Antenna downward inclination angle adjusting device and base station antenna

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of antennas, in particular to an antenna downward inclination angle adjusting device and a base station antenna, comprising a mounting shell, a switching structure, an input structure and an output structure. The switching structure comprises a switching support, a driving assembly and at least one position selecting gear, and a plurality of switching grooves arranged in the first direction are formed in the switching support. The driving assembly comprises a driving piece, the driving piece can stretch into and be separated from the switching groove, and when stretching into the switching groove, the driving piece drives the switching support to move by a preset distance, so that intermittent movement of the switching support is achieved; the position selecting gear is rotationally arranged on the switching support, and the input structure drives the position selecting gear to rotate when the switching support is in the intermittent period of intermittent movement; the output structure comprises at least one group of racks in one-to-one correspondence with the position selection gears, and the racks extend in the second direction; the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction. The switching support moves intermittently, the phase shifter is driven through transmission of the position selecting gear and the rack, the requirement for control precision is low, and the transmission efficiency is high.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of antenna technology, and in particular to an antenna downtilt angle adjustment device and a base station antenna. Background Art

[0002] Base stations are public mobile communication base stations, which are interface devices for mobile devices to access the Internet. They are also a form of radio stations, which refer to radio transceiver stations that transmit information between mobile phone terminals through mobile communication exchange centers in a certain radio coverage area. Both base stations and terminals transmit and receive signals through the medium of antennas.

[0003] As the number of mobile terminals continues to increase, the demand for mobile communication base station antennas is also increasing. However, due to the resource limitations of mobile base stations, it has become a demand trend to integrate multiple antennas. For multi-band antennas, how to adjust the downtilt angle of the antenna for each frequency band has always been an issue that needs attention. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present disclosure provides an antenna downtilt angle adjustment device and a base station antenna.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present disclosure provides an antenna downtilt angle adjustment device, comprising:

[0006] Install the shell;

[0007] The switching structure comprises a switching bracket, a driving assembly and at least one position selection gear, wherein the switching bracket is slidably arranged on the mounting shell in a first direction, and a plurality of switching slots arranged along the first direction are arranged on the switching bracket; the driving assembly comprises a driving shaft that can rotate around its own axis and a driving member connected to the driving shaft, and the driving shaft is configured to be rotatable to drive the driving member to extend into and out of the switching slot, and when extending into the switching slot, the driving member drives the switching bracket to move a preset distance to realize intermittent movement of the switching bracket; the position selection gear is rotatably arranged on the switching bracket, and the axis direction of the position selection gear is the first direction;

[0008] An input structure configured to drive the position selection gear to rotate when the switching bracket is in an intermittent period of intermittent movement;

[0009] an output structure, comprising at least one set of racks corresponding to the position selection gears one by one, each set of the racks comprising a plurality of racks arranged along the first direction, the racks extending along the second direction and slidably arranged on the mounting shell, the racks being configured to be able to mesh with the position selection gears, and the racks being used to connect the phase shifter;

[0010] The second direction is perpendicular to the first direction.

[0011] In some embodiments, the distance between two adjacent racks in each group of racks is a positive integer multiple of the preset distance.

[0012] In some embodiments, two positioning gears are provided, and the two positioning gears are spaced apart in the first direction.

[0013] In some embodiments, when one of the position selecting gears is meshed with the rack, another position selecting gear is meshed with the rack or is located on one side of one of the racks in the first direction.

[0014] In some embodiments, the input structure includes a transmission shaft and an input gear, the transmission shaft extends along the first direction, the position selection gear is slidably disposed on the transmission shaft in the first direction, and can rotate synchronously with the transmission shaft;

[0015] The input gear is arranged on the transmission shaft and can drive the transmission shaft to rotate around its own axis.

[0016] In some embodiments, a self-locking assembly is further included, the self-locking assembly comprising a self-locking rod and an elastic member, the self-locking rod is rotatably disposed on the mounting shell via a rotating shaft extending along the first direction, and a limiting tooth capable of meshing with the rack is disposed at the first end of the self-locking rod;

[0017] The elastic member is limited between the second end of the self-locking rod and the mounting shell, and the elastic member is configured to make the limiting tooth engage with the rack;

[0018] The rotating shaft is located between the first end and the second end.

[0019] In some embodiments, the switching bracket has an unlocking component, which is configured to press the second end of the self-locking rod to make the first end tilt up, and when the unlocking component presses against the second end of the self-locking rod, the selection gear and the self-locking rod are disengaged from the meshing rack and mesh with each other.

[0020] In some embodiments, the rack has a plurality of transmission teeth arranged along the second direction and a plurality of self-locking teeth arranged along the second direction, the transmission teeth can be engaged with the position selection gear, and the self-locking teeth can be engaged with the position limiting teeth.

