Waveguide phase shifter

Abstract

The invention discloses a waveguide phase shifter comprising a waveguide main body which is a circular waveguide; the first corrugation is arranged on one side of the inner wall of the waveguide main body; the second corrugation is arranged on the other side of the inner wall of the waveguide main body; the first corrugation and the second corrugation are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the waveguide main body; the first corrugation and the second corrugation are formed by arranging a plurality of arc-shaped corrugated sheets, and the arc-shaped surfaces of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets are connected with the inner wall of the waveguide main body. The double corrugations are arranged on the inner wall of the circular waveguide main body, and the corrugation height adopts the special design that the sine functions at the two ends are gradually distributed and the middle part is in equal-height distribution, so that better impedance matching can be realized, and a wider bandwidth and a lower standing wave are achieved. The antenna is low in processing requirement, low in cost and high in relative bandwidth, and can meet the requirements of antenna broadband application of satellite communication, radio astronomy, broadband reconnaissance receiving and the like.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of satellite communication technology, and in particular to a waveguide phase shifter. Background Art

[0002] Circular polarization and linear polarization are two different forms of electromagnetic wave polarization. When a signal with linear polarization propagates through the ionosphere (such as satellite communications), it is prone to multipath fading and polarization rotation, which will reduce the polarization efficiency of the receiving end. Therefore, circularly polarized waves are usually used in systems in the fields of astronomy, electronic countermeasures, television broadcasting, satellite communications, and telemetry and remote sensing.

[0003] Circular polarization waves can be generated by a circular polarizer. A circular polarizer is generally composed of a 90° phase shifter and an orthogonal mode coupler. The performance of the phase shifter directly affects the axial ratio of the circular polarizer, which is an important factor limiting the antenna bandwidth.

[0004] The waveguide phase shifters that are currently widely used are as follows:

[0005] (1) Ridge waveguide type: Two rows of ridges are set inside the waveguide. By adjusting the width and height of the ridges, the phase constants of the two orthogonal polarized waves are changed, thereby changing the phase difference between them. It is mainly used in circular waveguides, and the bandwidth is relatively limited, at most 15% to 20%.

[0006] (2) Screw adjustment type: insert screws into the waveguide wall, and adjust the screws to change the propagation constants of the two orthogonal polarized waves to achieve a phase shift effect. It has the advantages of low cost and low insertion loss, but the bandwidth is small (within 15%) and the debugging workload is large.

[0007] (3) Dielectric insert type: A dielectric sheet is inserted into the waveguide wall, and the propagation constants of two orthogonal polarized waves are changed by adjusting the dielectric sheet to achieve a phase shift effect. It is mainly used in circular waveguides, and the debugging is simple, but the bandwidth is relatively narrow (within 25%), and the dielectric loss is relatively large.

[0008] (4) Corrugated type: Corrugations are set inside the waveguide. Due to the presence of the corrugations, the transmission environment of the waveguide changes, thereby changing the wave number of electromagnetic wave propagation. When the transmission path length remains unchanged, its transmission electrical length changes, thus forming a phase difference. The existing four-corrugated phase shifter has a relatively wide bandwidth (up to 35%), but it has high requirements for the processing accuracy and symmetry of the corrugations. In comparison, the processing of the double-corrugated phase shifter is simpler, but its bandwidth is not as good as that of the four-corrugated phase shifter.

[0009] With the rapid development of satellite communication technology and radio telescope technology, the demand for broadband operation is becoming more and more urgent. How to provide a waveguide phase shifter with wide bandwidth and convenient processing and debugging has become a difficult problem to be solved by those skilled in the art. Summary of the invention

[0010] The embodiment of the present application provides a waveguide phase shifter, which solves the technical problem in the prior art that phase shifters with wider bandwidth have high processing requirements, while phase shifters with simpler processing have insufficient bandwidth, thereby achieving the technical effect of wider bandwidth and convenient processing.

[0011] In order to solve the above technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a waveguide phase shifter, comprising:

[0012] A waveguide body, wherein the waveguide body is a circular waveguide;

[0013] A first corrugation is provided on one side of the inner wall of the waveguide body;

[0014] A second corrugation is provided on the other side of the inner wall of the waveguide body;

[0015] The first corrugation and the second corrugation are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the waveguide body;

[0016] The first corrugation and the second corrugation are both composed of a plurality of arc-shaped corrugated sheets arranged in an arranged manner, and the arc-shaped surfaces of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets are connected to the inner wall of the waveguide body.

