across the entire reflective array surface and ultimately achieving beam scanning or beam reconfiguration. However, current intelligent reflective array antennas suffer from narrow bandwidth and small beam scanning range; therefore, researching reflective array antennas with both wide bandwidth and large-angle beam scanning capabilities is a challenging task. Furthermore, existing technologies require numerous GPIO interfaces to control the reflective array antenna, resulting in complex control systems and high implementation costs. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of this invention is to provide a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflector antenna, control system, and method to improve the aforementioned problems. To achieve the above objective, the technical solution adopted by this invention is as follows:

[0004] In a first aspect, this application provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflector antenna, comprising:

[0005] At least one intelligent reflective array surface, the reflective array surface being composed of a plurality of array surface units, the array surface unit including a first dielectric substrate, a reflective ground plane, a second dielectric substrate and a third dielectric substrate arranged sequentially from top to bottom, an air cavity being provided between the first dielectric substrate and the reflective ground plane; a metal patch being provided on the upper surface of the first dielectric substrate;

[0006] A feed horn antenna is located directly above the smart reflector array and is used to excite the smart reflector array.

[0007] Furthermore, the metal patch consists of a central patch and an outer ring patch. The central patch is square, and a connecting patch extends from each side of the square. The outer ring patch consists of four non-adjacent strip patches symmetrically arranged in pairs, with the four strip patches arranged parallel to the four sides of the central patch.

[0008] Furthermore, the strip patch is provided with protrusions in the middle and at both ends, with the protrusions facing the central patch.

[0009] Furthermore, the four strip patches are connected to adjacent connecting patches via PIN diodes, with the negative terminal of the PIN diode connected to the connecting patch and the positive terminal connected to the strip patch.

[0010] Furthermore, the four PIN diodes are arranged symmetrically in pairs, forming a first PIN diode group and a second PIN diode group respectively. When the first PIN diode group is turned on and the second PIN diode group is turned off, the array unit is in a first phase state; when the first PIN diode group is turned off and the second PIN diode group is turned on, the array unit is in a second phase state.

[0011] Furthermore, a first DC bias network is disposed on the second dielectric substrate, and the first DC bias network is connected to a set of symmetrical strip patches through a metal conduit; a second DC bias network is disposed on the third dielectric substrate, and the second DC bias network is connected to another set of symmetrical strip patches through a metal conduit.

[0012] Furthermore, the reflective floor is connected to the central patch via a metal conduit.

[0013] Secondly, this application also provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized intelligent reflector array control system, comprising:

[0014] Beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflector antenna and control circuit;

[0015] The control circuit includes an embedded microcontroller and at least one driver IC, wherein the embedded microcontroller is connected to the driver IC via an SPI interface;

[0016] The control circuit is electrically connected to PIN diodes on several array units via pins.

[0017] Thirdly, this application also provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflector array control method, including:

[0018] The embedded microcontroller receives the serial data through the serial port and sends the serial data to the driver IC, so that the driver IC controls all array units to generate a preset phase state according to the serial data. The serial data consists of the preset phase states required by all array units.

[0019] Furthermore, the method for generating the preset phase state required for the array elements is as follows:

[0020] Obtain the required beam pointing angle and focal length, where the focal length is the distance from the equivalent phase center of the feed horn antenna to the array element;

[0021] The phase compensation of the array element at the preset operating frequency is calculated based on the required beam pointing angle and focal length.

[0022] After quantizing the phase compensation of the array element, a first phase state or a second phase state is generated.

[0023] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows:

[0024] This invention employs polarization rotation technology and subwavelength technology to propose a novel reflective dual-polarized broadband intelligent reflective array element. This array element can maintain two states with a 180° phase difference over a wide bandwidth, thus broadening the operating bandwidth of the reflective array antenna. While solving the problem of narrow bandwidth in reflective array antennas, it also improves the large-angle beam scanning range of the reconfigurable intelligent reflective array antenna.

[0025] To address the problem that current reconfigurable reflector array control systems are complex and each unit requires a separate GPIO port of the MCU, resulting in significant waste of MCU GPIO ports, this patent proposes a simplified control scheme. It uses an STM32 and MBI5024 constant current driver cascaded to control the PIN diode loaded on the smart reflector array antenna, converting serial data into parallel data, which reduces the number of GPIO ports used and saves GPIO resources.