[0021] In some embodiments, each group of the racks is provided with a corresponding self-locking assembly, and the self-locking rod is located on one side of the corresponding rack in the first direction.

[0022] In some embodiments, two first limiting portions are disposed on the rack, and the two first limiting portions are spaced apart along the second direction;

[0023] Two second limiting portions are arranged on the mounting shell, and the two second limiting portions are both located between the two first limiting portions to limit the movement of the rack.

[0024] In some embodiments, the switching bracket is provided with a plurality of arc-shaped grooves arranged along the first direction;

[0025] The driving assembly further includes a guide wheel connected to the driving shaft and coaxial with the driving shaft, wherein the guide wheel can rotate in the arc groove and fits the groove surface of the arc groove;

[0026] The guide wheel has an avoidance gap on its circumference. When the driving member extends into the switching groove, the guide wheel disengages from the arc groove through the avoidance gap. When the driving member escapes from the switching groove, the guide wheel contacts the next arc groove in the moving direction of the switching bracket.

[0027] In some embodiments, a guide shaft is further included, wherein the guide shaft is disposed on the mounting shell and extends along the first direction, and the switching bracket is slidably disposed on the guide shaft.

[0028] In a second aspect, the present disclosure provides a base station antenna, comprising the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device provided in the first aspect.

[0029] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure has the following advantages:

[0030] The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device realizes intermittent movement of the switching bracket in the first direction by cooperating with the driving member on the driving assembly and the switching slot on the switching bracket, so that the selection gear switches the meshing rack, and when the switching bracket is in the intermittent period of intermittent movement, the input structure drives the selection gear to rotate to drive the rack to move in the second direction. The rack is used to connect the phase shifter, so that the intermittent period of the switching bracket can be used to move the rack, so that the movement of the switching bracket and the movement of the rack are carried out continuously in sequence, so as to realize the adjustment of multiple antenna tilt angles, with low control accuracy requirements, high transmission efficiency, and the ability to improve the adjustment speed. It also has a compact structure and can reduce space occupancy. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.

[0032] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative labor.

[0033] Figure 1 The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0034] Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of another perspective of the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0035] Figure 3 It is a structural schematic diagram of the switching structure and the input structure according to the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0036] Figure 4 It is a structural schematic diagram of the switching structure described in the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0037] Figure 5 The partial structure diagram of the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is shown in FIG. Figure 1 ;

[0038] Figure 6 The partial structure diagram of the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure is shown in FIG. Figure 2 ;

[0039] Figure 7 It is a partial cross-sectional schematic diagram of the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device described in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0040] Among them, 1. mounting shell; 11. second limiting part;

[0041] 2. Switching structure; 21. Switching bracket; 211. Switching slot; 212. Arc slot; 213. Unlocking component; 22. Driving assembly; 221. Driving shaft; 222. Driving member; 223. Guide wheel; 224. First input rod; 23. Position selection gear;

[0042] 3. Input structure; 31. Transmission shaft; 32. Input gear; 33. First transmission gear; 34. Second transmission gear; 35. Second input rod;

[0043] 4. Output structure; 41. Rack; 411. Transmission tooth; 412. Self-locking tooth; 41a. First limiting protrusion; 42. Stop block; 421. Stop tooth;

[0044] 5. Self-locking assembly; 51. Self-locking rod; 511. Limiting tooth; 51a. First end; 51b. Second end; 52. Elastic member; 53. Rotating shaft;

[0045] 6. Guide shaft;

[0046] 7. Driving components. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] In order to more clearly understand the above-mentioned objectives, features and advantages of the present disclosure, the scheme of the present disclosure will be further described below. It should be noted that the embodiments of the present disclosure and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0048] In the following description, many specific details are set forth to facilitate a full understanding of the present disclosure, but the present disclosure may also be implemented in other ways different from those described herein; it is obvious that the embodiments in the specification are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than all of the embodiments.

[0049] like Figures 1 to 6 As shown, the embodiment of the present application provides an antenna downtilt angle adjustment device, which is mainly used to adjust the downtilt angle of the antenna. Specifically, the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device includes a mounting shell 1, a switching structure 2, an input structure 3 and an output structure 4.

[0050] The switching structure 2 includes a switching bracket 21, a driving assembly 22 and at least one position selection gear 23. The switching bracket 21 is slidably arranged on the mounting shell 1 in the first direction, and a plurality of switching slots 211 arranged along the first direction are arranged on the switching bracket 21. The driving assembly 22 includes a driving shaft 221 that can rotate around its own axis and a driving member 222 connected to the driving shaft 221. The driving shaft 221 is configured to be rotatable to drive the driving member 222 to extend into or out of the switching slot 211, and when extending into the switching slot 211, it can drive the switching bracket 21 to move a preset distance to achieve intermittent movement of the switching bracket 21. The position selection gear 23 is rotatably arranged on the switching bracket 21, and the axial direction of the position selection gear 23 is the first direction.

