Building-block antenna structures and methods
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- TW · TW
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- TAOGLAS GROUP HLDG LTD
- Filing Date
- 2024-05-23
- Publication Date
- 2026-08-01
Smart Images
Figure TWG2TB001903556_001 
Figure TWG2TB001903556_002 
Figure TWG2TB001903556_003
Abstract
Description
Building Block Antenna Structure and Method The present disclosure generally relates to multi-band building block antenna structures and, more particularly, in one exemplary aspect, to low-profile multi-band building block antenna structures. [Cross-reference to related applications] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 468,589, filed on May 24, 2023, with the same title, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Traditionally, ceramic patch antennas consist of a ceramic dielectric substrate mounted on a ground plane, which includes a surface metallization layer for operation within a given frequency band. For multi-band ceramic patch antennas, the assignee of the present disclosure has traditionally employed a stacked structure, where two (or more) ceramic dielectric substrates are "stacked" on top of each other to operate within two (or more) different frequency bands. For example, U.S. Patent No. 11,139,550, titled "Stacked Antenna Structure and Method," describes a so-called triple-stacked antenna structure that includes a first antenna, a second antenna, and a third antenna stacked on top of each other in a given order, where each of these antennas has one or more individual feeds that are electrically connected to a circuit board to receive, for example, Global Positioning System ("GPS") signals. However, these stacked antenna structures may be undesirable in applications where the total height of the antenna structure is a design constraint. Thus, there is a need for new techniques to achieve multi-band frequency operation within a low-profile antenna structure. The present disclosure meets the foregoing needs by providing, inter alia, methods, devices, and systems for achieving a low-profile antenna structure that operates within two (or more) different frequency bands. In one aspect, a building block antenna structure is disclosed. In one embodiment, the building block antenna structure includes an external antenna structure having one or more external antenna feeds and an external antenna radiator. The external antenna structure further includes an internal antenna accommodation perimeter, which further includes one or more feed gap regions configured to accommodate one or more internal antenna feeds. The building block antenna structure further includes an internal antenna structure having a perimeter that is similar in shape to the internal antenna accommodation perimeter. The internal antenna structure further includes one or more internal antenna feeds and an internal antenna radiator. The external antenna structure has a thickness similar to that of the internal antenna structure and operates in a frequency band different from that of the internal antenna structure. In one variation, one or more external antenna feeds include two external antenna feeds. In another variation, the two external antenna feeds are offset from each other by 90 degrees (90º). In yet another variation, the two external antenna feeds are offset from each other by 180 degrees (180º). In yet another variant, one or more internal antenna feeders include two internal antenna feeders. In yet another variant, the two internal antenna feeders are positioned in a similar orientation to the two external antenna feeders. In yet another variant, a first internal antenna feeder of the two internal antenna feeders is positioned in a similar orientation to a first external antenna feeder of the two external antenna feeders, and a second internal antenna feeder of the two internal antenna feeders is offset by ninety degrees (90°) from a second external antenna feeder of the two external antenna feeders. In yet another variant, a first internal antenna feeder of the two internal antenna feeders is positioned in a similar orientation to a first external antenna feeder of the two external antenna feeders, and a second internal antenna feeder of the two internal antenna feeders is offset by one hundred and eighty degrees (180°) from a second external antenna feeder of the two external antenna feeders. In yet another variant, one or more external antenna feeders include a single external antenna feeder, and one or more internal antenna feeders include a single internal antenna feeder. In yet another variant, the single external antenna feeder and the single internal antenna feeder are positioned on the same side of the modular antenna structure. In yet another variant, the single external antenna feeder is offset by ninety degrees (90°) relative to the single internal antenna feeder. In yet another variant, the single external antenna feeder is offset by one hundred and eighty degrees (180°) relative to the single internal antenna feeder. In yet another variant, multiple solder mask areas are located on the bottom surface of the external antenna structure and on the bottom surface of the internal antenna structure. In yet another variant, the internal antenna structure includes one or more first alignment features configured to engage with one or more second alignment features located on the external antenna structure. In yet another variant, the engagement of the one or more first alignment features with the one or more second alignment features enables the top surface of the internal antenna structure to be coplanar with the top surface of the external antenna structure. In yet another variant, the engagement of the one or more first alignment features with the one or more second alignment features enables the bottom surface of the internal