Antenna and radome therefor

Abstract

The present disclosure provides an antenna and a radome therefor. The radome is an integrally formed structure, and comprises a bottom cover and a face cover; the bottom cover and the face cover comprise a same base material; the bottom cover is dense; the face cover is adapted for transmission of signals radiated by an antenna, comprises two wall surfaces and a wall center defined by the two wall surfaces, and transitions from loose to dense from the wall center thereof to the two wall surfaces thereof. The radome has a loose structure, and thus is convenient for an antenna to radiate signals; the hollow feature of the loose structure caused by foaming can reduce loss of signals and improve the transmittance of the signals radiated by the antenna.

Description

[0001] The present disclosure claims the priority of Chinese patent application with the application number of 202011403466.8 and the title of "ANTENNA AND RADOME THEREFOR" filed on December, 04, 2020 in China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference in the present disclosure.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication antennas, and specifically relates to a radome and a related antenna.BACKGROUND

[0003] In 5G era, the main technical directions of base station antennas include Massive MIMO active antenna, active-passive integrated antenna and ultra-multi-system integrated passive antenna, and their technical complexity far exceeds that of 2G, 3G and 4G eras. For the radiation unit / array of each subsystem in a base station antenna system, its boundary conditions are getting more and more complicated, and the technical difficulty of electric performance design is getting more and more serious.

[0004] Radome, being an important part of a base station antenna, not only protects the internal parts of an antenna device, but also has a direct impact on the transfer efficiency and transfer quality of antenna signals due to its structure and dielectric properties.

[0005] It is well known that a radome is a relatively optically dense medium compared to air. When the radiation unit of the antenna radiates signals outward, it needs to pass through the radome to radiate signals outward. Therefore, when electromagnetic wave signals such as antenna signals are radiated to the radome, there are bound to be problems such as refracted waves and reflected waves on the surface of the radome that affect the radiation of electromagnetic wave signals.

[0006] Therefore, the structure of the radome and the dielectric properties of the material have a direct impact on the transfer of antenna signals. The smaller the dielectric constant of the radome, the smaller the refractive index of the transmitted wave, and the smaller the influence on the antenna pattern parameters. The smaller the reflected wave, the smaller the reflection loss of the electromagnetic wave. The smaller the dielectric loss factor, the smaller the heat loss to the transmitted wave. Therefore, under the condition of meeting the mechanical strength and weather resistance, the smaller the dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor of the radome, the better.

[0007] However, since the radome requires good mechanical strength and the manufacturing process is difficult, and the existing radome has a solid structure, which structure makes the dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor of the radome larger, and makes the electromagnetic wave radiation loss larger. At the same time, most of the existing radomes in 2G, 3G and 4G eras are made of FRP and rigid PVC, and other composite material, which can meet the requirements of mechanical properties and weather resistance of radomes, but it is difficult to give consideration to the requirements of low dielectric loss. And, the above materials are denser, which makes the radome heavier, and finally leads to the heavier antenna and inconvenient installation.

[0008] At the same time, when multiple antenna systems work at the same time, especially the Massive MIMO active antenna, its heat loss makes the working environment temperature of antenna components much higher than that in 2G, 3G, and 4G eras, which puts forward higher requirements for the temperature resistance of the radome.

[0009] In order to partially solve the above problems, the patent CN103407018B provides a radome. Although the provided radome has a low dielectric constant and a low dielectric loss factor, the radome is obtained by molding a single-layer glass fiber hollow fabric blank as the main body for the radiation surface and a prepreg sheet obtained by resin pre-impregnation. The glass fiber hollow fabric blank is located in the middle of the radiation surface, and the hollow fabric is used to reduce the blocking of antenna radiation signals, improve the dielectric properties and reduce the dielectric loss. However, the radome made of glass fiber hollow fabric blank and prepreg sheet is unstable in structure, and the transmission of antenna radiation signals will still be affected at the boundary between the glass fiber hollow fabric blank and the prepreg sheet. In addition, the mixed processing of multiple materials still has room for improvement both in terms of cost and process.SUMMARY (I) Technical problems to be solved

[0010] In the related art, although the radome can meet the requirements of mechanical properties and weather resistance, it is difficult to give consideration to the requirements of low dielectric loss. Moreover, the density of materials used in the existing radome is high, which makes the weight of the radome larger, resulting in a heavier antenna and inconvenient installation.(II) Technical solution

[0011] The primary purpose of the present disclosure is to provide a radome with good electrical properties and convenient in production.

[0012] A secondary purpose of the present disclosure is to provide an antenna that is compatible with the aforementioned radome.

[0013] In order to meet the primary purpose of the present disclosure, the present disclosure adopts the following technical scheme.

[0014] For the primary purpose of the present disclosure, a radome is provided, which has an integrally formed structure, and comprises a bottom cover and a face cover; the bottom cover and the face cover comprise a same base material; the bottom cover is dense; and the face cover is adapted for transmission of signals radiated by an antenna, comprises two wall surfaces and a wall center defined by the two wall surfaces, and transitions from loose to dense from the wall center thereof to the two wall surfaces thereof.

[0015] Furthermore, the face cover has foaming characteristics, the structural change of which is determined by size and / or density of bubbles formed by foaming.

[0016] Specifically, the size and / or density of the bubbles change linearly from the wall center to the two wall surfaces.

[0017] Further, the face cover forms a loose part, a transition part, and a dense part sequentially from its wall center to any one of its wall surfaces, the density of the loose part is smaller than that of the transition part, and the density of the transition part is smaller than the density of the dense part.

[0018] Specifically, the loose part, the transition part and the dense part have a linear gradual transition relationship in density.

[0019] Preferably, on the cross-section of the face cover, the area of the loose part accounts for 30%-60%, the area of transition part accounts for 30%-40%, and the area of dense part accounts for 10%-30%.

[0020] Preferably, the loose part and the transition part have foaming characteristics, and the foaming rate of the loose part is 30%-60%, and the foaming rate of the transition part is 20%-40%.

[0021] Preferably, the overall density of the radome is less than or equal to 0.90 g / cm 3< ; the overall density of the face cover is 0.5g / cm 3< -0.80g / cm 3< , the dielectric constant is less than or equal to 2.00, and the dielectric loss is less than or equal to 0.003; the overall density of the bottom cover is 1.05g / cm 3< -1.0g / cm 3< .

[0022] Further, the face cover and the bottom cover are fused with each other, and at the fusion interface, the loose part and the transition part of the face cover are expanded out toward the bottom cover.

[0023] Preferably, the parts of the loose part and the transition part that expanded out toward the bottom cover present density gradually increasing relationship.

[0024] Further, the dense part constitutes a solid crust, and the thickness of the solid crust is 0.10-0.50mm.

[0025] Preferably, the face cover and the bottom cover are fused with each other, and at the fusion interface, the bottom cover forms a depression for accommodating the expanded part of the face cover.

[0026] Further, at the fusion interface, the depression is U-shaped, and the material in the space defined by the depression is loose.

[0027] Preferably, the expanded part has a linear density gradual transition relationship from the face cover to the bottom cover.

[0028] Further, the face cover and the bottom cover are fused with each other at the radiation boundary line of the radome.

[0029] Preferably, the density of the dense part is the same as that of the bottom cover.

[0030] Preferably, the base materials of the face cover and the bottom cover are the same thermoplastic material, wherein the base material of the face cover is foamed by a foaming agent.

[0031] Specifically, the base materials of the face cover and the bottom cover include glass fibers.

[0032] Preferably, the thermoplastic material is preferably resin or resin alloy.

[0033] In order to meet the secondary purpose of the present disclosure, the present disclosure adopts the following technical scheme.

[0034] Adapting to the secondary purpose of the present disclosure, an antenna is provided, which has a metal reflector and a radiation unit mounted on the metal reflector, wherein the antenna further has a radome, and the metal reflector of the antenna is fixed in a space defined by a face cover of the radome for transmitting a signal of the radiation unit and a bottom cover.(III) Beneficial effects

[0035] First of all, the structural features of the bottom cover and the face cover of the radome disclosed by the present disclosure jointly embody the overall advantages of the radome: on the one hand, the face cover is suitable for transmitting antenna radiation signals, and the face cover changes from loose to dense from its wall center to its two wall surfaces, and the loose structure provides a better signal transmission effect compared with the dense structure, so that the face cover has stronger signal transmission performance and reduces the dielectric constant and dielectric loss of the face cover. The two wall surfaces are dense to form a crust, which is beneficial to protect the face cover from the interference of the external environment, ensure the mechanical strength and avoid the erosion of the structure inside the two wall surfaces. Therefore, the face cover can not only ensure the signal transmission performance, but also show more stable mechanical properties. On the other hand, as an integral part, the advantages of the bottom cover are also ensured while the face cover has these advantages-because the bottom cover is processed to dense, it has higher strength and ensures that the radome is suitable for construction and assembly.

