Antenna unit, antenna, and communication apparatus

Abstract

An antenna unit, an antenna, and a communication apparatus are provided. The antenna unit provided in this application includes a first phase shift component and a second phase shift component that are disposed in a stacked manner. The first phase shift component is configured to receive a current of a feed source and adjust a phase of the current. The second phase shift component includes a first conductor, a second conductor, and a first switch connected between the first conductor and the second conductor. The first conductor is configured to receive a current from the first phase shift component. The current on the first conductor flows into the second conductor through the first switch. The first switch is configured to adjust a phase of the current. The second conductor is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave. The electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting a current. According to the antenna unit provided in this application, a multi-bit phase shift function is implemented by using a plurality of phase shift components that are disposed in a stacked manner, so that an area occupied is small, meeting requirements for miniaturization and integration of the antenna unit.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202210682604.3, filed with the China National Intellectual Property Administration on June 16, 2022 and entitled "ANTENNA UNIT, ANTENNA, AND COMMUNICATION APPARATUS", which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] This application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to an antenna unit, an antenna, and a communication apparatus.BACKGROUND

[0003] In an existing smart antenna system capable of beamforming, an active phased array antenna adjusts a phase of the antenna by using a phase shifter, and performs beam combination in space based on electromagnetic interference and superposition, to implement spatial beamforming. The beamforming for the antenna can improve an anti-interference capability of a communication system, increase a transmission distance, improve spectrum utilization, and significantly increase a system capacity.

[0004] However, the active phased array antenna has a large quantity of active channels, resulting in problems such as high costs and high system power consumption.SUMMARY

[0005] An objective of this application is to provide an antenna unit, an antenna, and a communication apparatus. According to the antenna unit provided in this application, a phase adjustment component such as a switch or a liquid crystal component is used to adjust a phase of an antenna, to implement spatial beamforming. The phase adjustment component has a simple structure, low costs, and low power consumption, so that the antenna unit meets requirements for low costs and low power consumption.

[0006] According to a first aspect, this application provides an antenna unit. The antenna unit provided in this application includes a first phase shift component and a second phase shift component that are disposed in a stacked manner. The first phase shift component is configured to receive a current of a feed source and adjust a phase of the current. The second phase shift component includes a first conductor, a second conductor, and a first switch connected between the first conductor and the second conductor. The first conductor is configured to receive a current from the first phase shift component. The current on the first conductor flows into the second conductor through the first switch. The first switch is configured to adjust a phase of the current. The second conductor is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave. The electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting a current.

[0007] In this application, a 2-bit phase shift function is implemented by using the first phase shift component and the second phase shift component that are disposed in a stacked manner, and the first phase shift component and the second phase shift component each implement two phase changes. Compared with implementing four phase changes, implementing two phase changes separately by using a simple structure or control circuitry is easier. The first phase shift component and the second phase shift component each capable of implementing two phase changes have lower design difficulty and occupy a smaller area. In addition, the first phase shift component and the second phase shift component each capable of implementing two phase changes are disposed in a stacked manner, so that an area occupied by the antenna unit is small, meeting requirements for miniaturization and easy integration of the antenna unit.

[0008] In some implementations, the first phase shift component includes a third conductor, a fourth conductor, and a second switch connected between the third conductor and the fourth conductor. The third conductor is configured to receive the current of the feed source. The current on the third conductor flows into the fourth conductor through the second switch. The second switch is configured to adjust a phase of the current. The fourth conductor is configured to transfer the current to the first conductor.

[0009] In this implementation, the switch has a simple structure, low costs, and low power consumption, so that the antenna unit meets requirements for low costs and low power consumption.

[0010] In some implementations, the fourth conductor is of a ring structure, and the second switch is located in a middle of the fourth conductor.

[0011] In this implementation, the fourth conductor is designed to be of a ring structure, and the third conductor and the second switch are placed in the middle of the fourth conductor, so that the fourth conductor, the third conductor, and the second switch share space on a plane, to further reduce an area occupied by the first phase shift component, thereby reducing the area occupied by the antenna unit.

[0012] In some implementations, the fourth conductor is of a symmetric structure, the third conductor includes a second feedpoint, the feed source feeds the current from the second feedpoint of the third conductor, and the second feedpoint of the third conductor is located in a structural center of the fourth conductor or deviates from the structural center of the fourth conductor.

[0013] In this implementation, the second feedpoint may be located in the structural center of the fourth conductor, and currents in two paths respectively flowing from the second feedpoint to a third section and a fourth section have equal amplitudes and inverted phases. In other words, the first current and the second current have equal amplitudes and inverted phases, so that the first phase shift structure can implement phase changes of 0° and 180°.

[0014] In some implementations, the second conductor is of a ring structure, and the first switch is located in a middle of the second conductor.

[0015] In this implementation, the second conductor is designed to be of a ring structure, and the first conductor and the first switch are placed in the middle of the second conductor, so that the second conductor, the first conductor, and the first switch share space in a plane dimension, to further reduce the area occupied by the first phase shift component, thereby reducing the area occupied by the antenna unit.

[0016] In some implementations, the second conductor is of a symmetric structure, the first conductor includes a first feedpoint, the fourth conductor feeds the current from the first feedpoint of the first conductor, and the first feedpoint of the first conductor deviates from a structural center of the second conductor.

[0017] In this implementation, there is a difference between a distance from the first feedpoint to a first side edge of the second conductor and a distance from the first feedpoint to a second side edge of the second conductor. Therefore, a linear distance of a path along which a third current flows from the first feedpoint to the second conductor is different from a linear distance of a path along which a fourth current flows from the first feedpoint to the second conductor, so that a phase difference is generated between the third current and the fourth current. In addition, the phase difference between the third current and the fourth current varies with the difference between the distance from the first feedpoint to the first side edge of the second conductor and the distance from the first feedpoint to the second side edge of the second conductor. By designing the difference, the phase difference between the third current and the fourth current can be controlled, that is, a phase change generated by the second phase shift component can be controlled.

[0018] In some implementations, the first conductor includes a first side edge and a second side edge that are opposite to each other, a distance between the first feedpoint of the first conductor and the first side edge of the first conductor is a first distance, a distance between the first feedpoint of the first conductor and the second side edge of the first conductor is a second distance, and a difference D between the first distance and the second distance satisfies: 0.05 operating wavelength ≤ D ≤ 0.25 operating wavelength.

[0019] In this implementation, the difference D between the first distance and the second distance is controlled to be between 0.05 operating wavelength and 0.25 operating wavelength, so that the second phase shift component can implement a plurality of phase changes of 0° and 180° / n1, where n1 is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0020] In some implementations, the antenna unit further includes a first control circuit and / or a second control circuit. The first control circuit is connected to the first switch, and the first control circuit is configured to change a status of the first switch. The second control circuit is connected to the second switch, and the second control circuit is configured to change a status of the second switch.

[0021] In this implementation, the first control circuit can separately send a current to a third independent switch and a fourth independent switch in response to a phase adjustment instruction, to cause the third independent switch and the fourth independent switch to be in different on / off states, thereby implementing different phase changes. The second control circuit controls a status of the second switch in response to a phase adjustment instruction, to change the phase of the current, so that the first phase shift component implements a first phase adjustment.

[0022] In some implementations, the first phase shift component includes a fourth conductor and a liquid crystal phase shift component. The liquid crystal phase shift component is located on a side that is of the fourth conductor and that faces the second conductor. The fourth conductor is configured to receive the current of the feed source, and transfer the current to the first conductor. The liquid crystal phase shift component is configured to adjust a phase of the current.

[0023] In this implementation, the liquid crystal phase shift component is configured to adjust a phase of an electromagnetic wave emitted by the fourth conductor, so as to adjust the phase of the current.

[0024] In some implementations, the liquid crystal phase shift component includes a liquid crystal layer and two electrodes, the two electrodes are configured to adjust a dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer, and the two electrodes are located on a same side or two opposite sides of the liquid crystal layer.

[0025] In this implementation, a continuous voltage is applied between the two electrodes, to cause the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer to change continuously, so that a current can continuously change in phase. Theoretically, there may be numerous phase changes. This is not limited in this application.

[0026] In some implementations, the first phase shift component further includes a coupling conductor. The coupling conductor is located on a side that is of the fourth conductor and that faces the second conductor. The fourth conductor is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave. The coupling conductor is configured to convert a received electromagnetic wave into a current and transfer the current to the first conductor.

[0027] In this implementation, the fourth conductor may be configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave, where the electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting a current. The coupling conductor is configured to convert a received electromagnetic wave into a surface current, and transfer the surface current to the first conductor.

[0028] In some implementations, at least one of the second conductor, the fourth conductor, and the coupling conductor is of a circular ring structure or a polygonal ring structure.

[0029] In some implementations, the antenna unit further includes a metal layer, and the metal layer is located between the coupling conductor and the second conductor.

[0030] In this implementation, the metal layer may not only be configured to reflect the electromagnetic wave radiated upward by the coupling conductor, to implement a shielding function, but also be configured to reflect electromagnetic waves radiated downward by the first conductor and the second conductor, to improve radiation performance of the first conductor and the second conductor, so as to improve radiation performance of the antenna unit. For example, the metal layer may be disposed between a second substrate and a third substrate.

[0031] In some implementations, the first phase shift component further includes a dielectric member, the dielectric member is fastened between the fourth conductor and the coupling conductor, and a dimension of the dielectric member in a direction perpendicular to a plane on which the second conductor is located is less than or equal to 0.5 operating wavelength.

[0032] In this implementation, the dielectric member is located between the coupling conductor and the fourth conductor, to implement an impedance matching function, so as to reduce losses, thereby improving efficiency of current transmission between the fourth conductor and the coupling conductor.