[0026] Other features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the following description, and will be apparent in part from the description, or may be learned by practicing embodiments of the invention. The objects and other advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the structures particularly pointed out in the written description, claims, and drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0027] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of the present invention and should not be regarded as a limitation on the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0028] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized reflector array antenna described in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the array element described in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 3 This is a first phase state diagram of the metal patch in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 4 This is a second phase state diagram of the metal patch in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the first DC bias network in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the second DC bias network in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 7 This is the reflection amplitude curve of the array element under y-polarization in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 8 This is the reflection phase curve of the array element under y-polarization in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized reflector array control system described in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 10 The phase state of the array surface in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 1 ;

[0038] Figure 11 The phase state of the array surface in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 2 ;

[0039] Figure 12 This is the E-plane two-dimensional beam scanning curve in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 13 This is the H-plane two-dimensional beam scanning curve in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 14 In this embodiment of the invention, the three-dimensional beam is pointed to one direction;

[0042] Figure 15 In this embodiment of the invention, the three-dimensional beam pointing is two.

[0043] Marked in the image:

[0044] 01. Array element; 011. First dielectric substrate; 012. Reflector ground plane; 013. Second dielectric substrate; 014. Third dielectric substrate; 015. Air cavity; 02. Feed horn antenna; 03. Metal patch; 031. Center patch; 032. Strip patch; 0321. Bump; 033. Connecting patch; 04. Control circuit; 041. Embedded microcontroller; 042. Driver IC. Detailed Implementation

[0045] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of the present invention. The components of the embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the accompanying drawings can generally be arranged and designed in various different configurations. Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention, but merely to illustrate selected embodiments of the invention. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0046] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters in the following figures indicate similar items; therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it does not need to be further defined and explained in subsequent figures. Furthermore, in the description of this invention, terms such as "first," "second," etc., are used only to distinguish descriptions and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0047] Example 1:

[0048] Please see Figure 1 , Figure 2 This embodiment provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized smart reflector antenna, including:

[0049] At least one intelligent reflective array surface, the intelligent reflective array surface is composed of a plurality of array surface units 1, the array surface unit 1 includes a first dielectric substrate 11, a reflective ground plane 12, a second dielectric substrate 13 and a third dielectric substrate 14 arranged sequentially from top to bottom, an air cavity 15 is provided between the first dielectric substrate 11 and the reflective ground plane 12; a metal patch 3 is provided on the upper surface of the first dielectric substrate 11.

[0050] The feed horn antenna 2 is located directly above the smart reflector array and is used to excite the reflector array.

[0051] In this embodiment, the first dielectric substrate 11 is made of a material with a relative permittivity of 2.2, a loss tangent of 0.002, and a thickness H1 = 3 mm.

[0052] The thickness of the air cavity 15 is H2 = 11 mm;

[0053] The thickness H3 of the reflective floor 12 is 2mm;

[0054] The second dielectric substrate 13 and the third dielectric substrate 14 are FR4 dielectric substrates, both with a thickness of H4 = 0.5 mm;

[0055] The metal patch 3 is printed on top of the first dielectric substrate 11.

[0056] In this embodiment, a reflection array is obtained by arranging 20×20 array elements.

[0057] Please see Figure 3 , Figure 4 Based on the above embodiments, the metal patch 3 is composed of a central patch 31 and an outer ring patch. The central patch 31 is square, and each side of the square extends out a connecting patch 33. The outer ring patch is composed of four non-adjacent strip patches 32 symmetrically arranged in pairs. The four strip patches 32 are respectively arranged parallel to the four sides of the central patch 31.

[0058] Based on the above embodiments, the strip patch 32 is provided with protrusions 321 in the middle and at both ends, with the protrusions 321 facing the center patch.

[0059] Based on the above embodiments, the four strip patches 32 are respectively connected to the adjacent connecting patches through PIN diodes. The negative terminal of the PIN diode is connected to the connecting patch, and the positive terminal is connected to the strip patch. The four PIN diodes are {PIN1, PIN2, PIN3, PIN4} in sequence.

[0060] Based on the above embodiments, the four PIN diodes are symmetrically arranged in pairs, with PIN1 and PIN3 forming the first PIN diode group and PIN2 and PIN4 forming the second PIN diode group. The first PIN diode group is arranged along... The direction is loaded above the metal patch 3, and the second PIN diode group is along... The direction is loaded above the metal patch 3;

[0061] Please see Figure 3 When the first PIN diode group is turned on and the second PIN diode group is turned off, that is, when the PIN diodes are in the state of {ON,OFF,ON,OFF}, the array unit 1 is in the first phase state State I.

[0062] Please see Figure 4 When the first PIN diode group is off and the second PIN diode group is on, that is, when the on state of the PIN diodes is {OFF, ON, OFF ON}, the array unit 1 is in the second phase state, State II.

[0063] By using PIN diodes to control metal patches, the conduction and cutoff of two sets of PIN diodes are controlled in pairs to achieve the rotation of the polarization of the incident wave, generating a 180° phase difference.

[0064] Based on the above embodiments, a first DC bias network is disposed on the second dielectric substrate 13, and the first DC bias network is connected to a set of symmetrical strip patches through a metal conduit; a second DC bias network is disposed on the third dielectric substrate 14, and the second DC bias network is connected to another set of symmetrical strip patches through a metal conduit.