[0036] What is more, the improvement of the face cover in the present disclosure also brings other advantages: both the bottom cover and the face cover of the radome in the present disclosure are integrally molded on the basis of the same base material, in which the face cover is molded once to obtain the effect that the whole interior of the face cover changes from loose to dense, and there is no interaction and interference between multiple materials and components. Therefore, on the one hand, the honeycomb-like structure formed by loose maximizes the hollow effect of the face cover, which not only effectively ensuring the external force resistance of the face cover, reducing the overall density and mass of the radome, but also effectively insulating heat and improving the temperature resistance of the radome. On the other hand, the radome is made of single material, which is helpful to simplify the molding process and continuous production, and will inevitably reduce the large-scale production cost of radome.

[0037] In addition, the radome of the present disclosure can better meet the application requirements of antennas under the condition of 5G communication on the basis of obtaining many advantages such as low dielectric constant, low dielectric loss, low density, high temperature resistance, good mechanical properties and the like, especially for MIMO-based antennas with multi-array radiation units, the radome of the present disclosure on these antennas can achieve better comprehensive performance.

[0038] Additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will be given in part in the following description, which will become apparent from the following description, or will be understood by practice of the present disclosure.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0039] Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a radome of the present disclosure, illustrating the cross-sectional structure of the radome. Fig. 2 is a schematic view of an antenna of the present disclosure, wherein a radome is viewed in cross-section and the internal structure of the antenna is illustrated. Fig. 3 is a partial cross-section structural view of a face cover of a radome of the present disclosure, illustrating an enlarged view of part q in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a partial schematic view of a fusion interface between a face cover and a bottom cover of a radome of the present disclosure, illustrating an enlarged view of part p in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a schematic view of an antenna of the present disclosure in the state of being mounted on a holding bar. Fig. 6 is a rear view of an antenna of the present disclosure with a mounting plate added. Fig. 7 is a structural perspective view of a radome mold of the present disclosure, illustrating its overall internal and external contours. Fig. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the A-A direction of the radome mold shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is a schematic structural view of an adjusting section of a radome mold of the present disclosure, illustrating an enlarged view of part 69 in Fig. 8. Fig. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the B-B direction of the radome mold shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view in the C-C direction of the radome mold shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 12 is a horizontal plane directional graph presented by a first simulation group when a radome of the present disclosure is used for simulation comparison. Fig. 13 is a vertical plane directional graph presented by a first simulation group when a radome of the present disclosure is used for simulation comparison. Fig. 14 is a graph illustrating the variation of gain with frequency presented by a first simulation group when a radome of the present disclosure is used for simulation comparison. Fig. 15 is a horizontal plane directional graph presented by a second simulation group when a radome of the present disclosure is used for simulation comparison. Fig. 16 is a vertical plane directional graph presented by a second simulation group when a radome of the present disclosure is used for simulation comparison. Fig. 17 is a variation graph of gain with frequency presented by a second simulation group when a radome of the present disclosure is used for simulation comparison. Fig. 18 is a schematic flowchart of an exemplary embodiment of a radome molding method of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below, and examples of said embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar designations from beginning to end indicate the same or similar components or components having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below by reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are intended only to explain the present disclosure and are not to be construed as limiting the present disclosure.

[0041] As can be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, unless specifically stated, the singular forms "one", "a", "said" and "the" used herein " may also include the plural form. It should be further understood that the word "includes" as used in the specification of the present disclosure refers to the presence of the described features, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, and / or groups thereof. It will be understood that, when a certain element is referred to as being "connected to" or "coupled to" another element, the element may be directly connected to or directly coupled to the other element, or at least one intervening element may be interposed therebetween. In addition, "connected to" or "coupled to" as used herein may include wireless connection or wireless coupling. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes all or any of one or more associated listed items or combinations thereof.

[0042] It should be understood by one person of ordinary skill in the art that, unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one person of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. It should be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meanings in the context of the prior art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

[0043] Those skilled in the art should know that: although various embodiments of the present disclosure are described based on the same concept to make them common to each other, unless otherwise specified, these embodiments can be implemented independently. Similarly, for the various embodiments disclosed in the present disclosure, they are all proposed based on the same inventive concept. Therefore, concepts with the same expression, and concepts that are properly transformed for convenience despite different conceptual expressions, should be equivalent understand.

[0044] Referring to Figs 1 and 2, a radome 20 disclosed in the present disclosure includes a face cover 21 and a bottom cover 22. The face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 are integrally formed.

[0045] Referring to Fig. 3, the face cover 21 includes two walls and a wall center defined by the two walls, and transitions from loose to dense from the wall center thereof to the two wall surfaces thereof. This transition structure is formed by foaming of the base material of the face cover 21, the expansion space in the direction of the two walls being limited, and finally it being heated and shaped.

[0046] The loose structure formed by the loose part of the face cover 21 is mainly reflected by the size and density of bubbles in the face cover 21. Theoretically, the larger the bubbles, the more loose the face cover 21, and vice versa. The denser the bubbles are, the more loose the face cover 21 is, and vice versa. The face cover 21 is divided into a loose part 23, a transition part 24 and a dense part 25 in sequence according to the size and density of bubbles from the wall center to any wall surface. The size and / or density of bubbles in the loose part 23 are larger than those in the transition part 24, and the dense part 25 is a solid structure, forming a crust of the face cover 21.

[0047] Accordingly, the density of the loose part 23 is smaller than that of the transition part 24, and the density of the transition part 24 is smaller than that of the dense part 25. Therefore, the loose part 23, the transition part 24 and the dense part 25 are densified in turn, and the inside of the face cover 21 presents a honeycomb-like structure due to the loose effect caused by foaming. This loose effect can effectively avoid blocking the transmission of signals, improve the overall dielectric properties of the face cover 21, and still enhance the mechanical strength of the material itself through the honeycomb-like structure. Further, when the dense part 25 forms a crust, since there are basically no bubbles, its mechanical strength is maximized in the interior of the face cover 21, so that the face cover 21 obtains good structural stability, which is beneficial to maintaining the structural stability of the face cover 21. The transition part 24 provides a natural transition relationship between the loose part 23 and the dense part 25, avoiding the sudden change from bulky to dense inside the face cover 21. The uniform internal structure of the face cover 21 can weaken the internal stress of the face cover 21 and avoid affecting the stability of the internal structure of the face cover 21.

[0048] In general, due to natural foaming, the size and / or density of bubbles between the loose part 23, the transition part 24 and the dense part 25 of the face cover 21 are in a linear gradual transition relationship according to different foaming characteristics. That is to say, in a density linear gradual transition relationship between the loose part 23, the transition part 24 and the dense part 25, the closer to the wall, the smaller and the thinner the bubbles thereof, and the more the materials thereof, the denser to form a crust. The closer to the wall center, the larger and denser the bubbles, and the smaller and less dense the material. However, in some embodiments, due to some additional interference, such as the action of the foaming agent itself or due to environmental temperature, such a transition relationship may not guarantee strict linear continuity, and those skilled in the art will understand that for such a relatively microscopic structure, such a difference should still be considered a linear gradual transition relationship without affecting the protection scope of the present disclosure as it is claimed.

[0049] Based on the above understanding, referring to Fig. 3, the size and density of bubbles among the loose part 23, the transition part 24 and the dense part 25 are in a linear gradual transition. However, since the dense part 25 is a solid structure, the size and density of the bubbles are mainly reflected between the loose part 23 and the transition part 24. From the wall center to any wall surface, the size of bubbles in the loose part 23 gradually changes from large to small, and the density of bubbles gradually changes from dense to sparse.

[0050] In some embodiments that have achieved good performance through actual measurement, the area of the loose part 23 accounts for 30%-60% of the cross-section of the face cover 21, the area of the transition part 24 accounts for 30%-40% of the cross-section of the face cover 21, and the dense part 25 accounts for 10%-30% of the cross-section of the face cover 21. Although the present disclosure recommends the production of related products according to this proportional relationship, these recommendations should not be used to limit the protection scope covered by the whole creative spirit of the present disclosure.

[0051] Similarly, in other embodiments, it is recommended to control the thickness of the solid crust formed by the dense part 25 within the range of 0.10-0.50mm, which can be compatible with the balance of mechanical properties and electrical properties of the face cover 21.

[0052] In some preferred embodiments, the bubbles in the loose part 23 and the transition part 24 of the face cover 21 are formed by foaming agent, the foaming rate of the loose part 23 is 30%-60%, and the foaming rate of the transition part 24 is 20%-40%, so that the prepared radome 20 has better comprehensive performance.