[0017] Preferably, the first corrugation and the second corrugation both include a corrugation group of equal height arranged in the middle and a gradient corrugation group arranged on both sides of the corrugation group of equal height, and the gradient corrugation groups on both sides are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the corrugation group of equal height.

[0018] Preferably, the heights of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets in the equal-height corrugation group are equal;

[0019] The height of each arc-shaped corrugated sheet in the gradual corrugation group gradually increases from the waveguide port to the waveguide center until it becomes the same as the height of the equal-height corrugation group.

[0020] Preferably, the height of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets in the gradual corrugation group satisfies the sinusoidal function gradual distribution, as follows:

[0021] h(i)=h*sin(i*π / 10)

[0022] Assume that from the waveguide port to the waveguide center, the arc-shaped corrugated sheets are arranged in sequence as 1, 2...n, where n is a positive integer; h(i) represents the height of the i-th arc-shaped corrugated sheet in the gradient corrugation group, where i is a positive integer not greater than n; and h is the height of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets in the equal-height corrugation group.

[0023] Preferably, on the arc-shaped corrugated sheet, the surface opposite to the arc-shaped surface is a plane, and the plane is arranged facing the central axis of the waveguide body.

[0024] Preferably, the thicknesses of all the arcuate corrugated sheets of the first corrugation and the second corrugation are equal.

[0025] Preferably, all the arc-shaped corrugated sheets of the first corrugation and the second corrugation are arranged at equal distances; and / or

[0026] The arcuate corrugated sheets of the first corrugation are arranged along a straight line, and the arcuate corrugated sheets of the second corrugation are arranged along a straight line.

[0027] Preferably, the arc-shaped corrugated sheet is integrally connected to the inner wall of the waveguide body.

[0028] Preferably, the waveguide body is a hollow metal tube, and the arc-shaped corrugated sheet is a metal sheet.

[0029] Preferably, the first corrugation and the second corrugation include 28 arcuate corrugated sheets respectively, wherein the equal-height corrugation group includes 4 arcuate corrugated sheets, and the gradient corrugation groups on both sides include 12 arcuate corrugated sheets respectively.

[0030] Preferably, the radius of the waveguide body is 0.531λ, the width of all the arc-shaped corrugated sheets is 0.042λ, the intervals between adjacent arc-shaped corrugations are 0.087λ, the height of the highest arc-shaped corrugated sheet is 0.092λ, and λ is the air wavelength corresponding to the center frequency.

[0031] The waveguide phase shifter provided in the embodiment of the present application can achieve better impedance matching by arranging double corrugations on the inner wall of the circular waveguide body, and the corrugation height adopts a special design of gradual distribution of sinusoidal functions at both ends and equal height distribution in the middle, thereby achieving a wider bandwidth and lower standing wave.

[0032] The waveguide phase shifter provided in the embodiment of the present application adopts a double-corrugated type. Compared with the existing four-corrugated phase shifter, the processing accuracy and symmetry requirements are greatly reduced, and the cost is also greatly reduced; at the same time, it can also have a higher relative bandwidth, the operating frequency is 77~116GHz, the relative bandwidth can reach 40%, the phase imbalance is ±6.7°, and the corresponding axial ratio is less than 1dB, which can meet the wide-band applications of antennas such as satellite communications, radio astronomy and broadband reconnaissance reception. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present application.

[0034] Figure 1It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a waveguide phase shifter provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 2 A side view of a waveguide phase shifter provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 3 A front cross-sectional view of a waveguide phase shifter provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Figure 4 A top cross-sectional view of a waveguide phase shifter provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Figure 5 The phase difference in the 77-116 GHz frequency band obtained by HFSS simulation for the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment;

[0039] Figure 6 The horizontally polarized standing waves in the 77-116 GHz frequency band obtained by HFSS simulation for the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment;

[0040] Figure 7 The waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment is simulated using HFSS to obtain a vertically polarized standing wave in the 77-116 GHz frequency band.