antenna structure to be coplanar with the bottom surface of the external antenna structure. In another embodiment, the modular antenna structure includes: an external antenna structure having one or more external antenna feeders and an external antenna radiator, the external antenna structure further including an intermediate antenna accommodating periphery, the intermediate antenna accommodating periphery further having one or more intermediate feeder gap regions, the one or more intermediate feeder gap regions being configured to accommodate one or more intermediate antenna feeders; an intermediate antenna structure having an external periphery similar in shape to the intermediate antenna accommodating periphery, the intermediate antenna structure further including an internal antenna accommodating periphery, the internal antenna accommodating periphery further having one or more internal feeder gap regions, the one or more internal feeder gap regions being configured to accommodate one or more internal antenna feeders; and an internal antenna structure having a periphery similar in shape to the internal antenna accommodating periphery, the internal antenna structure including one or more internal antenna feeders and an internal antenna radiator. In one variant, the external antenna structure has a thickness similar to that of the intermediate antenna structure and the internal antenna structure. In another variant, the external antenna structure operates in a frequency band different from that of the internal antenna structure. In yet another variant, the intermediate antenna structure operates in a frequency band different from both the internal antenna structure and the external antenna structure. In another aspect, a system-level implementation for the modular antenna mentioned above is also disclosed. In yet another aspect, a method for manufacturing and using the modular antenna mentioned above is also disclosed. Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will be directly recognized by those skilled in the art with reference to the accompanying drawings and the detailed description of the exemplary embodiments given below. A detailed description of various embodiments and variants of the apparatus and method of the present disclosure is now provided. It should be noted that, where feasible, similar or like reference numerals may be used in the drawings and may indicate similar or like functions. The drawings depict only embodiments of the modular antenna structure and exemplary systems integrating these modular antenna structures for illustrative purposes. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods shown may be employed without departing from the principles described herein. For example, although the various embodiments discussed herein are mainly described with respect to the building-block antenna structures of two antenna elements and three antenna elements, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the present disclosure that these building-block antenna structures are merely exemplary, and based on the building-block antenna structures described herein, it is easy to understand the building-block antenna structures including four (or more) antenna elements. In addition, although mainly discussed with respect to a specific global navigation satellite system ("GNSS") operation scenario, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the present disclosure that the techniques described herein can be integrally incorporated into other antenna operation scenarios outside the GNSS band. Exemplary building-block antenna structure Now referring to FIGS. 1A to 1K, a first exemplary building-block antenna structure 100 is shown and described in detail. Specifically, referring to FIG. 1A, the first exemplary building-block antenna structure 100 mainly consists of an external antenna structure 110 and an internal antenna structure 130. FIG. 1B shows various features of the exemplary external antenna structure 110. The external antenna structure 110 may include a generally rectangular outer contour and may be made of a ceramic material with a relative dielectric constant of 63. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1B, the external antenna structure 110 consists of a square-shaped outer contour, and each of the sides of the square has a similar length. However, from the present disclosure, those skilled in the art will recognize that in alternative variations, one or more of the sides may have a length different from the other sides. In addition, although the external antenna structure 110 is shown as a four-sided polygon in FIG. 1B, from the present disclosure, those skilled in the art will recognize that alternative variations may have five or more sides (e.g., pentagon, hexagon, octagon, etc.) or fewer than four sides (e.g., triangle, circle, ellipse, etc.). From the present disclosure, these variations and other variations are apparent to those skilled in the art. Referring again to FIG. 1B, the external antenna structure 110 may include an external antenna radiator 112 and one or more external antenna feeders 116. As shown in FIG. 1B, the external antenna structure 110 includes only a single external antenna feeder 116, but it can be readily understood that more than one feeder may be used in some embodiments (e.g., see FIGS. 1I - 1K, which show two external antenna feeders 116a, 116b). The size of the external antenna radiator 112 may be designed to operate within a given frequency band (e.g., the L5 GPS frequency band of 1176 MHz). The external antenna structure 110 may also include an internal antenna receiving perimeter 119. The shape of the internal antenna receiving perimeter 119 is shown as a square shape, but in accordance with the present disclosure, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other shapes with more or fewer