[0053] As can be appreciated, the foaming characteristics of the face cover 21 as a result of the foaming, a honeycomb-like structure is generally visible in a cross-section of the face cover 21 that is hollow therein, which can minimize obstruction to signal transmission, reduce the dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor of the face cover 21, and thereby enhance the dielectric properties of the face cover 21. Further, the size and density of bubbles change linearly from the wall center to the two wall surfaces, and finally crust is formed at the two wall surfaces, so that strong mechanical structural performance can be obtained, and the structure of the face cover 21 is stable, and internal fracture is not easy to occur.

[0054] The bottom cover 22 has a compact structure, that is, a solid structure, and does not need foaming. The bottom cover 22 and the face cover 21 are integrally formed, and the bottom cover 22 and the face cover 21 are fused with each other to form a fusion interface 26, so that the bottom cover 22 and the face cover 21 are fused and connected.

[0055] Referring to Fig. 4, at the fusion interface 26, the loose part 23 and the transition part 24 of the face cover 21 expand out toward the bottom cover 22. A U-shaped depression is formed on the bottom cover 22, which is used to receive the expanded part of the face cover 21. Therefore, the material of the expanded part in the space defined by the depression is also loose. Since the face cover 21 expands out toward the bottom cover 22, it can be understood that the expanded part must also have a linear density gradual transition relationship in the direction from the face cover 21 to the bottom cover 22, which is embodied in that after the loose part 23 and the transition part 24 of the face cover 21 extend in the direction from the position where the face cover 21 contacts the bottom cover 22 to the bottom cover 22, the size of the bubbles thereof gradually decreases, the density of the bubbles gradually becomes sparse, and accordingly, the density of the materials becomes greater and greater.

[0056] Both the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 are made of the same base material, which can be a simple material, such as resin or resin alloy, or a combination of multiple materials, such as resin / resin alloy and glass fiber. In general, the base materials of the bottom cover 22 and the face cover 21 can be completely the same. In a special case, in order to meet the special requirements of the bottom cover 22 for mechanical strength, on the basis of keeping the same base materials as the face cover 21, materials such as carbon fiber can be properly mixed into the base materials corresponding to the bottom cover 22. Since the face cover 21 forms a crust on its wall surface, it can be understood that the solid dense part 25 of the face cover 21 has the same or approximately the same density as the bottom cover 22.

[0057] Generally speaking, the base materials of the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 are mainly thermoplastic materials, preferably resins and / or resin alloys, or glass fibers can be added. When the base materials of the face cover 21 are mixed before molding, foaming agents are added to realize foaming of the face cover 21 in the molding process, and the foaming agents are used for foaming to form the loose structure of the face cover 21 of the radome 20. Preferably, the foaming agent for foaming is a volatile material, which is only used for foaming to form the loose structure of the face cover 21, and has no chemical influence on the base material.

[0058] Specifically, one or more combinations of ASA resin, PC resin, PMMA resin alloy, PP resin and ABS resin alloy can be selected as thermoplastic materials in the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22. It may be preferred that: thermoplastic materials such as ASA resin + PC resin, ASA resin + PMMA resin alloy, ASA resin + ABS resin alloy, PC resin alloy + ABS resin alloy, PMMA resin alloy + ABS resin alloy, PMMA resin alloy + PC resin, ASA resin + PC resin + PMMA resin alloy, ASA resin + PC resin + ABS resin alloy, ASA resin + ABS resin + PMMA resin alloy, ABS resin alloy + PC resin alloy + PMMA resin alloy, ASA resin + PC resin + PMMA resin alloy + ABS resin alloy. The above materials are all low-density materials, which can effectively reduce the weight of the radome 20 and facilitate transportation and installation at harsh terrain. At the same time, the above materials are also materials with strong weather resistance, so as to maintain the structural stability of the radome 20 in harsh environment, especially the high temperature resistance.

[0059] Furthermore, an appropriate amount of ultraviolet absorber UV can be added to the base material, so that the radome 20 made of the above materials can not only be structurally stable, but also absorb ultraviolet rays, avoid oxidation of the radome 20 and prolong its service life.

[0060] Further, when the cross-sectional size of the radome 20 is large, appropriate glass fibers can be added to the base materials of the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 to improve the overall mechanical properties of the radome 20, such as strength, rigidity and hardness.

[0061] Preferably, in the base material of the face cover 21, the thermoplastic material accounts for 60%-100%, the foaming agent accounts for 1%-40%, or the glass fiber accounts for 0%-40%. In the base material of the bottom cover 22, the thermoplastic material accounts for 60%-100%, or the glass fiber may be included for 0%-40%.

[0062] Furthermore, the glass fiber in the base material of the bottom cover 22 in the previous embodiment can be replaced by carbon fiber. Because carbon fiber is a semiconductor, it can produce a conductor effect in an electromagnetic environment, that is, it can act as a metal reflector of the antenna on the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20, so as to enhance the forward radiation ability of signals passing through the face cover 21.

[0063] The dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor of the radome 20 made of the above materials are much smaller than those of the radome 20 made of conventional materials. The following is a simulation comparison between the radome 20 made of the above materials and the radome 20 made of conventional materials.

[0064] This simulation comparison is conducted twice. Mc is used to represent conventional FRP materials, and Mx is used to represent the materials used in this application. Among the two kinds of radomes 20, the radome 20 made of Mc has a cover thickness of 3mm, a dielectric constant of 3.8 and a dielectric loss factor of 0.008. The radome 20 made of Mx has a thickness of 3mm, a dielectric constant of 1.8 and a dielectric loss factor of 0.003.

[0065] The effects of Mc and Mx cover materials on antenna radiation performance are compared by simulation. In the 2515MHz~2675MHz frequency band and 3300MHz~3600MHz frequency band, the high, medium and low frequency points in the corresponding sub-bands are selected for simulation comparison, only the dielectric constant and loss tangent of the radome 20 are changed, and the boundary conditions in the simulation model are not modified. Four-port 65-degree directional plate antenna (antenna 1) working in 2515MHz~2675MHz frequency band and four-port 65-degree electrically adjustable antenna (antenna 2) working in 3300MHz~3600MHz frequency band are selected as reference antennas respectively.

[0066] In the first group of simulation comparison, antenna 1 is used as the working antenna in the frequency band of 2515MHz to 2675MHz. The simulation comparison results can be seen in the horizontal plane directional graph of Fig. 12, the vertical plane directional graph of Fig. 13 and the variation graph of gain with frequency of Fig. 14.

[0067] Specific results can be found in the following Table 1.

[0068] As can be seen from Table 1: The vertical plane 3dB wave width of the face cover 21 of the Mx radome 20 changes less than or equal to 0.5 degrees, and the horizontal plane 3dB wave width is more convergent to 65 degrees, and the gain is improved by about 0.1~0.19dBi, and the axial cross-polarization ratio and ±60° cross-polarization are better.

[0069] In the second group of simulation comparison, antenna 2 is used as the working antenna in the frequency band of 3300MHz to 3600MHz. The simulation comparison results can be seen in the horizontal plane directional graph of Fig. 15, the vertical plane directional graph of Fig. 16 and the variation graph of gain with frequency of Fig. 17.

[0070] Specific results can be found in the following Table 2.

[0071] As can be seen from Table 2: The vertical plane 3dB wave width of the face cover 21 of the Mx radome 20 changes less than or equal to 0.3 degrees, and the horizontal plane 3dB wave width is more convergent to 65 degrees. Compared with the Mc radome 20, the gain of the Mx radome 20 is improved by about 0.2∼0.3dBi, the axial cross-polarization ratio is equivalent, and ±60° cross-polarization are better.

[0072] As can be seen from the two tables, the Mx material is different from the Mc material mainly in the gain index, and the antenna variation values in different working frequency bands are different to some extent. The gain in the 2.6G band is increased by about 0.1~0.19dB, and the gain in the 3.5G band is increased by about 0.2-0.3dB. The vertical plane beam width variation of the antenna is less than or equal to 0.5°, and the horizontal plane half-power beam width converges by about 4∼7°. The axial cross-polarization ratio and the ±60° cross-polarization have different degrees of improvement.

[0073] The Mx radome 20 made can improve the horizontal plane beam width, make it more convergent, and increase the antenna gain by about 0.2dB (the variation law of different types of antennas is different, mainly depending on the boundary conditions of the antenna), and other radiation indicators are not deteriorated.

[0074] Therefore, the dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor of the radome 20 made of the materials disclosed in the present disclosure are better than those of the radome 20 made of conventional materials, and the signal transmittance can be improved.

[0075] Referring again to Fig. 1, in the radome 20, the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 are bounded by the radiation boundary line of the antenna, which can be flexibly defined by those skilled in the art according to the conditions of the specific antenna. For example, the imaginary line 01-03 in Fig. 1 can be regarded as the radiation boundary line. After being demarcated by the radiation boundary line of the radome 20, the face cover 21 corresponds to the radiation surface of the radome 20, for example, the part 01-04-03 in Fig. 1 can be considered as corresponding to the radiation surface. The bottom cover 22 corresponds to the non-radiation surface of the radome 20. For example, the part 01-02-03 in Fig. 1 can be considered as corresponding to the non-radiation surface.