[0051] The input structure 3 is configured to drive the position selection gear 23 to rotate when the switching bracket 21 is in an intermittent period of intermittent movement.

[0052] The output structure 4 includes at least one set of racks 41 corresponding to the position selection gears 23, each set of racks 41 includes a plurality of racks 41 arranged along the first direction, the racks 41 extend along the second direction and are slidably disposed on the mounting shell 1, the racks 41 can mesh with the position selection gears 23, and the racks 41 are used to connect the phase shifter for adjusting the downtilt angle of the antenna. The second direction is perpendicular to the first direction.

[0053] It can be understood that the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device realizes the switching bracket 21 by cooperating with the switching slot 211 on the switching bracket 21 and the driving member of the driving assembly 22, and can convert the continuous rotation of the driving shaft 221 into intermittent movement of the switching bracket 21 in the first direction, and when the switching bracket 21 is in the intermittent period of intermittent movement, the input structure drives the selection gear 23 to rotate to drive the rack 41 to move in the second direction, so that the intermittent period of the switching bracket 21 can be used to move the rack 41, so that the movement of the switching bracket 21 and the movement of the rack 41 are carried out continuously in sequence, thereby realizing the adjustment of multiple antenna downtilt angles, with low control accuracy requirements and high transmission efficiency, thereby improving the adjustment speed, and the structure is compact, which can reduce space occupancy.

[0054] It should be noted that the intermittent movement of the switching bracket 21 can be understood as the switching bracket 21 being driven by the driving component 22 and having a moving period and an intermittent period. During the moving period, the switching bracket 21 is driven by the driving member 222 to move, and during the intermittent period, the driving shaft 221 keeps rotating, but because the driving member 222 is located outside the switching slot 211, the switching bracket 21 is stationary relative to the mounting shell 1.

[0055] In addition, the axial direction of the driving shaft 221 is the second direction. In addition, both side walls of the switching slot 211 in the first direction are arc-shaped surfaces, so that it is convenient for the driving member 222 to extend into and out of the switching slot 211. And the driving member 222 is also provided with a guiding arc surface to cooperate with the arc surface of the switching slot 211 to prevent the driving member 222 from getting stuck.

[0056] In some embodiments, the spacing between two adjacent racks 41 in each set of racks 41 is a positive integer multiple of a preset distance. In this way, when the switching bracket 21 moves N preset distances, the position selection gear 23 can switch from a state of meshing with one rack 41 to a state of meshing with another rack 41, so that the moving distance of the switching bracket 21 can be controlled by controlling the number of rotations of the driving shaft 221, thereby ensuring the accuracy of the meshing of the position selection gear 23 with the rack 41.

[0057] For example, in a specific implementation, referring to Figure 1 There are two position selection gears 23 , and the two position selection gears 23 are spaced apart in the first direction. Correspondingly, there are two sets of racks 41 , corresponding to the two position selection gears 23 one by one.

[0058] That is to say, each position selection gear 23 corresponds to a set of racks 41, which can reduce the moving distance of each position selection gear 23 in the first direction, shorten the position selection stroke, and thus improve the position selection efficiency.

[0059] In one case, when one of the positioning gears 23 is meshed with a rack 41 in a corresponding group of racks 41, the other positioning gear 23 is located on one side of a rack 41 in the corresponding group of racks 41 in the first direction, that is, each time the switching bracket 21 moves N preset distances, one of the positioning gears 23 is meshed with a rack 41 in the corresponding group of racks 41, and the other positioning gear 23 is located on one side of a rack 41 in the corresponding group of racks 41 in the first direction, such as the right side or the left side, that is, by driving one rack 41 by one positioning gear 23 at a time, the downtilt angle of an antenna can be adjusted. In this way, when the number of racks 41 in each group of racks 41 increases, the positioning gear 23 can still be moved to mesh with each rack 41 and the downtilt angle of the antenna can be adjusted by driving the rack 41.

[0060] In another case, the two positioning gears 23 can be meshed with the racks 41 in the corresponding set of racks 41 at the same time, that is, when one positioning gear 23 is meshed with one rack 41, the other positioning gear 23 is also meshed with one rack 41, so that the downtilt angles of two antennas can be adjusted at a time. Of course, when the number of positioning gears 23 is more than two, only one positioning gear 23 can be meshed with one rack 41 in the corresponding set of racks 41, or all positioning gears 23 can be meshed with one rack 41 in the corresponding set of racks 41 at the same time and respectively, that is, multiple positioning gears 23 simultaneously drive the meshed racks 41 to move, so as to adjust the downtilt angles of multiple antennas at a time.