[0033] In some implementations, a mounting recess or a mounting hole is provided in a middle of the dielectric member, and the fourth conductor is located in a middle of the mounting recess or the mounting hole.

[0034] In this implementation, the second switch may be located in a middle of the dielectric member, to implement efficient space sharing of the second switch and the dielectric member. In addition, the dielectric member may further restrict the electromagnetic wave radiated by the fourth conductor in a middle space, thereby increasing efficiency of coupling transmission.

[0035] According to a second aspect, this application further provides an antenna unit. The antenna unit provided in this application includes a second phase shift component and a plurality of first phase shift components.

[0036] In this application, the antenna unit implements a multi-bit phase shift function by using the plurality of first phase shift components and the second phase shift component that are disposed in a stacked manner. The multi-bit phase shift function can be easily implemented by separately designing a plurality of phase shift components each capable of implementing two phase changes. In addition, the plurality of phase shift components are disposed in a stacked manner, so that a small area is occupied while the multi-bit phase shift function is implemented, meeting requirements of miniaturization and integration of the antenna unit.

[0037] According to a third aspect, this application further provides an antenna. The antenna provided in this application includes a plurality of antenna units.

[0038] In this application, the antenna units of the antenna have characteristics of being miniaturized and easy to integrate. When the plurality of antenna units are arranged in an array, a distance between structural centers of two adjacent antenna units is small, so that the antenna has a large scanning angle and has good scanning performance.

[0039] According to a fourth aspect, this application further provides a communication apparatus. The communication apparatus provided in this application includes an antenna unit.

[0040] In this application, the antenna unit of the communication apparatus implements a multi-bit phase shift function by using a plurality of first phase shift components and a second phase shift component that are disposed in a stacked manner. The multi-bit phase shift function can be easily implemented by separately designing a plurality of phase shift components each capable of implementing two phase changes. In this way, design difficulty is low, and an occupied area is small, meeting requirements for miniaturization and easy integration of the antenna unit.

[0041] According to a fifth aspect, this application further provides a communication apparatus. The communication apparatus provided in this application includes an antenna.

[0042] In this application, the antenna of the communication apparatus has a large scanning angle and good scanning performance.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0043] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a structure of a base station according to some embodiments of this application; FIG. 2 is a diagram of a communication system including a plurality of antenna units according to some embodiments of this application; FIG. 3 is a diagram of phase changes in an antenna unit capable of implementing a multi-bit phase shift function according to some embodiments; FIG. 4 is a diagram of a structure of an antenna unit according to some embodiments of this application; FIG. 5 is a schematic exploded view of the structure of the antenna unit shown in FIG. 4; FIG. 6 is a diagram of a structure of a third conductor and a fourth conductor shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 7 is a diagram of projections of the third conductor and the fourth conductor shown in FIG. 6 on a first plane; FIG. 8 is a diagram of a projection of the fourth conductor shown in FIG. 7 according to some other embodiments; FIG. 9 is a diagram of a structure of a third conductor, a fourth conductor, and a second switch shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 10 is a diagram of a projection of the structure shown in FIG. 9 on a first plane; FIG. 11 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5 according to some embodiments; FIG. 12 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 13 is a diagram of an interior of the structure shown in FIG. 12 in an assembled form; FIG. 14 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 4; FIG. 15 is a diagram of an interior of part of the structure shown in FIG. 14 in an assembled form; FIG. 16 is a diagram of a projection of a coupling conductor shown in FIG. 5 on a first plane; FIG. 17 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5 according to some embodiments; FIG. 18 is a diagram of an interior of the structure shown in FIG. 17 in an assembled form; FIG. 19 is a diagram of a structure of a first conductor and a second conductor shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 20 is a diagram of projections of the first conductor and the second conductor shown in FIG. 19 on a first plane; FIG. 21 is a diagram of a structure of a first conductor, a second conductor, and a first switch shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 22 is a diagram of a projection of the structure shown in FIG. 21 on a first plane; FIG. 23 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5 according to some embodiments; FIG. 24 is a schematic exploded view of part of the structure of the antenna unit shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 25 is a diagram of an interior of part of the structure shown in FIG. 24; FIG. 26 is a diagram of an interior of the structure shown in FIG. 24 in an assembled form; FIG. 27 is a diagram of an interior of part of the structure shown in FIG. 26 according to some other embodiments; FIG. 28 is a diagram of a structure of the antenna unit shown in FIG. 4 according to some other embodiments; and FIG. 29 is a diagram of a structure of an antenna according to some embodiments of this application. DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0044] The following describes embodiments of this application with reference to accompanying drawings in embodiments of this application. In the descriptions of embodiments of this application, "a plurality of" means two or more than two, unless otherwise specified. In addition, the "connection" in this specification should be understood in a broad sense. For example, the "connection" may be a direct connection, or may be an indirect connection via an intermediate medium. In addition, "fastened" in this specification should also be understood in a broad sense. For example, "fastened" may indicate being directly fastened, or may indicate being indirectly fastened by using an intermediate medium. Terms such as "first" and "second" are used merely for description, and shall not be understood as an indication or implication of relative importance or an implicit indication of a quantity of indicated technical features. Therefore, features defined by "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more such features. In addition, an operating wavelength is an operating wavelength corresponding to a central frequency of an antenna unit. It may be understood that the antenna unit operates in a specific frequency range, and when the antenna unit operates at the central frequency, the antenna unit achieves smallest impedance, highest efficiency, and highest transmission power.

[0045] This application provides a communication apparatus having a wireless communication function. For example, the communication apparatus may be a terminal device, a network device, another component for implementing a function of a terminal device, or another component for implementing a function of a network device. The terminal device includes but is not limited to electronic products such as a mobile phone, a portable android device (portable android device, PAD), a wearable device, a vehicle-mounted or handheld navigation device, a vehicle-mounted or handheld intercom, and a positioning device; devices such as a base station 100, a self-driving (driverless) vehicle, an uncrewed aerial vehicle, and a satellite; notebook computers, personal computers (personal computers, PCs), servers, displays, and various external devices of computers in the computer field; mobile phones, telephones, and various other terminals and terminal devices in the network communication field; home appliances and various digital products in the consumer electronics field; industrial personal computers, various instruments and meters, and various control devices in the industrial control field; and devices in the artificial intelligence field such as a self-driving vehicle and an uncrewed aerial vehicle.

[0046] The network device includes but is not limited to: a base station (gNodeB, gNB) in 5G, an evolved NodeB (evolved NodeB, eNB) in a long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) system, a radio network controller (radio network controller, RNC), a radio controller in a cloud radio access network (cloud radio access network, CRAN) system, a base station controller (base station controller, BSC), a home base station (for example, a home evolved NodeB or home NodeB, HNB), a baseband unit (baseband unit, BBU), a transmitting and receiving point (transmitting and receiving point, TRP), a transmitting point (transmitting point, TP), a mobile switching center, a base transceiver station (base transceiver station, BTS) in a global system for mobile communications (global system for mobile communications, GSM) or a code division multiple access (code division multiple access, CDMA) network, a node base station (node base station, NB) in wideband code division multiple access (wideband code division multiple access, WCDMA), an evolved (evolved) NB (eNB or eNodeB) in LTE, a base station device in a future 6G network or an access network device in a future evolved public land mobile network (public land mobile network, PLMN), a wearable device, or a vehicle-mounted device.

[0047] In this application, an example in which the communication apparatus is the base station 100 is used for description. Refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram of a structure of a base station 100 according to some embodiments of this application.

[0048] The base station 100 may also be referred to as a public mobile communication base station 100, and is a radio transceiver station for information communication with a terminal such as a mobile phone in a specific radio coverage area through a mobile communication switching center. In some embodiments, the base station 100 may include an antenna 10.

[0049] The antenna 10 is configured to transmit and receive a current. The antenna 10 may include a plurality of antenna units 1, and the plurality of antenna units 1 are arranged in an array to form a multiple-input multiple-output (multiple-input multiple-output, MIMO) system. A massive multiple-input multiple-output (massive MIMO, MM) or massive multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (multi-user MIMO, MU-MIMO) system may be formed using antenna units 1 that are several times more than the antenna units 1 in the multiple-input multiple-output system. For example, the massive multiple-input multiple-output system may include dozens or hundreds of antenna units 1.

[0050] For example, the antenna unit 1 may be used as a signal receive end, or may be used as a signal transmit end. The plurality of antenna units 1 can increase a channel capacity of the antenna 10, thereby increasing an information transmission speed of the base station 100. It may be understood that a channel capacity refers to a minimum upper bound of an achievable rate at which information can be reliably transmitted over a channel. For the multiple-input multiple-output system, a channel capacity refers to a minimum upper bound of an achievable rate at which information can be reliably transmitted in the multiple-input multiple-output system. The channel capacity of the multiple-input multiple-output system reflects an information transmission speed of the antenna unit 1. A larger channel capacity of the antenna unit 1 indicates a higher information transmission speed and a stronger information transmission capability.

[0051] For example, the plurality of antenna units 1 may operate independently of each other, or may operate in combination with each other. Each antenna unit 1 in the antenna 10 may be configured to cover one or more communication frequency bands. Different antenna units 1 may further be multiplexed, to improve utilization of the antenna 10 and meet requirements for miniaturization and integration.

[0052] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 is configured to convert, into a space electromagnetic wave, a guided electromagnetic wave fed by a transmitter, or convert an electromagnetic wave into a guided electromagnetic wave and transmit the guided electromagnetic wave to a receiver. An electromagnetic wave propagated along a specific path (for example, a cable or a transmission line) is a guided electromagnetic wave. A modulated electromagnetic wave with a specific transmit frequency is a current.