[0076] The face cover 21 of the radome 20 corresponds to the radiation direction of the antenna, that is, the radiation surface. For the radiation surface, the dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor of the radiation surface should be as low as possible to ensure low loss and high wave transmittance of antenna signals, so it is necessary to adopt a loose structure.

[0077] In the present disclosure, the radiation surface adopts advanced foaming technology, which realizes the structural form of foaming and crusting. Compared with hollow glass bead method and 3D hollow material, the foaming technology is more uniform, and the consistency of antenna radiation performance is improved.

[0078] The dielectric constant of the radiation surface of the present disclosure is less than or equal to 2.00, and the dielectric loss factor is less than or equal to 0.003, thus truly realizing low dielectric, low loss and high wave transmission, effectively reducing the influence of the radome 20 on signal transfer efficiency and transfer quality, and greatly reducing the difficulty of antenna design.

[0079] The bottom cover 22 of the radome 20 corresponds to the non-radiation direction of the antenna, that is, the non-radiation surface. Since the bottom cover 22 corresponds to the non-radiation surface, which does not affect the radiation performance of antenna signals, and does not need to have the same radiation performance as the radiation surface, but needs to meet the requirements of mechanical properties, so a solid structure is needed.

[0080] The non-radiation surface of the radome 20 adopts a solid structure, and its strength is higher and more stable than that of the radiation surface with hollow glass beads or foam structure, which ensures the overall strength of the radome 20 and realizes the overall high strength of the radome 20.

[0081] In the preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, the overall density of the radome 20 is less than or equal to 0.90 g / cm 3< . The overall density of the face cover 21 is 0.5g / cm 3< to 0.80g / cm 3< , the dielectric constant is less than or equal to 2.00, and the dielectric loss is less than or equal to 0.003. The overall density of the bottom cover 22 is 1.05 g / cm 3< to 1.40 g / cm 3< . Therefore, the comprehensive density of the radiation surface is 0.50 g / cm 3< ~0.80 g / cm 3< , the comprehensive density of the non-radiation surface is 1.05-1.40 g / cm 3< , and the overall comprehensive density of the radome 20 can be less than or equal to 0.90g / cm 3< , which realizes the overall low density of the radome 20 and creates conditions for the lightweight of the antenna in 5G era.

[0082] The base material of the radome 20 has the characteristics of high temperature resistance and weather resistance. The radome 20 has good high-temperature resistance through the high-temperature resistance of the material, and the thermal deformation temperature can reach 110°C, which fully meets the requirements of large heat generation of active products or active-passive integrated products. The radome 20 improves the weather resistance of the antenna, especially the ultraviolet resistance, through the weather resistance characteristics of the material. Therefore, the radome 20 formed by the selection of materials in the present disclosure is conducive to prolonging the service life of the antenna and better protecting the antenna.

[0083] It can be seen that, compared with the traditional radome 20, the radome 20 in the present disclosure has the characteristics of low dielectric and low loss. The radome 20 can increase the average gain of the 5G antenna by 0.2∼0.3dB, thus increasing the coverage of the antenna. To obtain that same gain as that of the conventional radome 20, the input power input can be reduced by about 4.5-6.5%, thereby reduce the energy consumption.

[0084] In a further embodiment, the radome 20 further includes an antenna mounting structure, as shown in Figs. 2, 5 and 6. The antenna mounting structure includes an upper mounting plate 27, a lower mounting plate 28, an upper bracket assembly 29, a lower bracket assembly 30 and a support base 31.

[0085] The upper mounting plate 27 is mounted at the upper end of the bottom cover 22, and the lower mounting plate 28 is mounted at the lower end of the bottom cover 22 relative to the upper mounting plate 27. The upper bracket assembly 29 is connected with the upper mounting plate 27, and the lower bracket assembly 30 is connected with the lower mounting plate 28. The other ends of the upper bracket assembly 29 and lower bracket assembly 30 are respectively connected with a holding bar 34 or other fixed structures. Specifically, the upper bracket assembly 29 and lower bracket assembly 30 have a hinge structure.

[0086] The upper mounting plate 27 and the lower mounting plate 28 are respectively connected with the support base 31, and the support base 31 is also used for fixedly connecting with the reflector 32 of the antenna to support the reflector 32, and the reflector 32 is used for mounting the radiation unit 33 of the antenna.

[0087] The present disclosure also discloses an antenna including the radome 20 described above.

[0088] The antenna also includes a reflector 32 and a radiation unit 33 mounted on the reflector 32. The reflector 32 is fixed in the space defined by the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20, and the cover 21 faces the radiation unit 33 for transmitting signals sent or received by the radiation unit 33. The reflector 32 is connected and fixed to the support base 31. The reflector 32 is made of a metal material.

[0089] A radome mold 60 disclosed in the present disclosure is used for manufacturing the radome 20 as described above.

[0090] Referring to Figs. 7 and 8, the radome mold 60 includes a mold head 61 and a shaping mold 62.

[0091] The mold head 61 includes a mold sleeve 63 and a mold core 64, which is arranged in the mold sleeve 63 and coaxially sleeved with the mold sleeve 63. The mold sleeve 63 cooperates with the mold core 64 to form an annular mold cavity, which is used for molding the radome 20 after injection. The annular mold cavity includes an upper mold cavity 65 and a lower mold cavity 66, wherein the upper mold cavity 65 is used for molding the face cover 21 of the radome 20 and the lower mold cavity 66 is used for molding the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20.

[0092] The mold head 61 is also provided with an upper injection channel 67 and a lower injection channel 68, is communicated with the upper mold cavity 65 through the upper injection channel 67 to inject materials into the upper mold cavity 65, and is communicated with the lower mold cavity 66 through the lower injection channel 68 to inject materials into the lower mold cavity 66. The upper injection channel 67 further includes an upper injection channel inlet 79 arranged on the mold sleeve 63, and the upper injection channel 67 is injected through the upper injection channel inlet 79. The lower injection channel 68 further includes a lower injection channel inlet 80 arranged on the mold sleeve 63, and the lower injection channel 68 is injected through the upper injection channel inlet 79.

[0093] In some preferred embodiments, the radome mold 60 includes a plurality of upper injection channels 67, which are uniformly distributed along the upper mold cavity 65, and the uniformly distributed upper injection channels 67 can keep relatively uniform injection into the upper mold cavity 65, so that materials containing foaming agents can be uniformly distributed in the upper mold cavity 65 after being injected into the upper mold cavity 65. Accordingly, since a plurality of upper injection channels 67 are respectively provided with upper injection channel inlets 79, the upper injection channel inlets 79 are also uniformly arranged on the mold sleeve 63 corresponding to the upper mold cavity 65.

[0094] In a typical embodiment of the present disclosure, there are two upper injection channels 67. Since the upper mold cavity 65 has a symmetrical structure in its cross-section, it can be divided into symmetrical left and right sides with the central axis of the upper mold cavity 65 as the boundary, and the two upper injection channels 67 are respectively arranged on both sides of the central axis, so that each upper injection channel 67 can inject materials into the upper mold cavity 65 on its corresponding side. The materials injected from the two upper injection channels 67 can be naturally and completely integrated and connected in the middle of the upper mold cavity 65, while the materials are filled in the direction of the lower mold cavity 66. Under the joint action of the adaptive dosage and speed control and the equal control of the lower injection channel 68, it can be ensured that the lower mold cavity 66 is mainly injected by the lower injection channel 68, and the upper mold cavity 65 is mainly injected by the upper injection channel 67, and the radome 20 is fully injected by the upper injection channel 67 in cooperation with the lower injection channel 68. It should be pointed out that although the present disclosure recommends setting up the upper injection channel 67 according to this structure, this specific embodiment should not be used to limit the protection scope that the whole creative spirit of the present disclosure should cover.

[0095] Generally, in order that the upper injection channel 67 can directly inject materials into the upper mold cavity 65, the upper injection channel 67 starts from the upper injection channel inlet 79 of the upper injection channel 67, and radially penetrates through the mold sleeve 63 in the form of a pipe to the upper mold cavity 65, so as to inject materials into the upper mold cavity 65 at the mold head 61 through the upper injection channel 67. In order that the lower injection channel 68 can directly inject materials into the lower mold cavity 66, the inlet 80 of the lower injection channel 68 is opened in the axial direction, and axially penetrates to the annular mold cavity defined by the mold sleeve 63 and the mold core 64 in the form of a cylindrical or conical pipe, so as to inject materials into the lower mold cavity 66 through the lower injection channel 68.

