Antenna device

Abstract

The invention discloses an antenna device. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, provided is an antenna device, comprising: at least one base substrate; a plurality of planar antenna elements (planar antenna elements) disposed on the at least one base substrate in a height direction perpendicular to the at least one base substrate and supported by the at least one base substrate; and a radome which is arranged at a distance from the plurality of antenna elements in the height direction and is configured so as to surround the at least one base substrate and the plurality of antenna elements, the radome including a pattern portion which is arranged on a surface of the radome facing the plurality of antenna elements and is provided so as to be able to decouple electromagnetic waves radiated from the plurality of antenna elements.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an antenna device, and more particularly to an antenna device including a decoupling structure. Background Art

[0002] The contents recorded in this section are simply used to provide background information for the present utility model and do not constitute prior art.

[0003] Wireless communication systems have increasingly higher requirements for data transmission rates. Therefore, a large-scale Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technology is being developed, which can ensure communication reliability while increasing channel capacity. The MIMO system is a technology that uses multiple antennas to significantly increase data transmission capacity. It is a spatial multiplexing technology in which the transmitter uses each transmit antenna to transmit different data, and the receiver uses appropriate signal processing to distinguish the transmitted data. Therefore, by increasing the number of transmit and receive antennas at the same time, the channel capacity can be increased, so that more data can be transmitted.

[0004] However, if multiple antennas are arranged under space-constrained conditions, coupling between the antennas will occur. If the coupling between the multiple antennas increases, signal leakage will occur, thereby causing the efficiency of the antenna device to decrease.

[0005] Therefore, there is an urgent need for an antenna device that can achieve decoupling between antenna elements while ensuring channel capacity. At this time, it is also important not to increase the overall size of the antenna device. Summary of the invention

[0006] 1. Technical issues to be resolved

[0007] Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an antenna device that can solve the problem of coupling between antenna elements without increasing the overall size of the antenna device.

[0008] (II) Technical solution

[0009] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided an antenna device, comprising: at least one base substrate; a plurality of antenna elements, which are arranged on the at least one base substrate in a height direction perpendicular to the at least one base substrate and supported by the at least one base substrate; and a radome, which is arranged apart from the plurality of antenna elements in the height direction and is configured to surround the at least one base substrate and the plurality of antenna elements, the radome comprising a pattern portion, the pattern portion being arranged on a surface of the radome facing the plurality of antenna elements and configured to be able to decoupling electromagnetic waves radiated by the plurality of antenna elements.

[0010] (III) Beneficial effects

[0011] According to the present embodiment as described above, it is possible to provide an antenna device that can solve the problem of coupling between antenna elements without increasing the overall size of the antenna device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] Figure 1 is an assembly perspective view of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0013] Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0014] Figure 3a 2 is a schematic diagram of a pattern portion of an antenna device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] Figure 3b The antenna device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure is arranged along Figure 1 Cross-sectional view taken along the A-A' direction.

[0016] Figure 4a 2 is a schematic diagram of a pattern portion of an antenna device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 4b The antenna device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure is Figure 1 Cross-sectional view taken along the A-A' direction.

[0018] Figure 5a and Figure 5b is a diagram illustrating the isolation between some antenna elements and ports when there is no antenna cover according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figures 6a to 6c is a diagram illustrating the isolation between some antenna elements and ports when a radome is provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 7 It is a diagram showing a one-time comparison of the presence and absence of a radome and the isolation between some specific ports according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] Below, some embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail using the accompanying drawings. When marking the figure marks in each figure, the same figure marks are used as much as possible even if the same components appear in different figures. Throughout the specification, if it is considered that the detailed description of the relevant known components and functions may make the subject matter of the present disclosure unclear, its detailed description will be omitted.

[0022] In the process of describing the constituent elements according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, symbols such as first, second, i), ii), a), b) may be used. Such symbols are only used to distinguish constituent elements from other constituent elements, and the nature, order or sequence of the corresponding constituent elements are not limited based on the symbols. Throughout the entire specification, if a constituent element "includes" or "has" another constituent element, unless there is a special record to the contrary, it can be understood that a constituent element also includes another constituent element, rather than being understood as a constituent element excluding another constituent element.

[0023] Figure 1 is an assembly perspective view of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] Reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, an antenna device 10 or 20 includes at least one base substrate 100 , a plurality of antenna elements 120 , and all or part of a radome 140 .

[0026] The base substrate 100 is provided so that a plurality of antenna elements 120 described later can be grounded. The base substrate 100 may be a plate-shaped member made of plastic or metal, but is not limited thereto.

[0027] In addition, in the drawing, the base substrates 100 are arranged in a (8*2) pattern and consist of 16 base substrates 100 in total; however, the arrangement and number of the base substrates 100 are not limited thereto.

[0028] The plurality of antenna elements 120 are supported by the base substrate 100 and are capable of radiating electromagnetic waves. In addition, the plurality of antenna elements 120 may be arranged on the base substrate 100 in a height direction perpendicular to the base substrate 100. The height direction may refer to Figure 1 Center Z axis direction.