[0061] In some embodiments, reference Figure 3 and Figure 4 The input structure 3 includes a transmission shaft 31 and an input gear 32 . The transmission shaft 31 extends along a first direction. The position selection gear 23 is slidably disposed on the transmission shaft 31 in the first direction and can rotate synchronously with the transmission shaft 31 .

[0062] The input gear 32 is disposed on the transmission shaft 31 and can drive the transmission shaft 31 to rotate around its own axis.

[0063] It can be understood that the input gear 32 drives the transmission shaft 31 to rotate, and the transmission shaft 31 drives the selection gear 23 to rotate. Since the selection gear 23 is arranged on the switching bracket 21, the selection gear 23 can move along the first direction on the transmission shaft 31 to achieve position switching, and at the same time can be driven to rotate by the transmission shaft 31.

[0064] Furthermore, the input structure 3 further includes a second input rod 35, a first transmission gear 33 and a second transmission gear 34, the first transmission gear 33 is meshed with the second transmission gear 34, the second transmission gear 34 is meshed with the input gear 32, and the second input rod 35 is connected to the first transmission gear 33. The second input rod 35 is connected to the output shaft of the motor, or the second input rod 35 is the output shaft of the motor.

[0065] In this way, the first transmission gear 33 is driven to rotate by the second input rod 35, the first transmission gear 33 drives the second transmission gear 34 to rotate, the second transmission gear 34 drives the input gear 32 to rotate, and the input gear 32 drives the selection gear 23 to rotate through the transmission shaft 31. In this way, the adjustment of the phase shifter can be achieved through three-stage gear transmission, and the transmission efficiency loss is small.

[0066] In some embodiments, reference Figure 3 and Figure 4 The switching bracket 21 is provided with a plurality of arc grooves 212 arranged along the first direction.

[0067] The driving assembly 22 further includes a guide wheel 223 connected to the driving shaft 221 and coaxial with the driving shaft 221. The guide wheel 223 can rotate in the arc groove 212 and fit the groove surface of the arc groove 212. The guide wheel 223 has an avoidance notch in its circumferential direction. When the driving member 222 extends into the switching groove 211, the guide wheel 223 is separated from the arc groove 212 through the avoidance notch. When the driving member 222 escapes from the switching groove, the guide wheel 223 contacts the next arc groove 212 in the moving direction of the switching bracket 21.

[0068] The driving member 222 and the guide wheel 223 are arranged at intervals in the axial direction of the driving shaft 221, and the driving member 222 is located at the avoidance gap of the guide wheel 223, wherein the driving member 222 can be located at the middle position of the avoidance gap in the circumferential direction of the guide wheel 223, so that when the guide wheel 223 rotates in the arc groove 212 and contacts the groove surface of the arc groove 212, the driving member 222 is located outside the switching groove 211, and when the driving member 222 gradually extends into the switching groove 211 as the driving shaft 221 rotates, the guide wheel 223 gradually disengages from the groove surface of the arc groove 212 due to the existence of the avoidance gap, so that when the driving member 222 drives the switching bracket 21 to move, the guide wheel 223 can avoid the switching bracket 21 through the avoidance gap, so as to prevent the guide wheel 223 from blocking the movement of the switching bracket 21. When the driving member 222 escapes from the switching groove 211, the guide wheel 223 enters the next arc groove 212.

[0069] By providing the guide wheel 223 , when the switch bracket 21 moves to a desired position, the switch bracket 21 can be limited by the cooperation between the guide wheel 223 and the arc groove 212 , thereby preventing the switch bracket 21 from shifting.

[0070] Moreover, the intermittent movement of the switching bracket 21 is realized by the driving component 22, and the meshing of the position selection gear 23 and different racks can be realized when the driving shaft 221 continues to rotate. For example, when the driving component 22 drives the switching bracket 21 to move, the position selection gear 23 is disengaged from the rack 41 and the position selection gear 23 does not rotate, and the rack 41 is not driven to move at this time. When the driving component 22 drives the switching bracket 21 to move until the position selection gear 23 is engaged with the rack 41, the guide wheel 223 rotates in the arc groove 212, and the switching bracket 21 remains stationary at this time. At this time, the rack 41 can be driven to move by rotating the position selection gear 23. When the switching bracket 21 moves again under the drive of the driving member 222, the position selection gear 23 is disengaged from the rack 41 and moves to the next rack 41, so that the position selection gear 23 can drive multiple racks 41 in sequence without stopping the machine, which can improve the adjustment efficiency and has low control accuracy requirements.