than four (4) sides may be selected, for example, based on the outer perimeter of the internal antenna structure 130. The internal antenna receiving perimeter 119 may also include one or more internal feeder gap regions 114. As shown in FIG. 1B, the external antenna structure 110 includes four (4) internal feeder gap regions 114, each of which is located at the center of each of the sides of the internal antenna receiving perimeter 119. By having four (4) internal feeder gap regions 114, the internal antenna feeders (136, FIG. 1C) for the internal antenna structure 130 can be positioned at 0°, 90°, or 180° for a single - feeder stacked antenna 100 (see FIGS. 1F - 1H) and a dual - feeder stacked antenna 100 (see FIGS. 1I - 1K). The external antenna structure 110 may also include an external antenna alignment feature 118, which may be used to illustrate aligning the internal antenna structure 130 with the external antenna structure 110 and / or fixing the internal antenna structure 130 to the external antenna structure 110 (see also FIG. 1E). Referring now to FIG. 1C, a perspective view of the internal antenna structure 130 is shown and described in detail. The internal antenna structure 130 may be composed of a ceramic material with a relative dielectric constant of 20. The internal antenna structure 130 is shown as having a square contour, where the lengths of the four (4) sides are equal. However, as described above, the number of sides and the specific outer contour of the internal antenna structure 130 may vary in alternative variations. Additionally, the internal antenna structure 130 is shown as having a single internal antenna feeder 136. However, it is obvious that in some embodiments, alternative embodiments may have two or more internal antenna feeders (e.g., see FIGS. 1I to 1K). The size of the internal antenna radiator 132 may be designed to operate within a given frequency band (e.g., the L1 GPS frequency band of 1575 MHz). Although the stacked antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A is designed to operate jointly in the L1 and L5 GPS frequency bands, according to the present disclosure, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that other suitable frequency bands, whether in other GPS frequency bands (e.g., the L2 GPS frequency band of 1227.60 MHz) or in other communication protocol frequency bands (e.g., cellular, Internet of Things (IoT), etc.), can be easily replaced in alternative embodiments. Referring now to FIG. 1D, the underside of the stacked antenna structure 100 is shown, where the vast majority of the underside of the internal antenna structure 130 and the external antenna structure 110 is metallized. Exceptions to this metallization occur in the feeder gap region 114 and near the external antenna feeder 116 and the internal antenna feeder 136. FIG. 1E shows the internal antenna alignment feature 138 and the external antenna alignment feature 118. These alignment features 118, 138 can be used to align the external antenna structure 110 with the internal antenna structure 130 such that the top and bottom surfaces of these antenna structures 110, 130 are substantially coplanar with each other. Although the external antenna alignment feature 118 is shown positioned towards the bottom corners of the internal antenna receiving perimeter 119, according to the present disclosure, it is easily understood by those skilled in the art that these external antenna alignment features 118 can be positioned towards the top of the internal antenna receiving perimeter 119 or even, in some embodiments, in the middle of the internal antenna receiving perimeter 119. The internal antenna structure 130 and the external antenna structure 110 can be fixed to each other using an adhesive. However, according to the present disclosure, it is easily understood by those skilled in the art that alternative fastening devices, such as mechanical clamps, can be used in alternative variations. Referring now to FIG. 1L, a variant of the modular antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A is shown. Specifically, FIG. 1L shows the lower side of the modular antenna structure 100 and the PCB layout 250 for the modular antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1L. A variant of the modular antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A shows a solder mask 200 applied to the lower side of the modular antenna structure 100. As shown in FIG. 1L, the external antenna structure 110 includes four solder mask regions 200a, and the internal antenna structure 130 also includes four solder mask regions 200b. It has been found that adding the solder mask regions 200 to the lower side of the modular antenna structure 100 can effectively eliminate cracks in the modular antenna structure 100 caused by asynchronous thermal expansion during, for example, the solder reflow process. Briefly, in some manufacturing processes, cracks in the modular antenna structure 100 have been found, which are determined to be caused by different coefficients of thermal expansion between the modular antenna structure 100 and the PCB on which the modular antenna structure 100 is mounted, and are exacerbated by the rise and fall of the temperature of the solder reflow process. This situation is further exacerbated when the modular antenna structure 100 is relatively thin (compared to a thicker modular antenna structure 100) and the corners of the external antenna structure 110 and the internal antenna structure 130 are sharp right-angled shapes. These right-angled shapes cause stress concentration at the corners of the modular antenna structure 100, resulting in cracks during the solder reflow process. The solder mask regions 200b for the internal antenna structure 130 can typically be arranged symmetrically around the center line of the internal antenna structure 130. Those solder