[0053] For example, an electrical dimension of the antenna unit 1 is designed, so that the antenna unit 1 may operate in any one or more existing frequency bands. For example, the existing frequency bands may include low frequency bands (400 MHz to 433 MHz and 868 MHz to 960 MHz) used in a low-frequency narrowband communication technology, and frequency bands (1575.42 MHz, 1227.60 MHz, 1561 MHz, and 1207 MHz) used for satellite search and positioning in, for example, BeiDou and a global positioning system (global positioning system, GPS), and may further include a 2G frequency band (1800 MHz GSM), a Wi-Fi / Bluetooth frequency band (2400 MHz), 4G frequency bands (1880 MHz to 1900 MHz, 2320 MHz to 2370 MHz, and 2575 MHz to 2635 MHz), 5G frequency bands (3300 MHz to 3400 MHz, 3400 MHz to 3600 MHz, and 4800 MHz to 5000 MHz), a 6G frequency band (100 GHz to 10 THz), and the like. 6G is a 6th generation mobile communication standard or a 6th generation mobile communication technology. In 6G, a data transmission rate may reach dozens or hundreds of times that in 5G, and latency is reduced to one tenth of that in 5G. 6G outperforms 5G in terms of peak rate, latency, traffic density, connection density, mobility, spectral efficiency, and positioning capability. The antenna unit 1 may further operate in another existing frequency band range that is not listed in this application, or may operate in a frequency band range that may be added in the future. This is not limited in this application.

[0054] For example, the antenna unit 1 may be a reconfigurable antenna. The reconfigurable antenna may include a PIN diode (positive-intrinsic-negative diode) switch, a varactor diode, a micro-electro-mechanical system (micro-electro-mechanical system, MEMS) switch, or a tuning material such as a liquid crystal material. The tuning material may change a phase, a frequency, and / or a directivity pattern characteristic of the reconfigurable antenna. The PIN diode may be a diode having a P-I-N (positive-intrinsic-negative) structure. In the P-I-N structure, a thin low-doped intrinsic (intrinsic) semiconductor layer may be added between a P (positive) semiconductor material and an N (negative) semiconductor material. The tuning material has a simple structure, low costs, and low power consumption, so that the antenna unit 1 meets requirements for low costs and low power consumption.

[0055] Refer to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a diagram of a communication system including a plurality of antenna units 1 according to some embodiments of this application.

[0056] In this application, an example in which the antenna unit 1 is a phase reconfigurable antenna is used for description. For example, the reconfigurable antenna may include any one or more of a frequency reconfigurable antenna, a directivity pattern reconfigurable antenna, a polarization reconfigurable antenna, a phase reconfigurable antenna, a hybrid reconfigurable antenna, or the like.

[0057] For example, a current flows into the plurality of antenna units 1. The current may be divided into currents in a plurality of paths, equal in quantity to the plurality of antenna units 1, using an apparatus such as a splitter, and the plurality of currents respectively flow into the plurality of antenna units 1. The antenna unit 1 can adjust a phase, a frequency, and / or a directivity pattern characteristic of a current via a tuning material, and the antenna unit 1 converts an adjusted current into an electromagnetic wave for radiation. Electromagnetic waves radiated by the plurality of antenna units 1 can be combined in space based on electromagnetic interference and superposition, to implement spatial beamforming, thereby improving an anti-interference capability of the communication system, increasing a transmission distance, improving spectrum utilization, and significantly increasing a system capacity. The solution is applicable to a smart antenna system capable of beamforming.

[0058] The antenna unit 1 provided in this application can change a phase of a current, to implement a multi-bit (bit) phase shift function, for example, 1 bit, 2 bits, 4 bits, or N bits. "Bit" is a term borrowed from the computer field. One bit indicates that two phase changes can be implemented by one phase adjustment. N bits indicate that 2 N< phase changes can be implemented by N phase adjustments. N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1. Specifically, if the antenna unit 1 has an N-bit phase shift function, it may be considered that the antenna unit 1 can achieve 2 N< phase changes of a current by performing N phase adjustments on the current.

[0059] It should be noted that the antenna unit 1 may alternatively implement an odd quantity of phase changes, for example, three or five phase changes. This is not limited in this application. An odd quantity of phase changes is not represented by bits. For example, if the antenna unit 1 can perform two phase adjustments and the two phase adjustments generate identical phase changes, then the antenna unit 1 may implement three phase changes. For example, if the first phase adjustment generates phase changes of 0° and 90° and the second phase adjustment generates phase changes of 0° and 90°, then after two phase adjustments, the antenna unit 1 may implement three phase changes: 0°, 90°, and 180°.

[0060] For example, the antenna unit 1 may implement a multi-bit phase shift function by using a plurality of phase shift components. The phase shift component may be configured to adjust a phase of a current, to cause the current to have two or more phase changes. A specific implementation of the antenna unit 1 having the multi-bit phase shift function is described below by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0061] Refer to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a diagram of phase changes in an antenna unit 1 capable of implementing a multi-bit phase shift function according to some embodiments.

[0062] For example, the plurality of phase shift components may include a 1 st< phase shift component, a 2 nd< phase shift component, ..., and an N th< phase shift component, so that the antenna unit 1 implements an N-bit phase shift function. Each phase shift component enables a current to have two phase changes, and the phase shift components each generate different phase changes. For example, the 1 st< phase shift component enables a current to have phase changes of 0° and 180°, the 2 nd< phase shift component enables a current to have phase changes of 0° and 90°, and the N th< phase shift component enables a current to have phase changes of 0° and 360° / 2 N< .

[0063] As shown in FIG. 3, a current has phase changes of 0° and 180° after undergoing a first phase adjustment by the 1 st< phase shift component. A current having a phase of 0° has phase changes of 0° and 90° after undergoing a second phase adjustment by the 2 nd< phase shift component, and a current having a phase of 180° has phase changes of 180° and 270° after undergoing the second phase adjustment by the 2 nd< phase shift component. In other words, after undergoing two phase adjustments, the current has four phase changes: 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°. By analogy, after undergoing N phase adjustments by the N th< phase shift component in sequence, the current has 2 N< phase changes, so that the N-bit phase shift function is implemented.

[0064] In this application, an example in which the antenna unit 1 includes two phase shift components and 2-bit phase shift is implemented by using the two phase shift components is used for description. In some other embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may alternatively implement multi-bit phase shift. This is not limited in this application. The following describes a specific structure of the antenna unit 1 by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0065] Refer to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a diagram of a structure of an antenna unit 1 according to some embodiments of this application.

[0066] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may include a first phase shift component 11 and a second phase shift component 12 that are disposed in a stacked manner. The first phase shift component 11 is configured to receive a current from a feed source, and adjust a phase of the current. The second phase shift component 12 may be configured to receive a current from the first phase shift component 11, adjust a phase of the current, and convert a current into an electromagnetic wave for radiation. It should be noted that, in this application, if two or more structures are placed in sequence in a direction perpendicular to a first plane and projections of the two or more structures on the first plane overlap, then it may be considered that the two or more structures are disposed in a "stacked" manner.

[0067] In the conventional technologies, for a reconfigurable antenna, to implement a 2-bit phase shift function, complex control circuitry disposed on a same plane is usually needed to implement four phase changes. In this application, the antenna unit 1 implements a 2-bit phase shift function by using the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 that are disposed in a stacked manner, and the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 each implement two phase changes. Compared with implementing four phase changes, implementing two phase changes separately by using a simple structure or control circuitry is easier. The first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 each capable of implementing two phase changes have lower design difficulty and occupy a smaller area. In addition, the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 each capable of implementing two phase changes are disposed in a stacked manner, so that an area occupied by the antenna unit 1 is small, meeting requirements for miniaturization and easy integration of the antenna unit 1.

[0068] In this application, a structural center of a component may be a centroid of a geometric area enclosed by an outer contour of the component. In addition, an area around the centroid of the geometric area enclosed by the outer contour of the component may also be considered as the structural center of the component. For example, in this application, an area within a range of 0.05 operating wavelength around the centroid of the geometric area enclosed by the outer contour of the component may be considered as the structural center of the component.

[0069] In some other embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may alternatively include three or more phase shift components that are disposed in a stacked manner, to implement a 3-bit or more-bit phase shift function. For an antenna unit 1 that needs to implement a 3-bit or more-bit phase shift function, it is more difficult to implement more phase changes using complex control circuitry disposed on a same plane, and in this case, both difficulty in designing the control circuitry and an area occupied are increased. However, according to this application, a 3-bit or more-bit phase shift function can be easily implemented by separately designing a plurality of phase shift components each capable of implementing two phase changes.

[0070] The following describes specific implementations of the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0071] Refer to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a schematic exploded view of the structure of the antenna unit 1 shown in FIG. 4.

[0072] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may include a circuit board 111, a ground plane 112, a first substrate 113, a third conductor 114, a fourth conductor 115, a second switch 116, a second control circuit 117, and a first feed member 118. The circuit board 111 and the first substrate 113 are disposed in a laminated manner, the ground plane 112 and the fourth conductor 115 are oppositely located on two opposite sides of the first substrate 113, and the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115 are located on a same side of the first substrate 113. The third conductor 114 is configured to receive the current of the feed source, the current on the third conductor 114 flows into the fourth conductor 115 through the second switch 116, and the second switch 116 is configured to adjust a phase of the current. It should be noted that, in this application, if two or more layer structures are placed in sequence in the direction perpendicular to the first plane and projections of the two or more layer structures on the first plane overlap, then it may be considered that the two or more layer structures are disposed in a "laminated" manner. In addition, "opposite" represents a face-to-face orientation relationship. For example, any two face-to-face positions on a component may be considered as "two opposite sides" of the component, and if two components have a face-to-face orientation relationship, it may be considered that the two components are "opposite to each other".