[0071] For example, when the driving shaft 221 rotates 360°, the driving member 222 drives the switching bracket 21 to move, and the driving shaft 221 rotates by 30°. That is, when the driving shaft 221 rotates one circle, the switching bracket 21 is driven to move by the driving member 222 only during the 30° period, and the switching bracket 21 remains stationary during the rest of the period, so as to drive the rack 41 through the position selection gear 23. Of course, the rotation angle of the driving shaft 221 when driving the switching bracket 21 to move can also be selected as other reasonable values ​​according to actual needs.

[0072] Furthermore, the driving assembly 22 also includes a first input rod 224, and the first input rod 224 is connected to the driving shaft 221. In this case, the first input rod 224 can be connected to the output shaft of the motor, or the first input rod 224 can be the output shaft of the motor.

[0073] It should be noted that, refer to Figure 3 The first input rod 224 and the second input rod 35 of the input structure 3 are located on the same side of the switching bracket 21 in the second direction, which facilitates the arrangement of the motor connecting the first input rod 224 and the second input rod 35, making the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device more compact and avoiding increasing the occupied space of the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device when the two are on different sides of the switching bracket 21.

[0074] Specifically, refer to Figure 2The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device also includes a driving component 7, which is used to drive the first input rod 224 and the second input rod 35. The driving component 7 includes two motors, and the output shafts of the two electrodes are respectively connected to the first input rod 224 and the second input rod 35. In this way, the power input can be realized through two motors, which occupies a small space, is conducive to the miniaturization and thinness requirements of the multi-frequency fusion antenna, and can reduce costs.

[0075] Further, refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device further includes a guide shaft 6 , which is disposed on the mounting shell 1 and extends along a first direction, and the switching bracket 21 is slidably disposed on the guide shaft 6 .

[0076] It is understandable that by setting the guide shaft 6, the movement of the switching bracket 21 can be guided to ensure that the switching bracket 21 moves in the first direction, thereby avoiding the problem that the switching bracket 21 is offset during movement and causing the selection gear 23 and the rack 41 to be difficult to engage.

[0077] In some embodiments, reference Figures 3 to 6 The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device further includes a self-locking component 5, which includes a self-locking rod 51 and an elastic component 52. The self-locking rod 51 is rotatably disposed on the mounting shell 1 via a rotating shaft 53 extending along a first direction, and a first end 51a of the self-locking rod 51 is provided with a limiting tooth 511 capable of engaging with the rack 41. The elastic component 52 is limited between the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 and the mounting shell 1, and the elastic component 52 is configured to allow the limiting tooth 511 to engage with the rack 41. The rotating shaft 53 is located between the first end 51a and the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51.

[0078] It can be understood that a limiting tooth 511 is provided at the first end 51a of the self-locking rod 51, and the elastic member 52 is limited between the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 and the mounting shell 1, so that under the action of the elastic member 52, the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 is lifted up so that the limiting tooth 511 of the first end 51a engages with the rack 41 to limit the rack 41, so that the position of the rack 41 remains stable, thereby keeping the downward tilt angle of the antenna stable.

[0079] Furthermore, each of the plurality of racks 41 of each group of racks 41 is correspondingly provided with a self-locking assembly 5 , and the self-locking rod 51 is located at one side of the corresponding rack 41 in the first direction.

[0080] It can be understood that the above-mentioned self-locking rod 51 is located on one side of the corresponding rack 41 in the first direction, so that the multiple self-locking rods 51 of the multiple self-locking assemblies 5 are arranged at intervals along the first direction. For example, there may be a self-locking rod 51 between two adjacent racks 41, and the remaining self-locking rod 51 is located on the outside of one of the two outermost racks 41. At this time, each self-locking rod 51 is located on the same side of the corresponding rack 41 in the first direction, and the space between the two adjacent racks 41 can be utilized to improve space utilization, and the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device has a compact structure and reduces space occupancy.

[0081] Further, refer to Figure 4 The rack 41 has a plurality of transmission teeth 411 arranged along the second direction and a plurality of self-locking teeth 412 arranged along the second direction. The transmission teeth 411 can be engaged with the position selection gear 23 , and the self-locking teeth 412 can be engaged with the position limiting teeth 511 .

[0082] The transmission tooth 411 is located on one side of the self-locking tooth 412 in the second direction, so that the cooperation between the rack 41 and the position selection gear 23 and the cooperation with the limiting tooth 511 do not interfere with each other. Of course, the limiting tooth 511 can also be configured to be able to mesh with the transmission tooth 411, in which case the limiting tooth 511 is not required.