mask regions 200b adjacent to the internal antenna feeder 136 may require cutouts 210. These cutouts 210 can help eliminate otherwise possible solder connections across the internal antenna feeder 136 and the solder mask regions 200b. The solder mask regions 200a on the external antenna structure 110 can be offset relative to the center line of the modular antenna structure 100. Since the solder mask regions 200a are offset relative to the internal antenna feeder 136, these solder mask regions 200a can be rectangular in shape and do not require cutout regions 210. When the modular antenna structure 100 includes these solder mask regions 200 and is mounted on the PCB layout 250 during the solder reflow process, cracks associated with the solder reflow process of the modular antenna structure 100 are eliminated. Referring now to FIGS. 1F through 1H, various arrangements of a single-feed variant of the modular antenna structure 100 are shown. FIG. 1F shows a variant in which the external antenna feed line 116 and the internal antenna feed line 136 are positioned on the same side of the modular antenna structure 100. FIG. 1G shows another variant in which the external antenna feed line 116 and the internal antenna feed line 136 are positioned on different sides of the modular antenna structure 100 such that the external antenna feed line 116 and the internal antenna feed line 136 are offset from each other by 90°. FIG. 1H shows yet another variant in which the external antenna feed line 116 and the internal antenna feed line 136 are positioned on different sides of the modular antenna structure 100 such that the external antenna feed line 116 and the internal antenna feed line 136 are offset from each other by 180°. Referring now to FIGS. 1I through 1J, various arrangements of a dual-feed variant of the modular antenna structure 100 are shown. FIG. 1I shows a variant in which the external antenna feed lines 116a, 116b and the internal antenna feed lines 136a, 136b are positioned on the same side of the modular antenna structure 100. FIG. 1J shows another variant in which the external antenna feed line 116b and the internal antenna feed line 136b are positioned on the same side of the modular antenna structure 100 while the internal antenna feed line 136a is positioned 180° offset relative to the external antenna feed line 116a. FIG. 1K shows yet another variant in which the external antenna feed line 116b is positioned 90° offset relative to the internal antenna feed line 136a while the other external antenna feed line 116a is positioned 90° offset relative to the other internal antenna feed line 136a. Those skilled in the art will readily understand these variants and other variants in light of the present disclosure. Referring now to FIGS. 2A through 2D, a second exemplary modular antenna structure 100 is shown and described in detail. Specifically, referring to FIG. 2A, the second exemplary modular antenna structure 100 mainly consists of an external antenna structure 110, an internal antenna structure 130, and an intermediate antenna structure 120. FIG. 2B shows various features of the exemplary external antenna structure 110. The external antenna structure 110 may include a generally rectangular external profile. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2B, the external antenna structure 110 consists of a square-shaped external profile with each of the sides of the square having a similar length. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that in alternative variants, one or more of the sides may have a different length from the other sides in light of the present disclosure. Additionally, although the external antenna structure 110 is shown as a four-sided polygon in FIG. 2B, those skilled in the art will recognize that alternative variants may have five or more sides (e.g., pentagon, hexagon, octagon, etc.) or fewer than four sides (e.g., triangle, circle, ellipse, etc.). These variants and other variants are obvious to those skilled in the art in light of the present disclosure. Referring again to FIG. 2B, the external antenna structure 110 may include an external antenna radiator 112 and one or more external antenna feeders 116. As shown in FIG. 2B, the external antenna structure 110 includes only a single external antenna feeder 116, but it can be readily understood that more than one feeder may be used in some embodiments (e.g., see FIGS. 1I - 1K, which show two external antenna feeders 116a, 116b). The size of the external antenna radiator 112 may be designed to operate within a given frequency band (e.g., the L5 GPS band of 1176 MHz). The external antenna structure 110 may also include an intermediate antenna accommodating perimeter 129. The shape of the intermediate antenna accommodating perimeter 129 is shown as a square shape, but in accordance with the present disclosure, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other shapes with more or fewer than four (4) sides may be selected depending on, for example, the outer perimeter of the intermediate antenna structure 120. The intermediate antenna accommodating perimeter 129 may also include one or more intermediate feeder gap regions 114. As shown in FIG. 2B, the external antenna structure 110 includes four (4) intermediate feeder gap regions 114, each of the intermediate feeder gap regions 114 being located at the center of each of the sides of the intermediate antenna accommodating perimeter 129. By having four (4) intermediate feeder gap regions 114, the intermediate antenna feeders (126, FIG. 2A) for the intermediate antenna structure 120 can be positioned at 0°, 90°, or 180° for both the single - feeder patch antenna 100 (see FIGS. 1F - 1H) and the dual - feeder patch antenna 100 (see FIGS. 1I - 1K). The external antenna structure 110 may also include external antenna alignment features 118 (similar to