[0073] The circuit board 111 may be connected to the feed source (not shown) and the third conductor 114 to transfer, to the third conductor 114, the current from the feed source.

[0074] The ground plane 112 may be configured to reflect an electromagnetic wave radiated by the fourth conductor 115, to cause the electromagnetic wave radiated by the fourth conductor 115 to propagate as much as possible in a direction moving away from the ground plane 112, thereby improving radiation performance of the antenna unit 1. The ground plane 112 may further implement a shielding function, to prevent an electromagnetic wave generated by an electromagnetic device located on a lower side of the ground plane 112 from interfering with the fourth conductor 115.

[0075] In addition, the ground plane 112, the first substrate 113, the third conductor 114, and the fourth conductor 115 may form a microstrip antenna structure. A microstrip antenna has characteristics of low profile, small size, light weight, and easy integration. In addition, different polarization effects may further be implemented by designing shapes of the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115 as well as relative positions of the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115, to change radiation characteristics of the microstrip antenna.

[0076] For example, the ground plane 112, the first substrate 113, the third conductor 114, and the fourth conductor 115 may be of an integrated structure. For example, the first substrate 113 may be an insulating substrate that is copper clad on two sides, and the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115 may be obtained by etching copper-clad surfaces to form specific patterns, so as to simplify a manufacturing process, reduce costs, and improve efficiency.

[0077] In some other embodiments, the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115 may alternatively be of a patch structure or another three-dimensional antenna element structure. This is not limited in this application.

[0078] The second control circuit 117 is configured to control on / off of the second switch 116, to change a flow path of a current, so as to adjust a phase of the current.

[0079] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may further include a dielectric member 119, a coupling conductor 120, a second substrate 121, a ground member 122, a second feed member 123, a metal layer 124, a third substrate 125, a first conductor 126, a second conductor 127, a first switch 128, and a first control circuit 129. The coupling conductor 120 is located on an upper side of the fourth conductor 115, and the fourth conductor 115 may transfer a current to the first conductor 126 through the coupling conductor 120. Specifically, the fourth conductor 115 may be configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave, where the electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting a current. The coupling conductor 120 is configured to convert a received electromagnetic wave into a surface current, and transfer the surface current to the first conductor 126. It may be understood that, in this application, a side that is of the fourth conductor 115 and that faces the second conductor 127 is the "upper side" of the fourth conductor 115. In some other embodiments, the fourth conductor 115 may alternatively be directly connected to the first conductor 126 via a structure such as a metalized via hole, and transfer a current to the first conductor 126. This is not limited in this application.

[0080] In this embodiment, provision of the ground plane 112 enables the electromagnetic wave radiated by the fourth conductor 115 to propagate as much as possible toward the upper side of the fourth conductor 115, and the coupling conductor 120 is located on the upper side of the fourth conductor 115, so that the coupling conductor 120 can receive the electromagnetic wave radiated upward by the fourth conductor 115 and the electromagnetic wave reflected by the ground plane 112, thereby improving efficiency of electromagnetic wave transmission between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120.

[0081] The dielectric member 119 is located between the coupling conductor 120 and the fourth conductor 115, to implement an impedance matching function, thereby reducing losses, and improving efficiency of current transmission between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120.

[0082] The second substrate 121 may be fastened on a side that is of the dielectric member 119 and that faces away from the fourth conductor 115, and the coupling conductor 120 may be disposed on a side that is of the second substrate 121 and that faces the fourth conductor 115.

[0083] The third substrate 125 is fastened on an upper side of the second substrate 121. The first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127 may be located on a side that is of the third substrate 125 and that faces away from the coupling conductor 120. The first conductor 126 is configured to receive a current from the coupling conductor 120. The current on the first conductor 126 flows into the second conductor 127 through the first switch 128. The first switch 128 is configured to adjust a phase of the current. The second conductor 127 is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave. The electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting a current. For example, the first conductor 126 may be connected to the coupling conductor 120 via a structure such as a metalized via hole, to receive the surface current from the coupling conductor 120.

[0084] The second feed member 123 is connected between the coupling conductor 120 and the first conductor 126, and is configured to transfer the current of the coupling conductor 120 to the first conductor 126. Then, the current flows from the first conductor 126 to the second conductor 127 through the first switch 128.

[0085] The metal layer 124 is located between the coupling conductor 120 and the second conductor 127. The metal layer 124 may not only be configured to reflect the electromagnetic wave radiated upward by the coupling conductor 120, to implement a shielding function, but also be configured to reflect electromagnetic waves radiated downward by the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127, to improve radiation performance of the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127, so as to improve radiation performance of the antenna unit 1. For example, the metal layer 124 may be disposed between the second substrate 121 and the third substrate 125.

[0086] For example, the second substrate 121, the metal layer 124, and the third substrate 125 may be of an integrated structure. For example, the second substrate 121, the metal layer 124, and the third substrate 125 may be obtained by laminating two insulating base sheets that are copper clad on two sides; and the coupling conductor 120, the first conductor 126, and the second conductor 127 may be obtained by etching copper-clad surfaces to form specific patterns, so as to simplify a manufacturing process, reduce costs, and improve efficiency.

[0087] In some other embodiments, the second substrate 121, the metal layer 124, and the third substrate 125 may alternatively be of other structures. This is not limited in this application.

[0088] In some other embodiments, the coupling conductor 120, the first conductor 126, and the second conductor 127 may alternatively be of a patch structure or another three-dimensional antenna element structure. This is not limited in this application.

[0089] The ground member 122 may be connected between the coupling conductor 120 and the metal layer 124 to implement a grounding function.

[0090] In addition, the metal layer 124, the third substrate 125, the first conductor 126, and the second conductor 127 may form a microstrip antenna structure. A microstrip antenna has characteristics of low profile, small size, light weight, and easy integration. In addition, different polarization effects may further be implemented by designing shapes of the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127 as well as relative positions of the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127, to change radiation characteristics of the microstrip antenna.

[0091] The first control circuit 129 is configured to control on / off of the first switch 128, to change a flow path of a current, so as to adjust a phase of the current.

[0092] For example, the first switch 128 and / or the second switch 116 may be two independent switches, for example, a PIN diode switch, a varactor, or an MEMS switch.

[0093] For example, the two independent switches may respectively correspond to two control circuits, and the two control circuits respectively control on / off states of the two independent switches.

[0094] In some other embodiments, the first switch 128 and / or the second switch 116 may alternatively be single-pole double-throw switches, and the single-pole double-throw switches may correspond to one control circuit.

[0095] For example, the first control circuit 129 and the second control circuit 117 may have a same structure, or may have different structures, or may be formed by a same material, or may be formed by different materials. This is not limited in this application.

[0096] Refer to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5. In some embodiments, the first phase shift component 11 may include the third conductor 114, the fourth conductor 115, and the second switch 116 connected between the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115. The third conductor 114 is configured to receive the current of the feed source. The current on the third conductor 114 flows into the fourth conductor 115 through the second switch 116. The second switch 116 is configured to adjust the phase of the current. The fourth conductor 115 is configured to transfer the current to the first conductor 126. The second phase shift component 12 may include the first conductor 126, the second conductor 127, and the first switch 128 connected between the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127. The first conductor 126 is configured to receive the current from the first phase shift component 11. The current on the first conductor 126 flows into the second conductor 127 through the first switch 128. The first switch 128 is configured to adjust a phase of the current. The second conductor 127 is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave. The electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting a current and is radiated out.

[0097] In this application, the first phase shift component 11 may be configured to receive the current of the feed source, and implement two phase changes via the second switch 116. The second phase shift component 12 may be configured to receive the current from the first phase shift component 11, and implement two phase changes via the first switch 128. The first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 each implement two phase changes, so that the antenna unit 1 implements a 2-bit phase shift function. In addition, the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 have simple structures and occupy a small area, so that the antenna unit 1 has advantages of being miniaturized and easy to integrate.

[0098] In some other embodiments, the first phase shift component 11 and / or the second phase shift component 12 may alternatively implement continuous phase adjustment by using a phase adjustment material such as liquid crystal. Theoretically, there may be numerous phase changes. This is not limited in this application. Alternatively, the first phase shift component 11 and / or the second phase shift component 12 may implement two phase changes by using a phase adjustment material such as liquid crystal.

[0099] It should be noted that the first phase shift component 11 and / or the second phase shift component 12 may alternatively include a support structure such as a substrate and / or a dielectric member. The support structure may be located between two adjacent metal members, to implement support and insulation functions.

[0100] The following describes structures of parts of the first phase shift component 11, manners of connection between the parts, and a connection structure between the first phase shift component 11 and the circuit board 111 by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0101] Refer to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7. FIG. 6 is a diagram of a structure of the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115 shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 7 is a diagram of projections of the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115 shown in FIG. 6 on the first plane. In this application, the first plane is parallel to a plane on which the second conductor 127 is located.

[0102] In some embodiments, the fourth conductor 115 may be of a ring structure, and the third conductor 114 may be located in a middle of the fourth conductor 115. The third conductor 114 may have a second feedpoint 1140, and the feed source feeds the current from the second feedpoint 1140 of the third conductor 114. It should be noted that the fourth conductor 115 is of an end-to-end-connected structure and may be of a circular ring structure or a polygonal ring structure (for example, a rectangular ring structure), or may be in another shape. This is not limited in this application.

[0103] For example, the fourth conductor 115 may alternatively not be of a ring structure. For example, the fourth conductor 115 may alternatively be of a circular or polygonal structure. This is not limited in this application.

[0104] For example, the fourth conductor 115 may be of a symmetric structure, and the second feedpoint 1140 may be located in a structural center of the fourth conductor 115.

[0105] Refer to FIG. 7 and FIG. 8. FIG. 8 is a diagram of a projection of the fourth conductor 115 shown in FIG. 7 according to some other embodiments.