[0083] For example, refer to Figure 4 The above-mentioned rack 41 has two rows of self-locking teeth 412 and one row of transmission teeth 411, and the transmission teeth 411 are located between the two rows of self-locking teeth 412, so that the self-locking rod 51 can be set on either side of the rack 41 in the first direction, or the self-locking rod 51 is set on both sides of the rack 41 in the first direction.

[0084] Further, refer to Figures 4 to 6 The switching bracket 21 has an unlocking component 213, which is configured to press the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 so that the first end 51a is tilted, and when the unlocking component 213 is pressed against the second end of the self-locking rod 51, the selection gear 23 and the self-locking rod 51 are disengaged from the meshing rack 41.

[0085] Understandably, in the natural state, under the action of the elastic member 52, the limiting tooth 511 of the first end 51a of the self-locking rod 51 is meshed with the rack 41, so that the rack 41 is in a locked state and cannot be moved. When the rack 41 needs to be moved, the movement of the switching bracket 21 causes the position selection gear 23 to mesh with the rack 41, and at the same time, the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 is pressed by the unlocking member 213 to make the first end 51a tilt up, that is, when the position selection gear 23 is meshed with the rack 41, the unlocking member 213 is pressed on the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 to make the first end 51a tilt up, so as to unlock the rack 41, and at the same time, when the limiting tooth 511 is disengaged from the rack 41, and the position selection gear 23 is not meshed with the rack 41, the rack 41 moves by itself.

[0086] Specifically, the unlocking component 213 is provided with guiding inclined surfaces on both sides in the first direction. When the switching bracket 21 moves so that the guiding inclined surfaces of the unlocking component 213 contact the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51, the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 is pressed down by the guiding inclined surfaces, while the first end 51a gradually tilts up. Finally, the unlocking component 213 moves to the upper side of the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51. The first end 51a of the self-locking rod 51 tilts up so that the limiting tooth 511 is disengaged from the rack 41, thereby realizing the unlocking of the rack 41 by the self-locking rod 51. The unlocking component 213 is provided with guiding inclined surfaces on both sides in the first direction so that the switching bracket 21 can press against the second end 51b of the self-locking rod 51 to unlock the rack 41 when the switching bracket 21 reciprocates in the first direction.

[0087] Of course, the second end of the self-locking rod may also be provided with guiding inclined surfaces on both sides in the first direction, so that the second end of the self-locking rod can be pressed down by the unlocking component.

[0088] In some embodiments, reference Figure 7 The rack 41 is provided with two first limiting parts, which are spaced apart along the second direction. The mounting shell 1 is provided with two second limiting parts 11, which are both located between the two first limiting parts to limit the movement of the rack 41.

[0089] It can be understood that the reciprocating movement of the rack 41 in the second direction can be limited by the cooperation of the two first limiting portions and the two second limiting portions 11 .

[0090] For example, refer to Figure 7 , one of the first limiting parts is a first limiting protrusion 41a formed by the rack 41 itself, and the corresponding second limiting part 11 is a second limiting protrusion arranged on the mounting shell. When the first limiting protrusion 41a and the second limiting protrusion are in contact, the rack 41 can be limited.

[0091] Among them, the other first limiting part is a stop block 42 arranged on the rack 41, and the stop block 42 is provided with a stop tooth 421 engaged with the rack 41, and the second limiting part 11 is a limiting surface arranged on the mounting shell 1, and the limiting surface can limit the rack 41 by limiting the stop block 42.

[0092] The stop teeth 421 of the stop block 42 can be configured to mesh with the transmission teeth 411, or can be configured to mesh with the self-locking teeth 412. Of course, when the rack 41 only has transmission teeth, the stop teeth 421 of the stop block 42 mesh with the transmission teeth 411.

[0093] It should be noted that the stop block 42 can be fixed to the rack 41 in a detachable or non-detachable manner, such as screw fixation, welding fixation, etc., and no specific limitation is made here. Moreover, when the stop block 42 is detachably fixed to the rack 41, the movement stroke of the rack 41 can be adjusted by adjusting the position of the stop block 42, which is convenient and quick.

[0094] Reference Figures 1 to 7 , by way of example, the working process of the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device is described in detail.

[0095] Among them, two position selection gears 23 are arranged on the switching bracket 21, and the switching bracket 21 is defined as having a left side and a right side in the first direction, wherein one position selection gear 23 is relatively close to the left side of the switching bracket 21, and is defined as a left position selection gear, and the other position selection gear 23 is relatively close to the right side of the switching bracket 21, and is defined as a right position selection gear. Similarly, two unlocking components 213 are arranged on the switching bracket 21, wherein one unlocking component 213 is relatively close to the left side of the switching bracket 21, and is defined as a left unlocking component, and the other unlocking component 213 is relatively close to the right side of the switching bracket 21, and is defined as a right unlocking component.