[0096] With continued reference to Fig. 8, it can be seen that the axial direction of the upper injection channel inlet 79 of the upper injection channel 67 and the axial direction of the lower injection channel inlet 80 of the lower injection channel 68 are basically perpendicular to each other, which helps to prevent the materials injected through the upper injection channel inlet 79 from mixing with the materials injected through the lower injection channel 68. With the help of controlling the injection speed and flow rate, the two parts of materials can perform their respective duties and be used to fill the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66, respectively.

[0097] The upper injection channel 67 and the lower injection channel 68 are connected with each other. In the process of injecting materials into the upper mold cavity 65 through the upper injection channel 67, if the injection speed is insufficient, theoretically, the upper injection channel 67 can be replenished with materials through the lower injection channel 68 (when the materials injected into the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 are the same), so as to remedy the unformed mold blank through this action.

[0098] Generally, the diameter of the upper injection channel inlet 79 is smaller than that of the lower injection channel inlet 80. When injecting materials, the pressure and speed of the materials injected through the upper injection channel inlet 791 are greater than those injected through the lower injection channel inlet 80, so that when the materials in the lower injection channel 68 tend to flow into the upper injection channel 67, they will be pressed down by the materials injected through the upper injection channel inlet 79 with greater pressure and speed, so that the materials in the lower injection channel 68 cannot enter the upper injection channel 67. Eventually the material sources for the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 are made to be provided by different channels, respectively. In the actual production process, the balance between the two can be flexibly adjusted by the construction personnel according to the specific position of the radiation boundary line of the radome 20.

[0099] Accordingly, since the upper injection channel inlet 79 is smaller than the lower injection channel inlet 80, it is possible to control that the material injected into the upper injection channel 67 is less than that injected into the lower injection channel 68 in a unit time, so that the material flowing to the upper mold cavity 65 with greater injection pressure cannot enter the lower mold cavity 66, thereby realizing the balance between the materials in the upper and lower parts of the annular mold cavity.

[0100] The mold core 64 of the mold head 61 includes a diversion head 70 and a molding column 71 which are connected with each other. The diversion head 70 is use for diverting that material inject through the lower injection channel 68 into the lower mold cavity 66. The molding column 71 is used to cooperate with the mold sleeve 63 to define the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 of the annular mold cavity.

[0101] In some preferred embodiments, the cross-section of the diversion head 70 is conical, and the conical bottom of the diversion head 70 is connected with the molding column 71. The conical diversion head 70 is convenient for diverting the material injected through the lower injection channel inlet 80, and the material entering from the inlet is relatively evenly distributed to its periphery through its conical surface, so that the material can be distributed to the lower mold cavity 66 with wider space as much as possible after being diverted by the diversion head 70. The conical head of the conical diversion head 70 faces the inlet of the lower injection channel 68, so that the conical surface of the diversion head 70 guides the diversion of materials.

[0102] Based on the above disclosure, it can be further known that the upper injection channel 67 is communicated with the lower injection channel 68, and the lower injection channel 68 is located on the side opposite to the diversion head 70, and the upper injection channel 67 can directly inject materials into the upper mold cavity 65, that is, the upper injection channel 67 is further behind the lower injection channel 68 in the axial extrusion direction of the mold extruded from the extrusion radome 20. Hence, the lower injection channel 68 will communicate with the upper injection channel 67 behind the diversion path of the diversion head 70, so as mentioned above, in the production stage, it is necessary to adjust the pressurization / flow velocity / flow rate of the upper injection channel 67 and the lower injection channel 68, respectively, so as to achieve a reasonable balance between the materials of the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66.

[0103] Along the axial direction of the mold, the upper mold cavity 65 is provided with an adjusting section 69 at a local position in the axial direction, that is, on the material channel of the upper mold cavity 65. Referring to Fig. 9, an adjusting section 69 is formed between the mold core 64 and the mold sleeve 63. Specifically, the adjusting section 69 can be arranged on the inner wall of the mold core 64 and / or the outer wall of the mold sleeve 63, and a boss 690 is arranged at the corresponding position, thereby reducing the material channel space of the upper mold cavity 65 at the corresponding position of the boss 690. Since the mold core 64 is mainly responsible for forming the upper mold cavity 65 together with the mold sleeve 63 by its molding column 71, when the boss 690 needs to be provided on the mold core 64, it is only necessary to provide it directly at the molding column 71. The boss 690 is provided so that the radial dimension of the molding column 71 at the corresponding position is slightly increased, or the radial dimension of the mold sleeve 63 at the corresponding position is decreased, thereby naturally decreasing the thickness (cavity thickness) of the upper mold cavity 65 at the corresponding position, thereby serving to reduce the material channel space of the upper mold cavity 65. The axial length of the boss 690 should not be more than half of the axial length of the whole upper mold cavity 65, so that the material entering the upper mold cavity 65 still has enough travel space for foaming after passing through the narrow channel space defined by the boss 690 and entering the larger channel space without the boss 690.

[0104] When the material flowing in through the upper injection channel 67 flows through the adjusting section 69, the channel space of the adjusting section 69 is narrower than that of the previous material flows through. Under the continuous action of external injection pressure, the pressure on the material flow in the upper injection channel 67 is constantly increasing, and the internal temperature of the mold head 61 is low, so that the material flow cannot be foamed in the adjusting section 69 inside the mold head 61 and before the adjusting section 69 inside the mold head 61. However, as the material continues to pass through the adjusting section 69 under pressure, the cavity thickness of the upper mold cavity 65 increases, and the material channel space is more spacious, so that the material flow pressure sharply decreases, and at the same time, the temperature of the latter section of the upper mold cavity 65 gradually increases after passing through the adjusting section 69 (caused by the heating radiation of the shaping mold 62), so that the material containing the foaming agent entering the latter section of the upper mold cavity 65 immediately begins to be foamed under the dual action of the temperature increase and the pressure sudden release.

[0105] It can be seen that the arrangement of the adjusting section 69 has a certain adjustment effect on controlling the foaming effect of the material. Therefore, by flexibly setting the radial height and / or axial length of the boss 690 of the adjusting section 69, even by adjusting the shape thereof, etc. it is possible to achieve an effective influence on the foaming timing and foaming effect of the material so that a customized mold can be provided for the radome 20 adapted to different foaming requirements.

[0106] The mold sleeve 63 specifically cooperates with the molding column 71 of the mold core 64 to form the annular mold cavity, and the annular mold cavity may be a closed rectangular ring cavity, a closed circular ring cavity, a closed elliptical ring cavity or a cavity similar to the closed rectangular ring cavity, closed circular ring cavity and closed elliptical ring cavity. Based on the above description it is understood that the cross-section of the annular mold cavity is closed rectangular, closed circular or closed elliptical, or that the cross-section of the annular mold cavity is substantially closed rectangular, closed circular or closed elliptical.

[0107] The shaping mold 62 includes an inner mold 72 and an outer mold 73, the outer mold 73 and the inner mold 72 cooperate to define a shaping cavity 74. An upper mold cavity 65 of the annular mold cavity is arranged corresponding to the shaping cavity 74. A material is injected into the upper mold cavity 65 through the upper injection channel 67, a preliminary shaped part formed by being extruded from the upper mold cavity 65 is continuously pushed into the shaping cavity 74, and the final shaped part of the radome 20 is formed by further heating the preliminary shaped part through the shaping cavity 74.

[0108] The outer mold 73 is annular, and the annular contour size defined by the inner wall of the outer mold 73 is not less than the outer contour size of the annular mold cavity formed by the mold sleeve 63, while the outer contour size of the inner mold 72 is not greater than the inner contour size of the annular cavity. Therefore, the overall cavity thickness of the shaping cavity 74 defined by the outer mold 73 and the inner mold 72 is sufficient to accommodate the preliminary shaped part molded from the annular cavity of the mold head 61.

[0109] As can be appreciated, the cavity thickness of the shaping cavity 74 is not less than that of the upper mold cavity 65, so that the material extruded from the upper mold cavity 65 can be received by the shaping cavity 74. Preferably, the cavity thickness of the shaping cavity 74 is equal to that of the upper mold cavity 65, so as to strictly control the shaping consistency between the preliminary shaped part and the final shaped part of the radome 20.

[0110] In order to further save materials, considering that the material of the corresponding part of the lower mold cavity 66 does not need to be heated, the size of the inner mold 72 can be set only corresponding to the size of the upper mold cavity 65 in the cross-section, while the part corresponding to the lower mold cavity 66 is left blank. In this case, between the inner mold 72 and the outer mold 73, at the lower mold cavity 66 corresponding to the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20, there is no need to form a cavity similar to the shaping cavity 74, which just accommodates the bottom cover 22. Therefore, when the inner mold 72 is heated, it is difficult to directly conduct its heat to the bottom cover 22 to avoid doing useless work.