[0106] For example, as shown in FIG. 7, a width of the fourth conductor 115 may be uniform. It may be understood that, in this application, there is a ray emitted from a structural center of a ring structure towards the outside of the ring structure, there is a first intersection point between the ray and an inner edge of the ring structure, there is a second intersection point between the ray and an outer edge of the ring structure, and a width of the ring structure is a distance between the first intersection point and the second intersection point. In this embodiment, the width of the fourth conductor 115 may be uniform. In other words, widths of all sections of the fourth conductor 115 in a circumferential direction are equal. In this application, the fourth conductor 115 has a uniform width, and it may be considered that the fourth conductor 115 is of a symmetric structure.

[0107] In some other embodiments, as shown in FIG. 8, the width of the fourth conductor 115 may alternatively be non-uniform. In other words, in the circumferential direction of the fourth conductor 115, a width of at least a part of sections is not equal to widths of other sections, and there is a certain difference such as 0.01 operating wavelength and 0.03 operating wavelength. In this application, the width of the fourth conductor 115 is non-uniform, and there is a certain difference between the width of at least a part of sections of the fourth conductor 115 and the widths of other sections in the circumferential direction of the fourth conductor 115. In this case, it may also be considered that the fourth conductor 115 is of a symmetric structure.

[0108] Refer to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10. FIG. 9 is a diagram of a structure of the third conductor 114, the fourth conductor 115, and the second switch 116 shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 10 is a diagram of a projection of the structure shown in FIG. 9 on the first plane. A projection area of the second switch 116 in FIG. 10 is represented by a dashed line.

[0109] In some embodiments, the second switch 116 may be connected between the third conductor 114 and the fourth conductor 115. The current on the third conductor 114 flows into the fourth conductor 115 through the second switch 116.

[0110] For example, the second switch 116 may be located in the middle of the fourth conductor 115. In this application, the fourth conductor 115 is designed to be of a ring structure, and the third conductor 114 and the second switch 116 are placed in the middle of the fourth conductor 115, so that the fourth conductor 115, the third conductor 114, and the second switch 116 share space on a plane, to further reduce the area occupied by the first phase shift component 11, thereby reducing the area occupied by the antenna unit 1.

[0111] For example, the second switch 116 may include a first independent switch 1161 and a second independent switch 1162. The fourth conductor 115 has a third section 1151 and a fourth section 1152 that are opposite to each other. The first independent switch 1161 is connected between the second feedpoint 1140 and the third section 1151, and the second independent switch 1162 is connected between the second feedpoint 1140 and the fourth section 1152. When the first independent switch 1161 is turned on and the second independent switch 1162 is turned off, a current flows from the second feedpoint 1140 to the third section 1151, to form a first current. When the first independent switch 1161 is turned off and the second independent switch 1162 is turned on, a current flows from the second feedpoint 1140 to the fourth section 1152, to form a second current. The second feedpoint 1140 may be located in a structural center of the fourth conductor 115. Currents in two paths respectively flowing from the second feedpoint 1140 to the third section 1151 and the fourth section 1152 have equal amplitudes and inverted phases. In other words, the first current and the second current have equal amplitudes and inverted phases, so that the first phase shift structure can implement phase changes of 0° and 180°. For example, the first current is used as a reference, meaning the first current has a phase of 0°; and the second current and the first current have equal amplitudes and inverted phases, meaning the second current has a phase of 180°.

[0112] Refer to FIG. 11. FIG. 11 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5 according to some embodiments. FIG. 11 illustrates a structure of a third conductor 114, a fourth conductor 115, a second switch 116, a second control circuit 117, and a first feed member 118 according to some embodiments.

[0113] In some embodiments, there may be two second control circuits 117, and the two second control circuits 117 are spaced apart from each other and connected to the fourth conductor 115. The second control circuit 117 can separately send a current to the first independent switch 1161 and the second independent switch 1162 in response to a phase adjustment instruction, to cause the first independent switch 1161 and the second independent switch 1162 to be in different on / off states, thereby implementing different phase changes.

[0114] For example, the current sent from the second control circuit 117 may be a direct current. The direct current sent from the second control circuit 117 flows to the first independent switch 1161 or the second independent switch 1162 through the fourth conductor 115, to cause the first independent switch 1161 and the second independent switch 1162 to be in different on / off states.

[0115] In some other embodiments, the second control circuit 117 may alternatively be connected to the second switch 116. This is not limited in this application.

[0116] For example, the second switch 116 may be located on an upper side of the third conductor 114, or may be located on a lower side of the third conductor 114. This is not limited in this application.

[0117] Refer to FIG. 11, FIG. 12, and FIG. 13. FIG. 12 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 13 is a diagram of an interior of the structure shown in FIG. 12 in an assembled form. FIG. 12 illustrates a structure of the third conductor 114, the fourth conductor 115, the second switch 116, the second control circuit 117, the first feed member 118, the circuit board 111, the ground plane 112, and the first substrate 113.

[0118] As shown in FIG. 13, the first feed member 118 is connected between the circuit board 111 and the third conductor 114 to transfer the current from the feed source to the third conductor 114, and then the current flows from the third conductor 114 to the fourth conductor 115 through the second switch 116.

[0119] For example, referring to FIG. 11 and FIG. 13, the second control circuit 117 may be connected to the circuit board 111. The second control circuit 117 may include a first section 1171 located on the circuit board 111 and a second section 1172 connected between the circuit board 111 and the fourth conductor 115. The first section 1171 of the second control circuit 117 may be a conductive structure such as a pin and / or a lead of the circuit board 111, and the second section 1172 of the second control circuit 117 may be a metalized via hole formed in the first substrate 113.

[0120] In some other embodiments, the second section 1172 of the second control circuit 117 may alternatively be another structure such as a metal wire or a metal pillar, provided that current transmission between the circuit board 111 and the second switch 116 can be implemented.

[0121] For example, the second section 1172 of the second control circuit 117 passes through the metal layer 124 from the circuit board 111 and is connected to the fourth conductor 115. The second section 1172 of the second control circuit 117 is spaced apart from the ground plane 112 to prevent a short circuit.

[0122] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 11 and FIG. 13, the first feed member 118 may include a first section 1181 located on the circuit board 111 and a second section 1182 connected between the circuit board 111 and the third conductor 114. The first section 1181 of the first feed member 118 may be a pin of the circuit board 111, and the second section 1182 of the first feed member 118 may be a metalized via hole formed in the first substrate 113.

[0123] In some other embodiments, the second section 1182 of the first feed member 118 may alternatively be another structure such as a metal wire or a metal pillar, provided that current transmission between the circuit board 111 and the third conductor 114 can be implemented.

[0124] In some other embodiments, the first feed member 118 may alternatively be a structure such as a probe. This is not limited in this application.

[0125] For example, the second section 1182 of the first feed member 118 passes through the ground plane 112 from the circuit board 111 and is connected to the third conductor 114. The second section 1182 of the first feed member 118 is spaced apart from the ground plane 112 to prevent a short circuit.

[0126] In this application, the current output by the feed source is transmitted to the first feed member 118 through the circuit board 111, and the first feed member 118 feeds the current into the third conductor 114. The second control circuit 117 controls status of the second switch 116 in response to a phase adjustment instruction, to change a phase of the current, so that the first phase shift component 11 implements a first phase adjustment.

[0127] The following describes the coupling conductor 120, a connection structure between the coupling conductor 120 and the first phase shift component 11, and a connection structure between the coupling conductor 120 and the second phase shift component 12 by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0128] Refer to FIG. 14. FIG. 14 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 14 illustrates an assembled structure of the structure shown in FIG. 12 as well as a structure of the dielectric member 119 and the coupling conductor 120 according to some embodiments.

[0129] In some embodiments, the dielectric member 119 may be of a hollow structure. The fourth conductor 115 may be located in a middle of the dielectric member 119. The second switch 116 may be located in the middle of the dielectric member 119, to implement efficient space sharing of the second switch 116 and the dielectric member 119. In addition, the dielectric member 119 may further restrict the electromagnetic wave radiated by the fourth conductor 115 in a middle space, so as to increase efficiency of coupling transmission.

[0130] For example, the dielectric member 119 may be provided with a mounting recess or a mounting hole, an opening of the mounting recess faces the fourth conductor 115, and the fourth conductor 115 is located in a middle of the mounting recess or the mounting hole.

[0131] In some other embodiments, the dielectric member 119 may further include a plurality of dielectric columns, for example, three, four, or another quantity. The plurality of dielectric columns are supported between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120. For example, the plurality of dielectric columns may be fastened between the first substrate 113 and the second substrate 121. In addition, the dielectric member 119 may be further filled between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120. This is not limited in this application.

[0132] Refer to FIG. 14 and FIG. 15. FIG. 15 is a diagram of an interior of part of the structure shown in FIG. 14 in an assembled form.

[0133] In some embodiments, a dimension H of the dielectric member 119 in a direction perpendicular to a plane on which the second conductor 127 is located is less than or equal to 0.5 operating wavelength.

[0134] In this application, a distance between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120 may be controlled by designing the dimension H of the dielectric member 119 in the direction perpendicular to the plane on which the second conductor 127 is located. Because current transmission between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120 is implemented in a coupled feeding manner, an excessively long distance between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120 reduces transmission efficiency. The dimension H of the dielectric member 119 in the direction perpendicular to the plane on which the second conductor 127 is located is limited in a range of less than or equal to 0.5 operating wavelength, to ensure the transmission efficiency between the fourth conductor 115 and the coupling conductor 120.

[0135] Refer to FIG. 16. FIG. 16 is a diagram of a projection of the coupling conductor 120 shown in FIG. 5 on the first plane.