[0065] Please see Figure 5 Specifically, the first DC bias network includes a bias line, a fan-shaped branch, and a DC line. The fan-shaped branch is provided with a metal through hole. One end of the metal conduit is connected to the metal through hole of the first DC bias network, and the other end passes through the second dielectric substrate 13 and is connected to the first PIN diode group.

[0066] Please see Figure 6 Similarly, the second DC bias network includes a bias line, a fan-shaped branch, and a DC line. The fan-shaped branch is provided with a metal through hole. One end of the metal conduit is connected to the metal through hole of the second DC bias network, and the other end passes through and is connected to the second PIN diode group.

[0067] The third and fourth dielectric substrates serve as DC bias layers to DC bias the operating state of the PIN diodes, ensuring good DC and RF isolation characteristics.

[0068] Based on the above embodiments, the reflective floor 12 is connected to the central patch 31 through a metal conduit to provide current to the central patch 31.

[0069] The array element 1 provided in this embodiment operates in a frequency range of 1.68 GHz to 3.42 GHz, with an element period of 45.3 mm. At the highest frequency, the element period is 0.5 times the wavelength; at the lowest frequency, the element size is 0.24 times the wavelength; and at the center frequency, the element size is 0.36 times the wavelength. It can be seen that within this frequency range, the element period is less than 0.5 wavelengths, avoiding the occurrence of grating lobe levels during large-angle beam scanning. Since the array element is a subwavelength element, it can reduce phase quantization errors and also contribute to bandwidth widening. Therefore, the array element is a polarization-rotating element with subwavelength size and broadband polarization rotation capability.

[0070] When y-polarized, a high Rxy (Rxy > -1 dBi) and a low Ryy (Ryy < -10 dBi) are maintained in the 1.68 GHz to 3.42 GHz range. Please refer to [link to relevant documentation]. Figure 7 , Figure 8 , Figure 7 The reflection amplitude curve of the array element. Figure 8 The reflection phase curve of the array element.

[0071] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention. Various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0072] Example 2

[0073] like Figure 9 As shown, this embodiment provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized intelligent reflector array control system, including a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized intelligent reflector array antenna and a control circuit 4;

[0074] The control circuit includes an embedded microcontroller 41 and at least one driver IC 42. The embedded microcontroller 41 is connected to the driver IC 42 via an SPI interface.

[0075] The control circuit is electrically connected to the PIN diodes on several array units 1 via pins;

[0076] In this embodiment, the specific model of the embedded microcontroller 41 is STM32G431CBT6, and the specific model of the driver IC is 16-bit MBI5024. The MBI5024 has an external resistor to set a constant current, and one MBI5024 is connected to 16 array units through an interface. Since this embodiment includes 20*20 array units, 20*20 / 16=25 MBI5024s need to be set.

[0077] The four GPIO interfaces PAO, PA1, PA5 and PA7 of the STM32G431CBT6 are connected to the MBI5024 constant current driver, and send the output enable signal (active low), the data latch signal (active high), the serial shift clock (active rising edge) and the serial data to the MBI5024 constant current driver.

[0078] Compared to existing technologies where each array unit requires a GPIO interface for control, this invention significantly saves GPIO resources.

[0079] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention. Various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0080] Example 3

[0081] This embodiment provides a beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized reflector array control method, including:

[0082] The embedded microcontroller 41 receives the serial data through the serial port and sends the serial data to the driver IC 42, so that the driver IC 42 controls all array units 1 to generate a preset phase state according to the serial data. The array units after generating the preset phase state reflect the beam emitted by the feed horn antenna into the required beam pointing angle. The serial data is composed of the preset phase state required by all array units.

[0083] The method for generating the preset phase state required for the array element is as follows:

[0084] Obtain the required beam pointing angle (θ0, φ0) and focal length d i The focal length is the distance from the equivalent phase center of the feed horn antenna 2 to the array element 1;

[0085] The phase compensation of array element 1 at the preset operating frequency is calculated based on the required beam pointing angle and focal length:

[0086]

[0087] In the formula, This represents the phase compensation of the i-th array element at a preset operating frequency f. Where c represents the light beam.

[0088] After quantizing the phase compensation of array unit 1, a first phase state or a second phase state is generated, according to... Figure 8 The phase curve for phase compensation Quantification is performed as follows:

[0089]

[0090] Where -42° is the phase corresponding to State I at a center frequency of 2.4 GHz, and 138° is the phase corresponding to State II at the same center frequency. By quantizing the calculated continuous phase into two states to reduce quantization error, the quantized first or second phase state is finally converted into 0 / 1 data to obtain serial data, such as... Figure 10 , Figure 11 As shown, Figure 10 (a) Phase compensation for the desired beam pointing (θ0,φ0)=(0°,0°) Figure 10 (b) is Figure 10 (a) Quantized phase; Figure 11 (c) is the phase compensation corresponding to the required beam pointing (θ0,φ0)=(0°,60°). Figure 11 (d) is Figure 11 (c) Quantized phase.