[0111] In the shaping mold 62, an inner mold 72 thereof may be fixedly installed with respect to the mold head 61, and an outer mold 73 thereof may be moved with respect to the mold head 61 and the inner mold 72 so as to be demolded after the radome 20 is finally formed.

[0112] The radome 20 also includes a temperature control assembly, which includes a temperature control oil pipe 75 arranged in the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73 of the shaping mold 62. The temperature control oil pipe 75 is used for circulating temperature control oil to heat the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73, thereby heating the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20 entering the shaping cavity 74 through heat transfer, and radiating heat to the upper mold cavity 65 to accelerate the foaming and shaping of materials therein.

[0113] Referring to Fig. 10 and Fig. 11, the temperature control oil pipe 75 penetrates through the interior of the inner mold 72 and is axially arranged. The temperature control oil flowing through the temperature control oil pipe 75 can transfer the heat of the temperature control oil to the inner mold 72 through heat transfer, and the inner mold 72 then transfers and radiates the heat it receives into the shaping cavity 74 and / or the upper mold cavity 65 to heat the materials entering the upper mold cavity 65 and the shaping cavity 74 in turn, so as to promote the foaming of the materials in the upper mold cavity 65 and accelerate the shaping of the face cover 21 in the shaping cavity 74. The mold sleeve 63 is provided with a temperature control oil inlet 76, as shown in Fig. 8, through which temperature control oil can be injected into the temperature control oil pipe 75. The temperature control oil pipe 75 extends from the temperature control oil inlet 76 to the inner mold 72 to introduce temperature control oil into the inner mold 72 to realize heating.

[0114] In order to uniformly heat the shaping cavity 74, the temperature control oil pipe 75 is uniformly and integrally distributed in the inner mold 72. At the same time, in order to save space and manufacturing costs of the inner mold 72, a temperature control oil pipe 75 is provided, and the temperature control oil pipe 75 extends firstly in the axial direction of the inner mold 72 and then turns to extend in the reverse direction, thereby uniformly heating the inner mold 72 and then uniformly heating the material of the shaping cavity 74.

[0115] In an alternative embodiment, the temperature control oil pipe 75 is arranged inside or outside the outer mold 73, and the temperature control oil pipe 75 is arranged along the axial direction of the outer mold 73. By transferring the heat of the temperature control oil flowing into the temperature control oil pipe 75 to the shaping cavity 74 through heat transfer, the materials in the shaping cavity 74 can be heated, and the same effect can be achieved.

[0116] In a further alternative embodiment, the temperature control oil pipe 75 can be arranged in both the outer mold 73 and the inner mold 72 at the same time, so as to achieve a stronger heating effect.

[0117] Based on the above understanding, it can be understood that the temperature control oil of the present disclosure can be inputted into the mold from the outside to heat the mold, and the temperature control assembly may further include an oil pipe communicating with the temperature control oil pipe 75, through which the temperature control oil can be inputted, and the temperature control oil in the temperature control oil pipe 75 acts on the shaping cavity 74 by means of heat transfer and can be radiated to some extent to the upper mold cavity 65.

[0118] In addition to embodiments in which heating is provided by a temperature control assembly, an electric heating assembly may be used to achieve an equivalent effect. For example, in some embodiments, the radome mold 60 further includes an electric heating assembly including a heating element for heating the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73 to conduct heat to the shaping cavity 74 or even the upper mold cavity 65 by heat transfer. The heating element is heated by electric power, and the heating element can be arranged on the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73 in the same way.

[0119] Preferably, the radome mold 60 further includes a heat insulating pad 77, as shown in Fig. 8, which is used to insulate the direct heat transfer between the mold core 64 and the inner mold 72. The heat insulating pad 77 is sheet-shaped, and the heat insulating pad 77 is fixed between the molding column 71 of the mold core 64 of the mold head 61 and the inner mold 72 of the shaping mold 62, so as to block the internal mold 72 from directly transferring heat to the molding column 71, and further prevent the molding column 71 from being directly heated.

[0120] Accordingly, the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73 may adapted a superior heat conductor so that it is suitable for heat transfer while transferring the heat of the temperature control oil pipe 75 to the shaping cavity 74 to shape the radome 20. The mold core 64, especially the molding column 71, should be made of a poor heat conductor to avoid the premature influence of direct heat transfer on the materials in the annular mold cavity. In addition, as mentioned above, the material in the upper mold cavity 65 is foamed by part of the radiated heat, which contributes to the shaping of the radome 20. Therefore, this kind of material selection and structure is a relatively reasonable design.

[0121] Correspondingly, the mold head 61 of the radome mold 60 is also provided with a support plate 78 for fixing the mold head 61, so that the mold head 61 can work stably.

[0122] From the above description of the radome mold 60, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the radome 20 can be manufactured by the radome mold 60. The upper mold cavity 65 and / or the shaping cavity 74 of the annular mold cavity of the radome 20 are injected to form the face cover 21 of the radome 20, and the lower mold cavity 66 of the annular mold cavity is injected to form the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20. The radome 20 is injected with two parts of materials from the upper injection channel 67 and the lower injection channel 68 respectively, and the materials are pushed into the annular mold cavity, wherein the corresponding part of the face cover 21 is properly foamed in the upper mold cavity 65 of the annular mold cavity under the control of the adjusting section 69, and then is molded from the annular mold cavity to become a preliminary shaped part, and the preliminary shaped part immediately enters the shaping cavity 74, and the part of the face cover 21 is heated for further shaping to obtain the final shaped part.

[0123] As can be appreciated, with the mold of the present disclosure, an integrally formed radome 20 can be co-injected from multiple injection channels and co-processed with one another, without the need for complicated links, and can be shaped at once, particularly for large-scale mass production, the scale effect of which is self-evident.

[0124] The radome mold 60 of the present disclosure also has the following advantages: Firstly, the radome mold 60 of the present disclosure is suitable for injection molding, can be co-extruded with each other through a plurality of injection passages, and is more compatible with uniform production of various lengths of the radome 20 than compression molding, and is particularly suitable for producing a longer radome 20, so that the length of the radome 20 is not limited by the size of the radome mold 60, and can produce an integrally formed radome 20 even if the axial length of the radome 20 is longer. On the other hand, compared with the radome mold 60 used for compression molding, the radome mold 60 used for injection molding is also suitable for large-scale continuous production to obtain large-scale economic effects.

[0125] Secondly, the radome mold 60 of the present disclosure includes an annular mold cavity for shaping the radome 20, the annular mold cavity includes an upper mold cavity 65 and a lower mold cavity 66 communicating with each other, a material can be injected into the upper mold cavity 65 of the annular mold cavity through an upper injection channel 67 of the mold head 61, and a material can be injected into the lower mold cavity 66 of the annular mold cavity through a lower injection channel 68 of the mold head 61, so that the radome 20 has a face cover 21 and a bottom cover 22 with different structures, respectively, so that the radome 20 having different internal structures can be manufactured on the basis of being integrally formed on the same mold, thereby reducing the use of production tools and saving production costs.

[0126] Thirdly, the radome mold 60 of the present disclosure has a simple structure and is convenient for production and processing, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost of the whole radome 20. At the same time, the radome mold 60 has a high utilization rate, thereby reducing the marginal cost of producing the radome 20.

[0127] The present disclosure also discloses a radome molding method, and the present radome molding method is suitable for manufacturing the aforementioned radome 20 based on the aforementioned radome mold 60 and related materials.

[0128] Referring to Fig. 18, in an exemplary embodiment of a radome molding method of the present disclosure, it includes: Step S11, preparing two parts of materials, wherein the first part of materials contains a foaming agent and the second part of materials has no foaming agent added.

[0129] A foaming agent is added to the first part of the materials during mixing, which is used for manufacturing the face cover 21 of the radome 20. The second part of materials is used for manufacturing the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20 without adding a foaming agent.

[0130] The first part of materials and the second part of materials are completely or mostly the same except that the foaming agent is added during mixing before the first part of materials are shaped, so that the integrally formed face cover 21 and bottom cover 22 of the radome 20 are made of the same material, which is beneficial to efficient material selection and production, and are beneficial to mutual integration, and the structural stability of the mutual integration of the face cover 21 and bottom cover 22 of the radome 20 is maintained.

[0131] Specifically, the first part of materials and the second part of materials have fluid characteristics in the processing stage, and the first part of materials and the second part of materials are molded by the radome mold 60 to make the radome 20. For the description of the specific material selection of the first part of materials and the second part of materials, please refer to the above description of the material selection of the base material of the radome 20, and to save space, it will not be repeated here. In particular, compared with the second part of materials, the foaming agent for foaming is added to the first part of materials in the production process. When the first part of materials are injected into the upper mold cavity 65 of the radome mold 60 or extruded into the shaping cavity 74, the foaming agent in the first part of materials play a foaming role to make the radome 20 form a loose structure.