[0136] In some embodiments, the coupling conductor 120 may include a ring conductor 1201 and a metal member 1202 located in a middle of the ring conductor 1201. The metal member 1202 is connected to the ring conductor 1201. The metal member 1202 may have a third feedpoint 1203. The third feedpoint 1203 may be located in a structural center of the ring conductor 1201. The current on the coupling conductor 120 may flow out from the third feedpoint 1203. In some other embodiments, the third feedpoint 1203 may alternatively deviate from the structural center of the ring conductor 1201.

[0137] For example, the ring conductor 1201 may be of a symmetric structure, and the third feedpoint 1203 may be located in the structural center of the ring conductor 1201.

[0138] For example, the ring conductor 1201 is of an end-to-end-connected structure, and may be of a circular ring structure or a polygonal ring structure (for example, a rectangular ring structure), or may be in another shape. This is not limited in this application. In some other embodiments, the ring conductor 1201 may alternatively be of another structure. This is not limited in this application.

[0139] For example, a width of the ring conductor 1201 may be uniform. In some other embodiments, the width of the ring conductor 1201 may alternatively be non-uniform, and in this case, it may also be considered that the ring conductor 1201 is of a symmetric structure.

[0140] For example, projections, on the first plane, of the structural center of the ring conductor 1201 of the coupling conductor 120 and the structural center of the fourth conductor 115 may overlap, to ensure efficiency of transmitting the current between the coupling conductor 120 and the fourth conductor 115 in a coupled feeding manner.

[0141] Refer to FIG. 17 and FIG. 18. FIG. 17 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5 according to some embodiments. FIG. 18 is a diagram of an interior of the structure shown in FIG. 17 in an assembled form. FIG. 17 illustrates the structure shown in FIG. 12 as well as a structure of a dielectric member 119, a coupling conductor 120, a ground member 122, a second feed member 123, a second substrate 121, and a metal layer 124.

[0142] In some embodiments, there may be two ground members 122, and the two ground members 122 are spaced apart from each other and connected to the metal layer 124. Alternatively, there may be one, three, or more than three ground members 122. This is not limited in this application.

[0143] In some embodiments, the second feed member 123 may be a metalized via hole formed in the second substrate 121. In some other embodiments, the second feed member 123 may alternatively be of another structure such as a metal wire or a metal pillar, as long as current transmission between the coupling conductor 120 and the first conductor 126 can be implemented (referring to FIG. 5).

[0144] For example, the second feed member 123 passes through the metal layer 124 from the coupling conductor 120 and is connected to the first conductor 126 (referring to FIG. 5). The second feed member 123 is spaced apart from the metal layer 124 to prevent a short circuit.

[0145] The following describes structures of parts of the second phase shift component 12, manners of connection between the parts, and a connection structure between the second phase shift component 12 and the first phase shift component 11 by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0146] Refer to FIG. 19 and FIG. 20. FIG. 19 is a diagram of a structure of the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127 shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 20 is a diagram of projections of the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127 shown in FIG. 19 on the first plane.

[0147] In some embodiments, the second conductor 127 may be of a ring structure, and the first conductor 126 may be located in a middle of the second conductor 127. The first conductor 126 may have a first feedpoint 1260, and the first phase shift component 11 feeds the current from the first feedpoint 1260 of the first conductor 126. It should be noted that the second conductor 127 is of an end-to-end-connected structure, and may be of a circular ring structure or a polygonal ring structure (for example, a rectangular ring structure), or may be in another shape. This is not limited in this application.

[0148] For example, the first feedpoint 1260 may deviate from a structural center of the second conductor 127. The second conductor 127 has a first side edge 1271 and a second side edge 1272 that are opposite to each other. There is a first distance D1 between the first feedpoint 1260 and the first side edge 1271 of the second conductor 127. There is a second distance D2 between the first feedpoint 1260 and the second side edge 1272 of the second conductor 127. There is a difference D between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2. In other words, there may be a difference D between a distance from the second feedpoint 1140 to the first side edge 1271 of the second conductor 127 and a distance from the second feedpoint 1140 to the second side edge 1272 of the second conductor 127.

[0149] For example, the second conductor 127 may be of a symmetric structure.

[0150] For example, a width of the second conductor 127 may be uniform. In this embodiment, the width of the second conductor 127 may be uniform. In other words, widths of all sections of the second conductor 127 in a circumferential direction are equal. In this application, the width of the second conductor 127 is uniform, and it may be considered that the second conductor 127 is of a symmetric structure.

[0151] In some other embodiments, the width of the second conductor 127 may alternatively be non-uniform. In other words, in the circumferential direction of the second conductor 127, a width of at least a part of sections is not equal to widths of other sections, and there is a certain difference such as 0.01 operating wavelength and 0.03 operating wavelength. In this application, the width of the second conductor 127 is non-uniform, and there is a certain difference between the width of at least a part of sections of the second conductor 127 and the widths of other sections in the circumferential direction of the second conductor 127. In this case, it may also be considered that the second conductor 127 is of a symmetric structure.

[0152] Refer to FIG. 21 and FIG. 22. FIG. 21 is a diagram of a structure of the first conductor 126, the second conductor 127, and the first switch 128 shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 22 is a diagram of a projection of the structure shown in FIG. 21 on the first plane. A projection area of the first switch 128 in FIG. 22 is represented by a dashed line.

[0153] In some embodiments, the first switch 128 may be connected between the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127. The current on the first conductor 126 flows into the second conductor 127 through the first switch 128.

[0154] For example, the first switch 128 may be located in the middle of the second conductor 127. In this application, the second conductor 127 is designed to be of a ring structure, and the first conductor 126 and the first switch 128 are placed in the middle of the second conductor 127, so that the second conductor 127, the first conductor 126, and the first switch 128 share space in a plane dimension, to further reduce the area occupied by the first phase shift component 11, thereby reducing the area occupied by the antenna unit 1.

[0155] For example, the first switch 128 may include a third independent switch 1281 and a fourth independent switch 1282. The third independent switch 1281 is connected between the first feedpoint 1260 and the first side edge 1271 of the second conductor 127, and the fourth independent switch 1282 is connected between the first feedpoint 1260 and the second side edge 1272 of the second conductor 127. When the third independent switch 1281 is turned on and the fourth independent switch 1282 is turned off, a current flows from the first feedpoint 1260 to the first side edge 1271 of the second conductor 127, to form a third current. When the third independent switch 1281 is turned off and the fourth independent switch 1282 is turned on, a current flows from the first feedpoint 1260 to the second side edge 1272 of the second conductor 127, to form a fourth current.

[0156] In this application, referring to FIG. 20 and FIG. 22, there is a difference D between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2. Therefore, a linear distance of a path along which the third current flows from the first feedpoint 1260 to the second conductor 127 is different from a linear distance of a path along which the fourth current flows from the first feedpoint 1260 to the second conductor 127, so that a phase difference is generated between the third current and the fourth current. In addition, the phase difference between the third current and the fourth current varies with the difference D between the distance from the first feedpoint 1260 to the first side edge 1271 of the second conductor 127 and the distance from the first feedpoint 1260 to the second side edge 1272 of the second conductor 127. By designing the difference D, the phase difference between the third current and the fourth current can be controlled, that is, a phase change generated by the second phase shift component 12 can be controlled.

[0157] For example, a difference D between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2 may be between 0.05 operating wavelength and 0.25 operating wavelength. Controlling the difference D between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2 to be between 0.05 operating wavelength and 0.25 operating wavelength enables the second phase shift component 12 to implement a plurality of phase changes of 0° and 180° / n1, where n1 is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2. For example, the second phase shift component 12 implements a plurality of phase changes of, for example, 0° and 90°, 0° and 45°, or 0° and 22.5°. In addition, a smaller difference between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2 indicates a smaller phase difference between the two phases that can be implemented by the second phase shift component 12.

[0158] For example, the difference D between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2 is between 0.15 operating wavelength and 0.25 operating wavelength. In other words, the difference D between the first distance and the second distance satisfies: 0.05 operating wavelength ≤ D ≤ 0.25 operating wavelength. The second phase shift component 12 implements phase changes of 0° and 90°. If the difference between the first distance D1 and the second distance D2 is between 0.05 operating wavelength and 0.15 operating wavelength, the second phase shift component 12 implements phase changes of 0° and 45°.

[0159] Refer to FIG. 23. FIG. 23 is a diagram of part of the structure shown in FIG. 5 according to some embodiments. FIG. 23 illustrates a structure of a first conductor 126, a second conductor 127, a first switch 128, and a first control circuit 129 according to some embodiments.

[0160] In some embodiments, there may be two first control circuits 129, and the two first control circuits 129 are spaced apart from each other and connected to the second conductor 127. The first control circuit 129 can separately send a current to the third independent switch 1281 and the fourth independent switch 1282 in response to a phase adjustment instruction, to cause the third independent switch 1281 and the fourth independent switch 1282 to be in different on / off states, thereby implementing different phase changes.

[0161] For example, the current sent by the first control circuit 129 may be a direct current. The direct current sent by the first control circuit 129 flows to the third independent switch 1281 or the fourth independent switch 1282 through the second conductor 127, to cause the third independent switch 1281 and the fourth independent switch 1282 to be in different on / off states.

[0162] In some other embodiments, the first control circuit 129 may alternatively be connected to the first switch 128. This is not limited in this application.

[0163] For example, the first switch 128 may be located on an upper side of the first conductor 126, or may be located on a lower side of the first conductor 126. This is not limited in this application.

[0164] Refer to FIG. 23, FIG. 24, and FIG. 25. FIG. 24 is a schematic exploded view of part of the structure of the antenna unit 1 shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 25 is a diagram of an interior of part of the structure shown in FIG. 24. FIG. 25 is a diagram of an interior of an assembled structure of the third substrate 125, the first conductor 126, the second conductor 127, the first switch 128 connected between the first conductor 126 and the second conductor 127, and the first control circuit 129.