[0041] The above drawings have shown clear embodiments of the present application, which will be described in more detail later. These drawings and text descriptions are not intended to limit the scope of the present application in any way, but to illustrate the concept of the present application to those skilled in the art by referring to specific embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] The embodiment of the present application provides a waveguide phase shifter, which solves the technical problem in the prior art that phase shifters with wider bandwidth have high processing requirements, while phase shifters with simpler processing have insufficient bandwidth, thereby achieving the technical effect of wider bandwidth and convenient processing.

[0043] In order to better understand the above technical solution, exemplary embodiments will be described in detail here, and examples thereof are shown in the accompanying drawings. When the following description refers to the drawings, unless otherwise indicated, the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements. The implementations described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all implementations consistent with the present application. Instead, they are only examples of devices consistent with some aspects of the present application as detailed in the attached claims.

[0044] Figure 1 to Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a waveguide phase shifter provided in an embodiment of the present application, wherein the waveguide phase shifter comprises:

[0045] A waveguide body 1, wherein the waveguide body 1 is a circular waveguide;

[0046] A first corrugation 2, provided on one side of the inner wall of the waveguide body 1;

[0047] A second corrugation 3 is provided on the other side of the inner wall of the waveguide body 1;

[0048] The first corrugation 2 and the second corrugation 3 are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the waveguide body 1;

[0049] The first corrugation 2 and the second corrugation 3 are both composed of a plurality of arcuate corrugated sheets arranged in an arranged manner, and the arcuate surfaces of the arcuate corrugated sheets are connected to the inner wall of the waveguide body 1 .

[0050] Preferably, the waveguide body 1 is a hollow cylindrical metal tube, the arcuate corrugated sheet is a metal sheet, and the arcuate corrugated sheet is integrally connected to the inner wall of the waveguide body 1, and illustratively, can be integrally formed by CNC machining.

[0051] Specifically, the surface of the arcuate corrugated sheet opposite to the arcuate surface is a plane, and the plane is arranged facing the central axis of the waveguide body 1. The arcuate corrugated sheet of the first corrugation 2 and the arcuate corrugated sheet at the corresponding position of the second corrugation 3 are arranged oppositely and in parallel.

[0052] The thickness of all the arcuate corrugated sheets of the first corrugation 2 is equal, and the arcuate corrugated sheets are arranged equidistantly along a straight line.

[0053] The thickness of all the arcuate corrugated sheets of the second corrugation 3 is equal, and the arcuate corrugated sheets are arranged equidistantly along a straight line.

[0054] The arcuate corrugated sheets of the first corrugation 2 and the arcuate corrugated sheets of the second corrugation 3 have the same thickness and are symmetrically arranged in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0055] Furthermore, the waveguide body 1 is provided with a first waveguide port 11 and a second waveguide port 12 at two ends thereof.

[0056] The first corrugation 2 is composed of a first uniform corrugation group 21 arranged in the middle, and a first gradual corrugation group 22 and a second gradual corrugation group 23 arranged on both sides. The first gradual corrugation group 22 is close to the first waveguide port 11, and the second gradual corrugation group 23 is close to the second waveguide port 12. The first uniform corrugation group 21 is located between the first gradual corrugation group 22 and the second gradual corrugation group 23. The first gradual corrugation group 22 and the second gradual corrugation group 23 are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the first uniform corrugation group 21.

[0057] The heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the first uniform corrugation group 21 are equal. The heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the first gradual corrugation group 22 gradually increase from the first waveguide port 11 to the waveguide center until they are the same as the heights of the first uniform corrugated sheets 21. The heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the second gradual corrugation group 23 gradually increase from the second waveguide port 12 to the waveguide center until they are the same as the heights of the first uniform corrugated sheets 21.

[0058] Correspondingly, the second corrugation 3 is composed of a second uniform corrugation group 31 arranged in the middle, and a third gradual corrugation group 32 and a fourth gradual corrugation group 33 arranged on both sides. The third gradual corrugation group 32 is close to the first waveguide port 11, the fourth gradual corrugation group 33 is close to the second waveguide port 12, and the second uniform corrugation group 31 is located between the third gradual corrugation group 32 and the fourth gradual corrugation group 33.

[0059] The heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the second uniform corrugation group 31 are equal. The heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the third gradual corrugation group 32 gradually increase from the first waveguide port 11 toward the waveguide center until they are the same as the heights of the second uniform corrugated sheets 31. The heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the fourth gradual corrugation group 33 gradually increase from the second waveguide port 12 toward the waveguide center until they are the same as the heights of the second uniform corrugated sheets 31.