[0132] The two parts of materials prepared in this step can be put in the relevant hoppers respectively, and enter the injection channel of the mold through a controlled injection mechanism (not shown). As can be appreciated, the control of the injection mechanism will have an impact on the injection speed. This kind of injection mechanism can adopt a common type, which does not affect the realization of the creative spirit of the present disclosure.

[0133] Step S12, controlling injection according to a preset speed, and injecting the two parts of materials into an annular cavity formed by the radome mold through an upper injection channel and a lower injection channel, so that the two parts of materials correspondingly pass through an upper mold cavity and a lower mold cavity of the annular mold cavity, so as to form a preliminary shaped part of the radome.

[0134] The control of the injection speed can be realized by controlling the injection mechanism, which can be controlled manually or automatically by the machine. For the latter, it is only necessary to set the running program and parameters of the machine in advance, which can be flexibly implemented by those skilled in the art according to the relevant contents disclosed in the present disclosure.

[0135] The first part of materials are injected into the upper mold cavity 65 of the annular mold cavity through the upper injection channel 67 of the radome mold 60 to form the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 of the radome 20. At the same time, the second part of materials are injected into the lower mold cavity 66 of the annular mold cavity through the lower injection channel 68 of the radome mold 60 to form the preliminary shaped part of the bottom cover 22 of the radome 20, and the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 and the preliminary shaped part of the bottom cover 22 are fused with each other at the boundary between the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 to form the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20.

[0136] Specifically, it is assumed that the injection speed of the first part of materials into the upper mold cavity 65 is the first injection speed, and the first part of materials are injected into the upper injection channel 67 from the upper injection channel inlet 79 according to the preset first injection speed. After passing through the adjusting section 69 from the upper injection channel 67, the first part of materials flow to the upper mold cavity 65, and after the first part of materials are uniformly distributed in the upper mold cavity 65 for preliminary shaping, a preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 of the radome 20 is formed.

[0137] Since the channel space of the adjusting section 69 is smaller than the channel spaces before and after the adjusting section 69, when the first part of materials flow from the upper injection channel 67 to the adjusting section 69, the flow of the first part of materials will be blocked, and under the continuous action of the external injection pressure, the pressure of the first part of materials in the upper injection channel 67 is continuously increased, and in addition, the internal temperature of the mold head 61 is low, so that the first part of materials cannot be foamed in the upper injection channel 67.

[0138] At the adjusting section 69, the first part of materials accumulates pressure at the entrance of the adjusting section 69, so that after the first part of materials enters the adjusting section 69, the flow velocity of the first part of materials will increase, and the pressure and temperature of the first part of materials will not change, so that the first part of the material cannot be foamed when it flows through the adjusting section 69. When the first part of materials flows through the adjusting section 69, it begins to be foamed. The foaming process will be revealed later, and it is not shown here for the time being. After the first part of materials flows through the adjusting section 69, the first part of materials can be evenly distributed in the upper mold cavity 65, and preliminarily solidified to form the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21.

[0139] The speed at which the second part of materials is injected into the lower mold cavity 66 is set as a second injection speed; while the first part of materials is injected into the upper mold cavity 65, the second part of materials is also injected from the lower injection channel inlet 80 into the lower injection channel 68 at a pre-set second injection speed; and after diversion by the diversion head 70, the second part of materials flow uniformly into the lower mold cavity 66, whereby the second part of materials is uniformly distributed in the lower mold cavity 66 to be preliminarily solidified to form a preliminary shaped part of the bottom cover 22.

[0140] The preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 and the preliminary shaped part of the bottom cover 22 are fused with each other at the boundary between the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 to form the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20.

[0141] Since the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 respectively receive the first part of materials and the second part of materials through the upper injection channel 67 and the lower injection channel 68, and both of them need to perform the mutual integration at the radiation boundary line of the antenna to which they are applicable according to the requirements of the electrical properties of the radome 20, when implementing this step, whether manual injection or machine injection, the first injection speed and the second injection speed should be adjusted in advance so that the first part of materials are not extruded into the lower mold cavity 66, and the second part of materials are not extruded into the upper mold cavity 65, in order to ensure that the face cover 21 and the bottom cover 22 of the antenna are fused with each other just in the right position. It is, of course, within the normal range that there is a fusion between the materials where the two are fused with each other.

[0142] Step S13, controlling foaming according to a preset temperature, and heating and foaming the part shaped by the upper mold cavity when the preliminary shaped part passes through the shaping cavity of the radome mold.

[0143] The two parts of materials are continuously pushed in the direction of the whole annular mold cavity, and after forming the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20 in the annular mold cavity, they are extruded into the shaping mold 62.

[0144] For the face cover 21, after the first part of materials forms the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 in the upper mold cavity 65, the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 is extruded into the shaping cavity 74, and the shaping cavity 74 with higher temperature can heat and foam the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21.

[0145] By injecting the temperature control oil into the temperature control oil pipe 75 of the temperature control assembly which is provided on the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73, the temperature control oil heats the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73 by heat transfer, thereby increasing the temperature of the shaping cavity 74, so that a preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 extruded to the shaping cavity 74 is heated, and after the foaming agent in the first part of materials are heated, the foaming agent is sharply foamed, promoting the shaping of the loose structure of the face cover 21. For the specific heating mode of the temperature control assembly to the shaping cavity 74, please refer to the description of the temperature control assembly in the radome mold 60 mentioned above, which is not repeated here. In another embodiment, the inner mold 72 and / or the outer mold 73 may be heated by an electric heating assembly.

[0146] In contrast, the portion of the first part of materials of the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 in contact with the cavity wall of the shaping cavity 74 has a tendency to expand outward to the cavity wall of the shaping chamber 74, but is blocked by the cavity wall so that the pressure of the portion of materials rises sharply and the tendency to foam on both sides is prevented. That is to say, the portion of the first part of materials in contact with the cavity wall of the shaping cavity 74 cannot be foamed due to excessive pressure, so that a dense crust is formed at both wall surfaces of the face cover 21. However, in the portion of the first part or materials which is not in contact with the cavity wall of the shaping cavity 74 (the first part of materials of the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 which is located inside the two wall surfaces), under the action of pressure caused by the foaming at an elevated temperature, the foaming agent in the materials foams and expands rapidly, thus forming a loose structure.

[0147] The pressure of the preliminary shaped part is at a minimum in the wall center thereof, so that the foaming degree of the part of materials are at a maximum by the foaming agent. The greater the pressure of the first part of materials closer to the cavity wall of the shaping cavity 74, the greater the extent to which the foaming of that the part of materials is hindered, the lower the extent of foaming becomes and the less or even no foaming occurs. At the same time, the temperature of the cavity wall of the shaping cavity 74 is higher than that of the cavity, and under the influence of high temperature, the first part of materials will naturally form a crust at the cavity wall. The face cover 21 thus formed changes linearly from its wall center to its two wall surfaces, from loose to dense.

[0148] Before the preliminary shaped part enters the shaping cavity 74 for heating and foaming, when it is still in the annular mold cavity, it has been affected by the thermal radiation of the shaping cavity 74 and started the preliminary foaming. Specifically, when the first part of materials flow through the adjusting section 69, the first part of materials quickly enter the more spacious channel space from the narrow channel space, and its pressure is suddenly released and becomes smaller. Under the dual influence of the smaller pressure and the larger channel space, its flow velocity decreases, and the foaming agent in the first part of materials plays a role in primary foaming under the action of both the reduced pressure and the reduced flow velocity. Moreover, since the shaping cavity 74 is communicated with the upper mold cavity 65, when the temperature control assembly heats the shaping cavity 74, the heat of the shaping cavity 74 will radiate to the upper mold cavity 65 to heat the first part of materials near the shaping cavity 74, which also accelerates the foaming of the first part of materials in the upper mold cavity 65 to some extent. Therefore, when the preliminary shaped part is extruded from the annular mold cavity to the shaping cavity 74, the face cover 21 already has the preliminary foaming characteristics.

[0149] In the same manner as the two wall surfaces of the shaping chamber 74 generate a foaming barrier, in the upper mold cavity 65, the cavity wall of the upper mold cavity 65 also blocks the first part of materials, so that the materials close to the cavity wall cannot be foamed effectively, but the material not close to the cavity wall of the upper mold cavity 65 is foamed, thus contributing to the subsequent formation of double-sided crust in the shaping cavity 74.

[0150] In practice, construction personnel can flexibly set the heating effect of the temperature control assembly as required, so as to adjust the final foaming effect by controlling the heating temperature of the shaping cavity 74, and obtain the finished radome 20 meeting the expected parameter requirements.