[0096] Two groups of racks 41 are correspondingly arranged on the mounting shell 1, and the distance between two adjacent racks 41 in each group of racks 41 is twice the preset distance, and the two groups of racks 41 are defined as a left rack group and a right rack group. Each group of racks 41 is defined as a first rack, a second rack, a third rack, etc. in the direction from the left side to the right side of the switching bracket 21, and the self-locking rod 51 corresponding to each rack 41 is located on the right side of the rack 41, and similarly, they are defined as a first self-locking rod, a second self-locking rod, a third self-locking rod, etc. in the direction from the left side to the right side of the switching bracket 21.

[0097] The mounting shell 1 can block the switching bracket 21 on both sides of the moving direction of the switching bracket 21, and when the switching bracket 21 moves to contact with the mounting shell 1, it can be considered as the starting point of the movement of the switching bracket 21. For example, when the switching bracket 21 contacts with the mounting shell 1 on the left side in the first direction, it can be considered as the left starting point of the switching bracket 21, and when the switching bracket 21 contacts with the mounting shell 1 on the right side in the first direction, it can be considered as the right starting point of the switching bracket 21.

[0098] Assuming that the left starting point of the switching bracket 21 is used as a reference, when the downtilt angle of the antenna needs to be adjusted:

[0099] 1. The first input rod 224 drives the driving shaft 221 to rotate under the drive of the motor, so that the switching bracket 21 moves to the left until the left side of the switching bracket 21 contacts the mounting shell 1. At this time, the switching bracket 21 is located at the left starting point, and the left unlocking component presses against the first self-locking rod corresponding to the first rack of the left rack group, releasing the limit on the first rack, and at the same time, the left position selection gear is engaged with the first rack, and the right position selection gear is located on the left side of the first rack of the right rack group.

[0100] 2. Driven by the motor, the second input rod 35 drives the transmission shaft 31 to rotate through the first transmission gear 33, the second transmission gear 34 and the input gear 32, and then drives the left position selection gear to rotate, thereby driving the first rack of the left rack group. At this time, the right position selection gear is suspended, rotating synchronously with the transmission shaft 31 but not driving the rack 41. In this process, the driving shaft 221 continues to rotate, and the guide wheel 223 cooperates with the arc groove 212 on the switching bracket 21 to keep the switching bracket 21 stationary.

[0101] 3. The driving member 222 extends into the switching groove 211 as the driving shaft 221 rotates, and can drive the switching bracket 21 to move a preset distance to the right, so that the right unlocking member presses against the first self-locking rod corresponding to the first rack of the right rack group, releasing the limit on the first rack, and at the same time, the right position selection gear is engaged with the first rack, and the left position selection gear is located on the right side of the first rack of the left rack group.

[0102] 4. The driving shaft 221 continues to rotate, and drives the guide wheel 223 to rotate in the arc groove 212. The switching bracket 21 is stationary relative to the mounting shell 1. At this time, the second input rod 35 drives the transmission shaft 31 to rotate through the first transmission gear 33, the second transmission gear 34 and the input gear 32 under the drive of the motor, and then drives the right position selection gear to rotate, so as to drive the first rack of the right rack group. At this time, the left position selection gear is suspended, and rotates synchronously with the transmission shaft 31 but does not drive the rack 41.

[0103] The above process is repeated, the left position selection gear and the right position selection gear alternately drive the rack 41 to move, and the driving shaft 221 continues to rotate, and the driving member 222 is used to drive the switching bracket 21 to move intermittently, and when the switching bracket 21 is in the intermittent period of intermittent movement, the rack 41 is driven to move through the position selection gear 23, thereby realizing the adjustment of the downtilt angle of all antennas.

[0104] It is understandable that the working process is similar when the right side of the switching bracket 21 is used as the starting point, and will not be described in detail here. Moreover, when one of the position selection gears 23 is engaged with the rack 41, the other position selection gear 23 is also engaged with the rack 41, and the two racks 41 can be driven at a time, but the principle is similar to the above process, and will not be described in detail here.

[0105] In summary, the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device provided by the present application realizes the intermittent movement of the switching bracket 21 by using the cooperation of the driving member 222 and the switching slot 211 to realize the shifting operation, and has high shifting efficiency. Compared with the lead screw nut structure, it has the advantage of faster control, and compared with the gear rack, it has the advantage of lower control accuracy requirements. Moreover, the transmission is transmitted by the cooperation of the position selection gear 23 and the rack 41, and the transmission efficiency is high.