[0060] In a preferred embodiment, the height of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the first gradual corrugation group 22 satisfies the sinusoidal function gradual distribution, as follows:

[0061] h(i)=h*sin(i*π / 10)

[0062] Assume that from the first waveguide port 11 to the waveguide center, the arcuate corrugated sheets are arranged in order of 1, 2, ..., n, where n is a positive integer. h(i) represents the height of the i-th arcuate corrugated sheet in the first gradual corrugation group, where i is a positive integer not greater than n; h is the height of the arcuate corrugated sheet in the first uniform height corrugation group.

[0063] Similarly, the heights of the arcuate corrugated sheets in the second gradual corrugation group 23, the third gradual corrugation group 32, and the fourth gradual corrugation group 33 also satisfy the above-mentioned sinusoidal function gradual distribution. The second gradual corrugation group 23 and the first gradual corrugation group 22 are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the first constant height corrugation group 21. The third gradual corrugation group 32 and the fourth gradual corrugation group 33 are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the second constant height corrugation group 31.

[0064] When the waveguide phase shifter provided in the embodiment of the present application is used, when the linear polarization wave is incident into the waveguide phase shifter at an angle of 45° relative to the corrugation, the linear polarization wave can be decomposed into two linear polarization waves of equal amplitude and phase, and the two linear polarization waves are respectively perpendicular to the corrugation and parallel to the corrugation. The horizontal polarization wave parallel to the corrugation is not affected by the corrugation, and the vertical polarization wave perpendicular to the corrugation will change the propagation constant due to the corrugation. Finally, two polarization waves with a certain phase difference are obtained at the output end of the waveguide phase shifter. When the phase difference reaches 90°, it is a circularly polarized wave. By designing the number, height, length, and thickness of the corrugations, the phase difference between the two polarization waves finally output by the waveguide can be about 90°, forming a circularly polarized wave.

[0065] The waveguide phase shifter provided in the embodiment of the present application can achieve better impedance matching by arranging double corrugations on the inner wall of the cylindrical waveguide body, and the corrugation height adopts a special design of gradual distribution of sinusoidal functions at both ends and equal height distribution in the middle, thereby achieving a wider bandwidth and lower standing wave.

[0066] In a preferred embodiment,

[0067] The first corrugation 2 includes 28 arcuate corrugated sheets, wherein the first uniform corrugation group 21 includes 4 arcuate corrugated sheets, and the first gradual corrugation group 22 and the second gradual corrugation group 23 include 12 arcuate corrugated sheets respectively.

[0068] The configuration of the second corrugation 3 is the same as that of the first corrugation 2 .

[0069] The radius r of the waveguide body 1 is 0.531λ, where λ is the air wavelength corresponding to the center frequency.

[0070] The width w of all arcuate corrugated sheets is 0.042λ, the interval p between adjacent arcuate corrugations is 0.087λ, and the height h of the highest arcuate corrugated sheet is 0.092λ.

[0071] Based on the HFSS three-dimensional electromagnetic field simulation software, the above waveguide phase shifter is simulated, and the specific results are as follows:

[0072] Figure 5 FIG. 1 shows the phase difference of the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment in the 77-116 GHz frequency band (the horizontal axis frequency represents the frequency, and the vertical axis phase difference (degree) represents the phase shift angle). Figure 5 It can be seen that the phase imbalance of the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment is less than 6.7° in the 77-116 GHz frequency band.

[0073] Figure 6FIG. 1 shows the horizontal polarization standing wave of the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment in the frequency band of 77-116 GHz (the horizontal axis frequency represents the frequency, and the vertical axis VSWR (H-pol) represents the horizontal polarization standing wave). Figure 6 It can be seen that the horizontal polarization standing wave of the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment is less than 1.10 dB in the 77-116 GHz frequency band.

[0074] Figure 7 FIG. 1 shows the vertical polarization standing wave of the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment in the frequency band of 77-116 GHz (the horizontal axis frequency represents the frequency, and the vertical axis VSWR (V-pol) represents the vertical polarization standing wave). Figure 7 It can be seen that the vertical polarization standing wave of the waveguide phase shifter provided in this embodiment is less than 1.12 dB in the 77-116 GHz frequency band.