[0151] Step S14, performing demolding to obtain the final shaped part of the radome 20.

[0152] After being processed by the whole shaping cavity 74, the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 which is continuously extruded forward to the shaping cavity 74 is foamed and rapidly solidified, so that it can be demolded, and the final shaped part of the radome 20 is obtained from demolding. As for the determination of the axial length of the radome 20, in one embodiment, it can be determined at the injection side that the injection is stopped when the materials with a given length are met, and the outer mold 73 of the shaping mold 62 fixedly engaged with the mold head 61 is moved away from the mold head 61, so that demolding can be carried out, and the final shaped part of the radome 20 is taken out to obtain a radome 20 with a determined length. In another embodiment, injection is continuously performed at the injection side for production, and after the shaping cavity 74, at the end of the extrusion direction of the radome 20, a cutting device is arranged to cut the final shaped part according to a given length, thereby obtaining radomes 20 with equal length.

[0153] After this molding process, the radome 20 can be produced efficiently, which is beneficial to reducing the production cost of the radome 20 and ensuring the radome 20 to obtain expected better electrical properties.

[0154] The molding method of the radome 20 of the present disclosure also has the following advantages.

[0155] Firstly, the molding method of the radome 20 of the present disclosure uses injection molding to manufacture the integrally formed radome 20, and only the radome mold 60 suitable for injection is needed to manufacture the radome 20. The radome 20 is produced by injection molding, and the restriction on the radome mold 60 is small, so that a large radome 20 can be produced. Moreover, the radome 20 is produced by injection molding, and the process is simple, which is convenient for large-scale production of the radome 20, generating large-scale benefits and reducing production costs. Secondly, in the radome molding method of the present disclosure, two parts of materials are prepared, which are divided into a first part of materials containing foaming agent and a second part of materials without foaming agent, and the first part of materials are injected into an upper mold cavity 65 of the radome mold 60 through an upper injection channel 67 of the radome mold 60, and at the same time, the second part of materials are injected into a lower mold cavity 66 of the radome mold 60 through a lower injection channel 68 of the radome mold 60. The first part of materials and the second part of materials are fused with each other at the the boundary between the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66 to form the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20. Then, the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20 is extruded into the shaping cavity 74 of the mold, the temperature of the shaping cavity 74 is controlled, the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20 is heated and foamed to form the final shaped part of the radome 20, and the final shaped part of the radome 20 is demolded. From the above description, it can be seen that the production steps of the molding method of the radome 20 of the present disclosure are simple, and each step is convenient to control, thereby reducing the production risk and production cost and improving the production benefit. Thirdly, through the molding method of the radome 20, after the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 of the radome 20 is extruded into the shaping cavity 74, the temperature of the shaping cavity 74 is controlled, and the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 is heated to promote the foaming of the first part of materials, thus forming a structure that the face cover 21 is suitable for transmitting signals.

[0156] The present disclosure also discloses a molding control device, which comprises a control unit for controlling a molding method of a radome 20 to manufacture the radome 20. The control unit controls and drives corresponding components to execute the molding method of the radome 20, so as to manufacture the radome 20. The control of the injection speed of the injection mechanism (not shown) and the adjustment of the heating effect of the temperature control assembly can all be controlled by the control unit to further improve the automation degree of the device.

[0157] Those skilled in the art should understand the technological process of the molding method of the radome 20 of the present disclosure. Using the radome mold 60, the first part of materials and the second part of materials are injected into the upper mold cavity 65 and the lower mold cavity 66, respectively, and the injection speed of the two parts of materials is controlled, so as to form the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20. When the preliminary shaped part of the radome 20 is extruded, the temperature of the shaping cavity 74 is controlled, and the preliminary shaped part of the face cover 21 of the radome 20 enters the shaping cavity 74 for heating and foaming to form the final molded part of the face cover 21, thus completing the transformation of the radome 20 from the preliminary shaped part to the final shaped part. The method has simple steps and is convenient to control each step of the method, thereby saving the manufacturing cost of manufacturing the radome 20.

[0158] To sum up, the present disclosure proposes a series of supporting solutions around the improvement of radome, which is suitable for providing necessary technical support for radome industry chain in an all-round way.

[0159] It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the steps, measures and solutions in the operations, methods and flows already discussed in the present disclosure may be alternated, changed, combined or deleted. Further, other steps, measures and solutions in the operations, methods and flows already discussed in the present disclosure can also be alternated, changed, rearranged, decomposed, combined or deleted. Further, the steps, measures and solutions of the prior art in the operations, methods and operations disclosed in the present disclosure can also be alternated, changed, rearranged, decomposed, combined or deleted. The foregoing descriptions are merely some implementations of the present disclosure. It should be pointed out that, to those skilled in the art, various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the principle of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications shall be regarded as falling into the protection scope of the present disclosure.Industrial practicability

[0160] According to the antenna and the radome thereof provided by the present disclosure, the structure of the face cover is set to change from a loose structure to a dense structure from the wall center to the two wall surfaces, so that the loose structure has better signal transmission effect compared with the dense structure, and the two wall surfaces are dense to form crust, so that the mechanical properties of the face cover is more stable. And the bottom cover is processed into a dense shape, which has higher strength, ensures that the radome is suitable for construction and assembly, and has strong industrial practicability.

Claims

1. A radome, characterized in that, the radome is an integrally formed structure, and comprises a bottom cover and a face cover; wherein the bottom cover and the face cover comprise a same base material; the bottom cover is dense; and the face cover is adapted for transmission of signals radiated by an antenna, comprises two wall surfaces and a wall center defined by the two wall surfaces, and transitions from loose to dense from the wall center thereof to the two wall surfaces thereof.

2. The radome according to claim 1, characterized in that, the face cover has foaming characteristics, the structural change of the face cover is determined by size and / or density of bubbles formed by foaming.

3. The radome according to claim 2, characterized in that, the size and / or density of the bubbles change linearly from the wall center to the two wall surfaces.

4. The radome according to claim 1, characterized in that, the face cover forms a loose part, a transition part, and a dense part sequentially from its wall center to any one of its wall surfaces, the density of the loose part is smaller than that of the transition part, and the density of the transition part is smaller than the density of the dense part.

5. The radome according to claim 4, characterized in that, the loose part, the transition part and the dense part have a linear gradual transition relationship in density.

6. The radome according to claim 4, characterized in that, on the cross-section of the face cover, the area of the loose part accounts for 30%-60%, the area of transition part accounts for 30%-40%, and the area of dense part accounts for 10%-30%.

7. The radome according to claim 4, characterized in that, the loose part and the transition part have foaming characteristics, and the foaming rate of the loose part is 30%-60%, and the foaming rate of the transition part is 20%-40%.

8. The radome according to claim 4, <b>characterized in that, the overall density of the radome is less than or equal to 0.90 g / cm3; the overall density of the face cover is 0.3g / cm3-0.50g / cm3, the dielectric constant is less than or equal to 2.00, and the dielectric loss is less than or equal to 0.003; the overall density of the bottom cover is 1.05g / cm3-1.40g / cm3.

9. The radome according to claim 4, characterized in that, the face cover and the bottom cover are fused with each other, and at the fusion interface, the loose part and the transition part of the face cover are expanded out toward the bottom cover.

10. The radome according to claim 9, characterized in that, the parts of the loose part and the transition part that expanded out toward the bottom cover present density gradually increasing relationship.

11. The radome according to claim 4, characterized in that, the dense part constitutes a solid crust, and the thickness of the solid crust is 0.10-0.50mm.

12. The radome according to claim 1, characterized in that, the face cover and the bottom cover are fused with each other, and at the fusion interface, the bottom cover forms a depression for accommodating the expanded part of the face cover.

13. The radome according to claim 12, characterized in that, at the fusion interface, the depression is U-shaped, and the material in the space defined by the depression is loose.

14. The radome according to claim 13, characterized in that, the expanded part presents a linear density gradual transition relationship from the face cover to the bottom cover.

15. The radome according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that, the face cover and the bottom cover are fused with each other at the radiation boundary line of the radome.

16. The radome according to claim 1, characterized in that, the density of the dense part is the same as that of the bottom cover.

17. The radome according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that, the base materials of the face cover and the bottom cover are the same thermoplastic material, wherein the base material of the face cover is foamed by a foaming agent.

18. The radome according to claim 17, characterized in that, the base materials of the face cover and the bottom cover comprise glass fibers.

19. The radome according to claim 17, characterized in that, the thermoplastic material comprises resin or resin alloy.

20. An antenna having a metal reflector and a radiation unit mounted on the metal reflector, characterized in that, the antenna further has a radome of any one of claims 1 to 19, and the metal reflector of the antenna is fixed in a space defined by the face cover and the bottom cover of the radome, the face cover is configured for transmitting signals of the radiation unit.

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