[0029] The plurality of antenna elements 120 form a certain arrangement and are preferably arranged on at least one base substrate 100. For example, Figure 2 As shown, the plurality of antenna elements 120 can be arranged in (8*12) to form a total of 96. In this case, the number of base substrates 100 is 16, and 6 antenna elements 120 can be arranged on one base substrate 100. However, the plurality of antenna elements 120 can be arranged in a certain arrangement and is not limited to the following. Figure 2 arrangement and quantity.

[0030] In addition, the plurality of antenna elements 120 may include a first feeding substrate 122 , a second feeding substrate 124 , and a radiation plate 126 , respectively.

[0031] The first feeding substrate 122 is disposed on the base substrate 100 and may be a printed circuit substrate including a feeding line (not shown).

[0032] The second feed substrate 124 and the first feed substrate 122 are arranged on the base substrate 100 to intersect each other, and may be a printed circuit substrate including a feed line. The first feed substrate 122 and the second feed substrate 124 may intersect each other and form a 90° angle, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0033] The radiation plate 126 is a component that is supported by one end of the first feeding substrate 122 and the second feeding substrate 124 in the height direction, and can be a radiation point of electromagnetic waves.

[0034] Among them, at least a portion of one end of the first feed substrate 122 and the second feed substrate 124 in the height direction may be configured to protrude in the height direction compared to the radiation plate 126. In addition, at least a portion of one end of the first feed substrate 122 and the second feed substrate 124 in the opposite direction of the height direction may be configured to protrude in the opposite direction of the height direction compared to the base substrate 100. For example, the first feed substrate 122 and the second feed substrate 124 may be plugged into the base substrate 100 and the radiation plate 126, respectively.

[0035] In this case, the upper parts of the first feed substrate 122 and the second feed substrate 124 are supported by the radiation plate 126 , and the lower parts are supported by the base substrate 100 , so that the positions of the first feed substrate 122 and the second feed substrate 124 can be fixed.

[0036] The radome 140 is arranged to be spaced apart from the plurality of antenna elements 120 in the height direction and is configured to surround at least one base substrate 100 and the plurality of antenna elements 120. For all the plurality of antenna elements 120, the spacing between the plurality of antenna elements 120 and the radome 140 is preferably maintained at a certain spacing.

[0037] The radome 140 may not only protect the at least one base substrate 100 and the plurality of antenna elements 120 from external factors, but the present disclosure may also prevent problems caused by coupling between the plurality of antenna elements 120 .

[0038] In addition, the coupling between the multiple antenna elements 120 may include direct coupling, where the multiple antenna elements 120 are directly coupled to each other, and indirect coupling, where at least a portion of the electromagnetic wave radiated by any antenna element is reflected by the antenna cover 140 to couple with other antenna elements.

[0039] The radome 140 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include a pattern portion ( Figure 3a of 300, Figure 4a 400), the pattern portion is configured to decouple electromagnetic waves radiated by the plurality of antenna elements 120. That is, the antenna cover 140 has the pattern portions 300 and 400, which can minimize the indirect coupling between the plurality of antenna elements 120.

[0040] In addition, the antenna device 10 , 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may further include a shielding wall (not shown), which is arranged between the plurality of antenna elements 120 to prevent direct coupling between the plurality of antenna elements 120 .

[0041] Figure 3a 2 is a schematic diagram of a pattern portion of an antenna device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0042] Figure 3b The antenna device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure is arranged along Figure 1 Cross-sectional view taken along the A-A' direction.

[0043] Figure 4a 2 is a schematic diagram of a pattern portion of an antenna device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0044] Figure 4b The antenna device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure is Figure 1 Cross-sectional view taken along the A-A' direction.

[0045] Reference Figure 3a The pattern portion 300 of the antenna device 10 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure is configured in a repetitive arrangement of a rhombus-shaped pattern.

[0046] In addition, refer to Figure 4a The pattern portion 400 of the antenna device 20 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure is configured in a hexagonal pattern that is repeatedly arranged.

[0047] In addition, refer to Figure 3b and Figure 4b A portion of the electromagnetic waves radiated by the radiation plate 126 passes through the antenna cover 140, and a portion may be reflected on the inner surface of the antenna cover 140 and coupled with other antenna elements.

[0048] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the pattern parts 300 and 400 can prevent the problem of indirect coupling between multiple antenna elements 120 by decoupling the electromagnetic waves radiated by the radiation plate 126. Therefore, the electromagnetic waves after decoupling by the pattern parts 300 and 400 are preferably in opposite phases compared to those before decoupling.

[0049] Therefore, various problems caused by the enhancement of coupling between the plurality of antenna elements 120, such as signal leakage and reduction in the channel capacity of the MIMO system, can be prevented.

[0050] Figure 3a , Figure 3b , Figure 4a and Figure 4b Although rhombus and hexagonal patterns are illustrated, the pattern parts 300 and 400 of the antenna devices 10 and 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure are not limited to the above-mentioned pattern shapes.