[0075] It should be understood that although the terms "first", "second", etc. may be used herein to describe various units, these units should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one unit from another. For example, a first unit may be referred to as a second unit, and similarly, a second unit may be referred to as a first unit without departing from the scope of the exemplary embodiments.

[0076] The directional terms such as up, down, left, right, front, back, front, back, top, bottom, etc. mentioned or may be mentioned in this specification are defined relative to the structures shown in the drawings. They are relative concepts and may change accordingly according to different positions and different usage conditions. Therefore, these or other directional terms should not be interpreted as restrictive terms.

[0077] In the description of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, or it can be an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0078] In addition, the terms "comprises," "comprising," and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or elements is not necessarily limited to those steps or elements explicitly listed, but may include other steps or elements not explicitly listed or inherent to such process, method, product, or apparatus.

[0079] The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present application, and is not any formal or substantial limitation to the present application. It should be pointed out that ordinary technicians in this technical field can make several improvements and supplements without departing from the method of the present application, and these improvements and supplements should also be regarded as the protection scope of the present application. Any technician familiar with this profession can make some changes, modifications and evolutions of the technical content disclosed above without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application, which are equivalent embodiments of the present application; at the same time, any changes, modifications and evolutions of any equivalent changes made to the above embodiments based on the substantial technology of the present application are still within the scope of the technical solution of the present application.

Claims

1. A waveguide phase shifter, characterized in that: include: A waveguide body, wherein the waveguide body is a circular waveguide; A first corrugation is provided on one side of the inner wall of the waveguide body; A second corrugation is provided on the other side of the inner wall of the waveguide body; The first corrugation and the second corrugation are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the waveguide body; The first corrugation and the second corrugation are both composed of a plurality of arc-shaped corrugated sheets arranged in an arranged manner, and the arc-shaped surfaces of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets are connected to the inner wall of the waveguide body.

2. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 1, characterized in that The first corrugation and the second corrugation both include a corrugation group of equal height arranged in the middle and a gradient corrugation group arranged on both sides of the corrugation group of equal height, and the gradient corrugation groups on both sides are symmetrically arranged relative to the center of the corrugation group of equal height.

3. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 2, characterized in that The heights of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets in the equal-height corrugation group are equal; The height of each arc-shaped corrugated sheet in the gradual corrugation group gradually increases from the waveguide port to the waveguide center until it becomes the same as the height of the equal-height corrugation group.

4. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 3, characterized in that The height of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets in the gradual corrugation group satisfies the sinusoidal function gradual distribution, which is as follows: h(i)=h*sin(i*π / 10) Assume that from the waveguide port to the waveguide center, the arc-shaped corrugated sheets are arranged in sequence as 1, 2...n, where n is a positive integer; h(i) represents the height of the i-th arc-shaped corrugated sheet in the gradient corrugation group, where i is a positive integer not greater than n; and h is the height of the arc-shaped corrugated sheets in the equal-height corrugation group.

5. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 1, wherein: On the arc-shaped corrugated sheet, the surface opposite to the arc-shaped surface is a plane, and the plane is arranged facing the central axis of the waveguide body.

6. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 1, wherein: The thickness of all the arcuate corrugated sheets of the first corrugation and the second corrugation is equal.

7. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 1, wherein: The arc-shaped corrugated sheets of the first corrugation and the second corrugation are arranged at equal distances; and / or The arcuate corrugated sheets of the first corrugation are arranged along a straight line, and the arcuate corrugated sheets of the second corrugation are arranged along a straight line.

8. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 1, wherein: The arc-shaped corrugated sheet is integrally connected with the inner wall of the waveguide body; and / or The waveguide body is a hollow metal tube, and the arc-shaped corrugated sheet is a metal sheet.

9. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 4, characterized in that The first corrugation and the second corrugation include 28 arcuate corrugated sheets respectively, wherein the equal-height corrugation group includes 4 arcuate corrugated sheets, and the gradient corrugation groups on both sides include 12 arcuate corrugated sheets respectively.

10. The waveguide phase shifter according to claim 4, characterized in that The radius of the waveguide body is 0.531λ, the width of all the arc-shaped corrugated sheets is 0.042λ, the intervals between adjacent arc-shaped corrugations are 0.087λ, the height of the highest arc-shaped corrugated sheet is 0.092λ, and λ is the air wavelength corresponding to the center frequency.

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