[0165] For example, the first control circuit 129 may be connected to an external power supply (not shown). The first control circuit 129 may include a first section 1291 and a second section 1292 connected between the first section 1291 and the second conductor 127. The first section 1291 of the first control circuit 129 may be a conductive structure, such as a pin and / or a lead, formed in the third substrate 125, and the second section 1292 of the first control circuit 129 may be a metalized via hole formed in the third substrate 125. The first section may be connected to an external power supply via a conductive structure formed on the third substrate 125.

[0166] In some other embodiments, the second section 1292 of the first control circuit 129 may alternatively be another structure such as a metal wire or a metal pillar, provided that current transmission between the external power supply and the first switch 128 can be implemented.

[0167] Refer to FIG. 25 and FIG. 26. FIG. 26 is a diagram of an interior of the structure shown in FIG. 24 in an assembled form.

[0168] For example, the coupling conductor 120 receives an electromagnetic wave radiated by the fourth conductor 115, and feeds the electromagnetic wave into the first conductor 126 through the second feed member 123. Specifically, the second feed member 123 is connected between the third feedpoint 1203 of the coupling conductor 120 and the first feedpoint 1260 of the first conductor 126, and transmits the surface current of the coupling conductor 120 to the first conductor 126. Then, the surface current flows from the first conductor 126 to the second conductor 127 through the first switch 128.

[0169] In this application, the second phase shift component 12 receives the current from the first phase shift component 11 through the second feed member 123, performs a second phase adjustment on the current, and converts a current into an electromagnetic wave for radiation.

[0170] Refer to FIG. 10, FIG. 22, and Table 1. Table 1 lists correspondences between phases of the antenna unit 1 shown in FIG. 5 and statuses of four independent switch according to some embodiments. Table 1 First independent switch 1161Second independent switch 1162Third independent switch 1281Fourth independent switch 1282Antenna statusOnTurned offOnTurned offPhase of 0°OnTurned offTurned offOnPhase of 90°Turned offOnOnTurned offPhase of 180°Turned offOnTurned offOnPhase of 270°

[0171] In this embodiment, the second feedpoint 1140 of the first phase shift component 11 may be located in the structural center of the fourth conductor 115, so that the first phase shift component 11 implements phase changes of 0° and 180° via the second switch 116. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, when the first independent switch 1161 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned on and the second independent switch 1162 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned off, the first phase shift component 11 implements a phase of 0°. When the first independent switch 1161 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned off and the second independent switch 1162 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned on, the first phase shift component 11 implements a phase of 180°.

[0172] In addition, the first feedpoint 1260 of the second phase shift component 12 deviates from the structural center of the second conductor 127, to implement a plurality of phase changes of, for example, 0° and 90°, 0° and 45°, or 0° and 22.5°. In this application, an example in which the second phase shift component 12 implements phase changes of 0° and 90° is used for description. For example, as shown in FIG. 22, when the third independent switch 1281 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned on and the fourth independent switch 1282 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned off, the second phase shift component 12 implements a phase of 0°. When the third independent switch 1281 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned off and the fourth independent switch 1282 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned on, the second phase shift component 12 implements a phase of 90°.

[0173] In this application, the current has phase changes of 0° and 180° after undergoing a first phase adjustment by the 1 st< phase shift component. A current having a phase of 0° has phase changes of 0° and 90° after undergoing a second phase adjustment by the 2 nd< phase shift component, and a current having a phase of 180° has phase changes of 180° and 270° after undergoing the second phase adjustment by the 2 nd< phase shift component. In other words, after undergoing two phase adjustments, the current has four phase changes: 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°.

[0174] For example, after the current is phase-shifted twice by the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12, an obtained result is shown in Table 1. When the first independent switch 1161 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned on, the second independent switch 1162 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned off, the third independent switch 1281 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned on, and the fourth independent switch 1282 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned off, the antenna unit 1 is in a phase of 0°. When the first independent switch 1161 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned on, the second independent switch 1162 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned off, the third independent switch 1281 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned off, and the fourth independent switch 1282 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned on, the antenna unit 1 is in a phase of 90°. When the first independent switch 1161 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned off, the second independent switch 1162 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned on, the third independent switch 1281 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned on, and the fourth independent switch 1282 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned off, the antenna unit 1 is in a phase of 180°. When the first independent switch 1161 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned off, the second independent switch 1162 of the first phase shift component 11 is turned on, the third independent switch 1281 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned off, and the fourth independent switch 1282 of the second phase shift component 12 is turned on, the antenna unit 1 is in a phase of 270°.

[0175] In some other embodiments, there may be other correspondences between the phases of the antenna unit 1 and the statuses of the four switches. This is not limited in this application.

[0176] In some other embodiments, the second feedpoint 1140 may alternatively be deviate from the structural center of the fourth conductor 115, to implement a plurality of phase changes of, for example, 0° and 90°, 0° and 45°, or 0° and 22.5°.

[0177] In some other embodiments, the second feedpoint 1140 may alternatively be located in the structural center of the fourth conductor 115, to implement phase changes of 0° and 180°.

[0178] For example, two phase changes implemented by the first phase shift component 11 may be different from or identical to two phase changes implemented by the second phase shift component 12. In this application, phase changes that can be implemented by the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 may be independently adjusted and controlled, to enable the antenna unit 1 to implement different phase changes, thereby meeting diversified requirements.

[0179] In this application, the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 each implement two phase changes via a switch. In some other embodiments, the first phase shift component 11 and / or the second phase shift component 12 may alternatively each implement three or more phase changes via a switch. This is not limited in this application.

[0180] In this application, the first phase shift component 11 and the second phase shift component 12 each implement two phase changes via a switch. In some other embodiments, the first phase shift component 11 and / or the second phase shift component 12 may alternatively implement continuous phase adjustment by using a phase adjustment material such as liquid crystal. Theoretically, there may be numerous phase changes. This is not limited in this application. Alternatively, the first phase shift component 11 and / or the second phase shift component 12 may implement two phase changes by using a phase adjustment material such as liquid crystal.

[0181] The following describes a structure of an antenna unit 1 in which liquid crystal is used as a phase shift structure by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this embodiment, liquid crystal is used as a phase shift structure in the first phase shift component 11 to replace the second switch 116. The second phase shift component 12 receives the current from the first phase shift component 11 through the second feed member 123, performs a second phase adjustment on the current, and converts a current into an electromagnetic wave for radiation. For the second phase shift component 12 and a connection structure between the second phase shift component 12 and the first phase shift component 11 in this embodiment, refer to the embodiment shown in FIG. 25. Details are not described herein again. The following describes a structure of the first phase shift component 11 merely as an example.

[0182] Refer to FIG. 27. FIG. 27 is a diagram of an interior of part of the structure shown in FIG. 26 according to some other embodiments. The fourth conductor 115 in FIG. 27 is represented by a dashed line.

[0183] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may include a circuit board 111, a ground plane 112, a first substrate 113, a fourth conductor 115, and a first feed member 118. The circuit board 111 and the first substrate 113 are disposed in a laminated manner, and the ground plane 112 and the fourth conductor 115 are oppositely located on two sides of the first substrate 113. The fourth conductor 115 is configured to receive the current of the feed source. The first feed member 118 is connected between the circuit board 111 and the fourth conductor 115, to transfer the current from the feed source to the fourth conductor 115.

[0184] In addition, the antenna unit 1 may further include a dielectric member 119, a liquid crystal layer 130, two electrodes (not shown), a second substrate 121, and a coupling conductor 120.

[0185] The coupling conductor 120 is located on an upper side of the fourth conductor 115, and the fourth conductor 115 may transfer a current to the second phase shift component 12 through the coupling conductor 120. The dielectric member 119 is located between the coupling conductor 120 and the fourth conductor 115. The dielectric member 119 may be of a hollow structure, and the liquid crystal layer 130 may be located in a middle of the dielectric member 119. The two electrodes may be located on two opposite sides of the liquid crystal layer 130. The second substrate 121 may be fastened on a side that is of the dielectric member 119 and that faces away from the fourth conductor 115, and the coupling conductor 120 may be disposed on a side that is of the second substrate 121 and that faces the fourth conductor 115. In some other embodiments, the two electrodes may alternatively be located on a same side of the liquid crystal layer 130.

[0186] In this embodiment, the current from the feed source flows into the fourth conductor 115 through the first feed member 118. The fourth conductor 115 radiates an electromagnetic wave obtained by converting a current. The electromagnetic wave is transmitted to the coupling conductor 120 through the liquid crystal layer 130. The coupling conductor 120 converts a received electromagnetic wave into a surface current, and transfers the surface current to the second phase shift component 12.

[0187] For example, the liquid crystal phase shift component may include a liquid crystal layer 130 and two electrodes. The liquid crystal phase shift component is located on a side that is of the fourth conductor 115 and that faces the second conductor 127, to adjust a phase of the electromagnetic wave emitted by the fourth conductor 115. The phase of the electromagnetic wave emitted by the fourth conductor 115 changes after passing through the liquid crystal layer 130 of the liquid crystal phase shift component, so that the first phase shift component 11 can adjust a phase of a current. Specifically, the two electrodes are configured to adjust a dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer 130. The two electrodes can send a current to the two electrodes in response to a phase adjustment instruction, to adjust the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer 130 by changing a voltage between the two electrodes. When an electromagnetic wave passes through the liquid crystal layer 130 having a different dielectric constant, a phase of the electromagnetic wave also changes accordingly. By applying different voltages between the two electrodes to adjust the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer 130, a phase of an electromagnetic wave passing through the liquid crystal layer 130 can be adjusted, so that different phase changes can be implemented. For example, the two electrodes may be a positive electrode and a negative electrode.