[0051] In addition, the pattern parts 300 and 400 of the antenna devices 10 and 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure are arranged on a surface of the antenna cover 140 facing the plurality of antenna elements 120. For example, the pattern parts 300 and 400 may be arranged on the inner surface of the antenna cover 140. In this case, no additional cover is required to protect the pattern parts 300 and 400 from interference from external factors, thereby achieving a decoupling effect between the plurality of antenna elements 120 without increasing the size of the antenna device.

[0052] In addition, although not shown in the figure, the antenna cover 140 of the antenna device 10, 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include at least one rib (not shown) formed on one surface of the antenna cover 140 facing the plurality of antenna elements 120. In this case, the pattern part 300, 400 may be formed on the rib.

[0053] However, the pattern parts 300 and 400 do not necessarily have to be formed on the ribs of the radome 140 . For example, the pattern parts 300 and 400 themselves may also be attached to the surface of the radome 140 facing the plurality of antenna elements 120 .

[0054] Figure 5a and Figure 5b is a diagram illustrating the isolation between some antenna elements and ports when there is no antenna cover according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0055] Figures 6a to 6c is a diagram illustrating the isolation between some antenna elements and ports when a radome is present according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0056] Figure 7 It is a diagram showing a one-time comparison of the presence and absence of a radome and the isolation between some specific ports according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0057] exist Figure 5a and Figure 5b and Figures 6a to 6c In the figure, the interference between port 1 and port 3, the interference between port 2 and port 3, the interference between port 5 and port 3, and the interference between port 6 and port 3 are exemplarily illustrated and compared. However, the following effects are not limited to Figure 5a and Figure 5b and Figures 6a to 6c The interference between the ports is shown.

[0058] Reference Figure 5b and Figure 6c It can be seen that Figure 6c The curve value is compared with Figure 5b The curve value of decreases as a whole, and the absolute value of the negative value between each port becomes larger, which means that when the antenna cover 140 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is included, the isolation is improved.

[0059] In addition, refer to Figure 7 , the curve graph of the general antenna device that does not include the antenna cover 140 of an embodiment of the present disclosure is represented by a solid line, and the curve graph of the antenna device 10, 20 that includes the antenna cover 140 of an embodiment of the present disclosure is represented by a dotted line.

[0060] Comparing the curve graph represented by the dashed line with the curve graph represented by the solid line, it can be seen that the coupling degree is greatly reduced. Therefore, for the case of the antenna cover 140 including an embodiment of the present disclosure, the decoupling effect between the multiple antenna elements 120 is very significant.

[0061] The above description is only an exemplary description of the technical idea of ​​the present embodiment. For those with general knowledge in the technical field to which the present embodiment belongs, various modifications and deformations can be made without exceeding the essential features of the present embodiment. Therefore, the present embodiment is used to illustrate rather than limit the technical idea of ​​the present embodiment, and these embodiments are not used to limit the scope of the technical idea of ​​the present embodiment. The protection scope of the present embodiment is interpreted based on the attached claims, and all technical ideas within the equivalent scope thereof should be interpreted as belonging to the scope of rights of the present embodiment.

[0062] [Explanation of Reference Numerals] 10, 20: antenna device; 100: base substrate; 120: multiple antenna elements; 122: first feed substrate 124: second feed substrate; 126: radiation plate; 140: antenna cover; 300, 400: pattern portion.

[0063] [CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS]

[0064] This patent application claims priority to Patent Application No. 10-2022-0106256 filed in the Korean Patent Office on August 24, 2022, and Patent Application No. 10-2023-0105031 filed in the Korean Patent Office on August 10, 2023, all of which are incorporated by reference in this patent application.

Claims

1. An antenna device, comprising: at least one base substrate; a plurality of antenna elements arranged on the at least one base substrate in a height direction perpendicular to the at least one base substrate and supported by the at least one base substrate; as well as a radome which is arranged spaced apart from the plurality of antenna elements in the height direction and is formed to surround the at least one base substrate and the plurality of antenna elements, The radome includes a pattern portion, which is arranged on a surface of the radome facing the plurality of antenna elements and is configured to decouple electromagnetic waves radiated by the plurality of antenna elements.

2. The antenna device according to claim 1, characterized in that The radome includes at least one rib, and the at least one rib is formed on a surface of the radome facing the plurality of antenna elements. The pattern portion is formed on the rib portion.

3. The antenna device according to claim 1, wherein: The pattern portion is attached to a surface of the radome facing the plurality of antenna elements.

4. The antenna device according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of antenna elements respectively include: A first feeding substrate, which is arranged on the base substrate; a second feeding substrate arranged on the base substrate so as to intersect with the first feeding substrate; and A radiation plate is supported by one end portion of the first feeding substrate and the second feeding substrate in the height direction.

5. The antenna device according to claim 4, characterized in that At least a portion of one end of the first feeding substrate and the second feeding substrate in the height direction protrudes toward the height direction compared to the radiation plate. At least a portion of one end portion of the first feeding substrate and the second feeding substrate in the opposite direction to the height direction protrudes in the opposite direction to the height direction relative to the at least one base substrate.

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