[0091] Based on the above embodiments, the embedded microcontroller 41 receives continuous serial data via a serial port and then sends the serial data to the driver IC 42, so that the driver IC 42 controls all array units 1 to generate a preset phase state according to the serial data. The continuous serial data is the serial data corresponding to the range of the required beam pointing angle. The array units that continuously generate phase states continuously reflect the electromagnetic waves emitted by the feed horn antenna to obtain the beam scanning curve. Specifically, this embodiment can achieve ±60° beam scanning in the E-plane, H-plane and D-plane, and has good directivity. When the scanning angle is 0° at the center frequency, the 3-dB gain bandwidth is 1.9GHz to 3.1GHz (relative bandwidth 48%), and the peak aperture efficiency is 20.32%.

[0092] like Figure 12 — Figure 15 As shown, Figure 12 This is a two-dimensional beam scanning curve with θ ranging from 0° to 60° obtained after the E-plane beam of the reflective array antenna. Figure 13 This is a two-dimensional beam scanning curve with θ ranging from 0° to 60° obtained after the H-plane beam of the reflective array antenna. Figure 14 This represents the three-dimensional beam pointing of the reflector antenna when θ is 0°. Figure 15 This represents the three-dimensional beam pointing of the reflector antenna at θ = 60°.

[0093] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A beam reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna, characterized in that, include: At least one reflective array surface, the reflective array surface being composed of a plurality of array units (1), the array unit (1) including a first dielectric substrate (11), a reflective ground plane (12), a second dielectric substrate (13) and a third dielectric substrate (14) arranged sequentially from top to bottom, an air cavity (15) being provided between the first dielectric substrate (11) and the reflective ground plane (12); a metal patch (3) is provided on the upper surface of the first dielectric substrate (11). The metal patch (3) consists of a central patch (31) and an outer ring patch. The central patch (31) is a square, and each side of the square extends out a connecting patch (33). The outer ring patch consists of four non-adjacent strip patches (32) symmetrically arranged in pairs. The four strip patches are respectively arranged parallel to the four sides of the central patch. The strip patch (32) is provided with protrusions (321) at the middle and both ends, and the protrusions (321) face the central patch (31). The four strip patches are connected to the adjacent connecting patches through PIN diodes, with the negative terminal of the PIN diode connected to the connecting patch (33) and the positive terminal connected to the strip patch (32). The feed horn antenna (2) is located directly above the reflector array and is used to excite the reflector array.

2. The beam-reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna of claim 1, wherein Four PIN diodes are arranged symmetrically in pairs, forming a first PIN diode group and a second PIN diode group respectively. When the first PIN diode group is turned on and the second PIN diode group is turned off, the array unit (1) is in the first phase state. When the first PIN diode group is turned off and the second PIN diode group is turned on, the array unit (1) is in the second phase state.

3. The beam-reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna of claim 1, wherein The second dielectric substrate (13) is provided with a first DC bias network, which is connected to a set of symmetrical strip patches through a metal conduit; the third dielectric substrate (14) is provided with a second DC bias network, which is connected to another set of symmetrical strip patches through a metal conduit.

4. The beam-reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna of claim 1, wherein The reflective floor (12) is connected to the central patch (31) via a metal conduit. 5.A beam reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array control system, comprising the beam reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna of any of claims 1-4, characterized in that , including beam-reconfigurable broadband dual-polarized reflector array antenna and control circuit (4); The control circuit includes an embedded microcontroller (41) and at least one driver IC (42), wherein the embedded microcontroller (41) is connected to the driver IC (42) via an SPI interface; The control circuit is electrically connected to the PIN diodes on several array units (1) via pins. 6.A method for controlling a beam-reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array, comprising the beam-reconfigurable wideband dual-polarized smart reflective array antenna of any of claims 1-4, characterized in that, include: The embedded microcontroller (41) receives serial data through the serial port and sends the serial data to the driver IC (42) so that the driver IC (42) controls all array units (1) to generate a preset phase state according to the serial data. The serial data consists of the preset phase state required by all array units.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein The method for generating the preset phase state required for the array element is as follows: Obtain the required beam pointing angle and focal length, wherein the focal length is the distance from the equivalent phase center of the feed horn antenna (2) to the array element (1); According to the required beam pointing angle and focal length, the phase compensation of the array element (1) at the preset working frequency is calculated; After quantizing the phase compensation of the array element (1), a first phase state or a second phase state is generated.

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