[0188] In this embodiment, continuously applying voltages between the two electrodes enables the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer 130 to change continuously, so that a current can continuously change in phase. Theoretically, there may be numerous phase changes. This is not limited in this application.

[0189] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may implement a multi-bit phase shift function by using a plurality of phase shift components. The following describes a specific implementation of the antenna unit 1 capable of implementing the multi-bit phase shift function by using examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0190] Refer to FIG. 28. FIG. 28 is a diagram of a structure of the antenna unit 1 shown in FIG. 4 according to some other embodiments.

[0191] In some embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may include a plurality of first phase shift components 11 that are disposed in a stacked manner. The first phase shift components 11 may sequentially receive currents from a first phase shift component 11 on a lower side, and adjust phases of the currents.

[0192] For example, the antenna unit 1 may include two first phase shift components 11 that are disposed in a stacked manner. A current from the feed source passes through the two first phase shift components 11 to implement two phase adjustments; and an adjusted current passes through the second phase shift component 12 to undergo a third phase adjustment, and is then radiated out, so that 3-bit phase shift is implemented.

[0193] In some other embodiments, the antenna unit 1 may further include three, five, or another quantity of first phase shift components 11 that are disposed in a stacked manner. A current from the feed source passes through a plurality of first phase shift components 11 to undergo a plurality of phase adjustments; and an adjusted current passes through the second phase shift component 12 to undergo one more phase adjustment, and is then radiated out, so that multi-bit phase shift is implemented.

[0194] In some embodiments, any one of the plurality of first phase shift components 11 may implement two phase changes via the switch structure shown in FIG. 25.

[0195] In some embodiments, when the antenna unit 1 includes a plurality of first phase shift components 11, the circuit board 111 transmits a current to the first phase shift component 11 through the first feed member 118. Two adjacent first phase shift components 11 may transmit a current through the second feed member 123, and finally transmit the current to the second phase shift component 12 and then radiate the current out.

[0196] In some other embodiments, any one of the plurality of first phase shift components 11 may implement continuous phase adjustment or two phase changes via the liquid crystal phase shift component shown in FIG. 26.

[0197] In some other embodiments, the plurality of first phase shift components 11 may include at least one first phase shift component 11 that implements two phase changes via the switch structure shown in FIG. 25 and at least one first phase shift component 11 that implements continuous phase adjustment or two phase changes via the liquid crystal phase shift component shown in FIG. 26. In this embodiment, the liquid crystal phase shift component shown in FIG. 26 is combined with the switch structure shown in FIG. 25 to perform phase shift for a plurality of times, so that phase shift at any angle between 0° and 360° can be more easily implemented.

[0198] Refer to FIG. 29. FIG. 29 is a diagram of a structure of an antenna 10 according to some embodiments of this application.

[0199] In some embodiments, the antenna 10 may include a plurality of antenna units 1 arranged in an array. For example, a distance between structural centers of two adjacent antenna units 1 may be less than or equal to 0.5 operating wavelength.

[0200] In this application, the antenna unit 1 implements a multi-bit phase shift function by using a plurality of phase shift components that are disposed in a stacked manner, and occupies a small area, so that a miniaturization requirement of the antenna unit 1 can be met. When the plurality of antenna units 1 are arranged in an array, the distance between structural centers of two adjacent antenna units 1 is small, so that the antenna 10 has a large scanning angle and has good scanning performance.

[0201] For example, structures of a plurality of antenna units 1 may be the same, or at least one antenna unit 1 may have a different structure from another antenna unit 1.

[0202] For example, the plurality of antenna units 1 may include a first antenna unit and a second antenna unit, and a structure of the first antenna unit is different from a structure of the second antenna unit.

[0203] In some embodiments, quantities of first phase shift components and second phase shift components included in the first antenna unit may be different from those in the second antenna unit. For example, the first antenna unit may include one first phase shift component and one second phase shift component, and the second antenna unit may include two or more first phase shift components and two or more second phase shift components.

[0204] In some other embodiments, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit may include a same quantity of first phase shift components and second phase shift components, but a structure of at least one first phase shift component in the first antenna unit is different from a structure of the first phase shift component in the second antenna unit. For example, the first antenna unit may include one first phase shift component and one second phase shift component, and the second antenna unit may also include one first phase shift component and one second phase shift component. The first phase shift component of the first antenna unit may implement two phase changes via the switch structure shown in FIG. 25, and the first phase shift component of the second antenna unit may implement two phase changes via the liquid crystal phase shift component shown in FIG. 26.

[0205] In some other embodiments, the first antenna unit and / or the second antenna unit may alternatively have another structure. This is not limited in this application.

[0206] The foregoing descriptions are merely specific implementations of this application, but are not intended to limit the protection scope of this application. Any variation or replacement readily figured out by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application shall fall within the protection scope of this application. Embodiments of this application and features in the embodiments may be mutually combined, provided that no conflict occurs. Therefore, the protection scope of this application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An antenna unit, comprising a first phase shift component and a second phase shift component that are disposed in a stacked manner, wherein the first phase shift component is configured to receive a current of a feed source and adjust a phase of the current; the second phase shift component comprises a first conductor, a second conductor, and a first switch connected between the first conductor and the second conductor; the first conductor is configured to receive a current from the first phase shift component; the current on the first conductor flows into the second conductor through the first switch; the first switch is configured to adjust a phase of the current; the second conductor is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave; and the electromagnetic wave is obtained by converting the current.

2. The antenna unit according to claim 1, wherein the first phase shift component comprises a third conductor, a fourth conductor, and a second switch connected between the third conductor and the fourth conductor; the third conductor is configured to receive the current of the feed source; the current on the third conductor flows into the fourth conductor through the second switch; the second switch is configured to adjust a phase of the current; and the fourth conductor is configured to transfer the current to the first conductor.

3. The antenna unit according to claim 2, wherein the fourth conductor is of a ring structure, and the second switch is located in a middle of the fourth conductor.

4. The antenna unit according to claim 3, wherein the fourth conductor is of a symmetric structure, the third conductor comprises a second feedpoint, a feed source feeds the current from the second feedpoint of the third conductor, and the second feedpoint of the third conductor is located in a structural center of the fourth conductor or deviates from the structural center of the fourth conductor.

5. The antenna unit according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the second conductor is of a ring structure, and the first switch is located in a middle of the second conductor.

6. The antenna unit according to claim 5, wherein the second conductor is of a symmetric structure, the first conductor comprises a first feedpoint, the fourth conductor feeds the current from the first feedpoint of the first conductor, and the first feedpoint of the first conductor deviates from a structural center of the second conductor.

7. The antenna unit according to claim 6, wherein the first conductor comprises a first side edge and a second side edge that are opposite to each other, a distance between the first feedpoint of the first conductor and the first side edge of the first conductor is a first distance, a distance between the first feedpoint of the first conductor and the second side edge of the first conductor is a second distance, and a difference D between the first distance and the second distance satisfies: 0.05 operating wavelength ≤ D ≤ 0.25 operating wavelength.

8. The antenna unit according to any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the antenna unit further comprises a first control circuit, and / or the antenna unit further comprises a second control circuit, wherein the first control circuit is connected to the first switch, and the first control circuit is configured to change a status of the first switch; and the second control circuit is connected to the second switch, and the second control circuit is configured to change a status of the second switch.

9. The antenna unit according to claim 1, wherein the first phase shift component comprises a fourth conductor and a liquid crystal phase shift component, the liquid crystal phase shift component is located on a side that is of the fourth conductor and that faces the second conductor, the fourth conductor is configured to receive the current of the feed source and transfer the current to the first conductor, and the liquid crystal phase shift component is configured to adjust a phase of the current.

10. The antenna unit according to claim 9, wherein the liquid crystal phase shift component comprises a liquid crystal layer and two electrodes, the two electrodes are configured to adjust a dielectric constant of the liquid crystal layer, and the two electrodes are located on a same side or two opposite sides of the liquid crystal layer.

11. The antenna unit according to any one of claims 2 to 10, wherein the first phase shift component further comprises a coupling conductor, the coupling conductor is located on a side that is of the fourth conductor and that faces the second conductor, the fourth conductor is configured to radiate an electromagnetic wave, and the coupling conductor is configured to convert a received electromagnetic wave into a current and transfer the current to the first conductor.

12. The antenna unit according to claim 11, wherein at least one of the second conductor, the fourth conductor, and the coupling conductor is of a circular ring structure or a polygonal ring structure.

13. The antenna unit according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the antenna unit further comprises a metal layer, and the metal layer is located between the coupling conductor and the second conductor.

14. The antenna unit according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein the first phase shift component further comprises a dielectric member, the dielectric member is fastened between the fourth conductor and the coupling conductor, and a dimension of the dielectric member in a direction perpendicular to a plane on which the second conductor is located is less than or equal to 0.5 operating wavelength.

15. The antenna unit according to claim 14, wherein a mounting recess or a mounting hole is provided in a middle of the dielectric member, and the fourth conductor is located in a middle of the mounting recess or the mounting hole.

16. An antenna unit, wherein the antenna unit comprises the second phase shift component according to claim 1 and a plurality of first phase shift components according to any one of claims 2 to 8, or the antenna unit comprises a plurality of first phase shift components according to claim 9 or 10; or the antenna unit comprises at least one first phase shift component according to any one of claims 2 to 8 and at least one first phase shift component according to claim 9 or 10.

17. An antenna, comprising a plurality of antenna units according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. A communication apparatus, comprising the antenna unit according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

19. A communication apparatus, comprising the antenna according to claim 17.

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