[0106] In addition, the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device has a compact and flat structure, and through the coordinated work of the switching structure 2, the input structure 3 and the output structure 4, it has high transmission efficiency and stable operation. The use of two motors can enable it to selectively output multiple sets of power and occupy a small space, which is very beneficial to the miniaturization, lightweight, cost reduction and layout requirements of the multi-frequency fusion antenna.

[0107] The present application also provides a base station antenna, comprising the above antenna downtilt angle adjustment device, wherein each rack 41 is connected to a phase shifter, and the antenna downtilt angle is adjusted through the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device.

[0108] It should be noted that, in this article, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are only used to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "include", "comprise" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, the elements defined by the sentence "comprise a ..." do not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the elements.

[0109] The above description is only a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, so that those skilled in the art can understand or implement the present disclosure. Various modifications to these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure will not be limited to the embodiments described herein, but will conform to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An antenna downtilt angle adjustment device, characterized in that: include: Install the shell; The switching structure comprises a switching bracket, a driving assembly and at least one position selection gear, wherein the switching bracket is slidably arranged on the mounting shell in a first direction, and a plurality of switching slots arranged along the first direction are arranged on the switching bracket; the driving assembly comprises a driving shaft that can rotate around its own axis and a driving member connected to the driving shaft, the driving shaft is configured to be rotatable to drive the driving member to extend into and out of the switching slot, and when extending into the switching slot, drives the switching bracket to move a preset distance to realize intermittent movement of the switching bracket; the position selection gear is rotatably arranged on the switching bracket, and the axis direction of the position selection gear is the first direction; An input structure, configured to drive the position selection gear to rotate when the switching bracket is in an intermittent period of intermittent movement; The output structure includes at least one group of racks corresponding to the position selection gears one by one, each group of the racks includes a plurality of racks arranged along the first direction, the racks extend along the second direction and are slidably arranged on the mounting shell, the racks are configured to be able to mesh with the position selection gears, the racks are used to connect the phase shifter, and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction.

2. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The distance between two adjacent racks in each group of racks is a positive integer multiple of the preset distance.

3. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The two position selecting gears are provided, and the two position selecting gears are spaced apart in the first direction.

4. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 3, characterized in that: When one of the position selecting gears is meshed with the rack, the other position selecting gear is meshed with the rack or is located on one side of one of the racks in the first direction.

5. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The input structure comprises a transmission shaft and an input gear, the transmission shaft extends along the first direction, the position selection gear is slidably disposed on the transmission shaft in the first direction and can rotate synchronously with the transmission shaft; The input gear is arranged on the transmission shaft and can drive the transmission shaft to rotate around its own axis.

6. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a self-locking assembly, the self-locking assembly includes a self-locking rod and an elastic member, the self-locking rod is rotatably arranged on the mounting shell through a rotating shaft extending along the first direction, and a first end of the self-locking rod is provided with a limiting tooth that can mesh with the rack; The elastic member is limited between the second end of the self-locking rod and the mounting shell, and the elastic member is configured to make the limiting tooth engage with the rack; The rotating shaft is located between the first end and the second end.

7. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The switching bracket has an unlocking component, which is configured to press the second end of the self-locking rod to make the first end tilt up, and when the unlocking component presses against the second end of the self-locking rod, the selection gear meshes with the rack that is disengaged from the self-locking rod.

8. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The rack has a plurality of transmission teeth arranged along the second direction and a plurality of self-locking teeth arranged along the second direction, the transmission teeth can be meshed with the position selection gear, and the self-locking teeth can be meshed with the position limiting teeth.

9. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The plurality of racks of each group of racks are correspondingly provided with the self-locking assembly, and the self-locking rod is located on one side of the corresponding rack in the first direction.

10. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The rack is provided with two first limiting portions, and the two first limiting portions are spaced apart along the second direction; Two second limiting portions are arranged on the mounting shell, and the two second limiting portions are both located between the two first limiting portions to limit the movement of the rack.

11. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The switching bracket is provided with a plurality of arc-shaped grooves arranged along the first direction; The driving assembly further includes a guide wheel connected to the driving shaft and coaxial with the driving shaft, wherein the guide wheel can rotate in the arc groove and fits the groove surface of the arc groove; The guide wheel has an avoidance gap on its circumference. When the driving member extends into the switching groove, the guide wheel disengages from the arc groove through the avoidance gap. When the driving member escapes from the switching groove, the guide wheel contacts the next arc groove in the moving direction of the switching bracket.

12. The antenna downtilt angle adjustment device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a guide shaft, which is arranged on the mounting shell and extends along the first direction, and the switching bracket is slidably arranged on the guide shaft.

13. A base station antenna, characterized in that: It comprises the antenna downtilt angle adjustment device as described in any one of claims 1-12.

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