the external antenna alignment features described above with reference to FIGS. 1A - 1K), which may be used to illustrate aligning the intermediate antenna structure 120 with the external antenna structure 110 and / or fixing the intermediate antenna structure 120 to the external antenna structure 110. Referring now to FIG. 2C, the intermediate antenna structure 110 may include an intermediate antenna radiator 122 and one or more intermediate antenna feeders 126. As shown in FIG. 2C, the intermediate antenna structure 120 includes only a single intermediate antenna feeder 126, but it can be readily understood that more than one feeder may be used in some embodiments (e.g., see FIGS. 1I - 1K, which show two external antenna feeders 116a, 116b). The size of the intermediate antenna radiator 122 may be designed to operate within a given frequency band (e.g., the L2 GPS band of 1228 MHz). The intermediate antenna structure 120 may also include an internal antenna accommodation perimeter 119. The shape of the internal antenna accommodation perimeter 119 is shown as a square shape, but in accordance with the present disclosure, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other shapes with more or fewer than four (4) sides may be selected, for example, based on the outer perimeter of the internal antenna structure 130. The internal antenna accommodation perimeter 119 may also include one or more internal feeder gap regions 114. As shown in FIG. 2C, the intermediate antenna structure 120 includes four (4) internal feeder gap regions 114, each of the internal feeder gap regions 114 being located at the center of each of the sides of the internal antenna accommodation perimeter 119. By having four (4) internal feeder gap regions 114, the internal antenna feeders (136, FIG. 2D) for the internal antenna structure 130 can be positioned at 0°, 90°, or 180° for both single - feeder patch antennas 100 (e.g., see FIGS. 1F - 1H) and dual - feeder patch antennas 100 (e.g., see FIGS. 1I - 1K). The intermediate antenna structure 120 may also include external antenna alignment features 118 (similar to the external antenna alignment features described above with reference to FIGS. 1A - 1K), which may be used to illustrate aligning the intermediate antenna structure 120 with the internal antenna structure 130 and / or fixing the intermediate antenna structure 120 to the internal antenna structure 130. Referring now to FIG. 2D, a perspective view of the internal antenna structure 130 is shown and described in detail. The internal antenna structure 130 is shown as having a square profile, where the lengths of the four (4) sides are equal. However, as described above, the number of sides and the specific outer profile of the internal antenna structure 130 can vary in alternative variations. Additionally, the internal antenna structure 130 is shown as having a single internal antenna feeder 136. However, it is obvious that in some embodiments, alternative embodiments can have two or more internal antenna feeders 136 (e.g., see FIGS. 1I to 1K). The size of the internal antenna radiator 132 can be designed to operate within a given frequency band (e.g., the L1 GPS frequency band of 1575 MHz). Although the modular antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 2A is designed to operate jointly in the L1, L2, and L5 GPS frequency bands, according to the present disclosure, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that other suitable frequency bands, whether in other communication protocol frequency bands (e.g., cellular, Internet of Things (IoT), etc.), can be easily replaced in alternative embodiments. Various arrangements of the single-feed and dual-feed second exemplary modular antenna structures 100 shown in FIG. 2A can be envisioned similar to the arrangements described above with respect to FIGS. 1F to 1H and FIGS. 1I to 1K, although having three antenna structures 110, 120, 130 instead of, for example, the two antenna structures shown in FIG. 1A. Additionally, as described above, variations of the modular antenna structure 100 including four (or more) antenna structures are also envisioned. Exemplary Modular Antenna Structure Performance Referring now to FIGS. 3A to 5, various performance characteristics of the modular antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A compared to prior art stacked antenna structures are shown and described in detail. FIG. 3A shows an exemplary Smith chart 300 for a prior art stacked antenna structure positioned on a 70 mm × 70 mm ground plane, while FIG. 3B shows a Smith chart 350 for the exemplary modular antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A positioned on a similar 70 mm × 70 mm ground plane. As shown in FIGS. 3A to 3B, compared to the prior art stacked antenna structure, the modular antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A has similar performance characteristics in its intended band operation in the L1 and L5 frequency bands. In other words, the modular antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A can achieve similar performance with a similar footprint while being half the height of the prior art stacked antenna structure. FIG. 4 shows a diagram 400 of the S11 parameter according to frequency of the stacked antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A compared to a stacked antenna structure of the prior art. It can be seen that in the L5 band, the stacked antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A has an S11 parameter of -22 dB in the L5 band, while the stacked antenna structure of the prior art has an S11 parameter of -25 dB in the L5 band. In addition, in the L1 band, the stacked antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A has an S11 parameter of -20 dB in the L1 band, while the stacked antenna structure of the prior art has an S11 parameter of -30 dB in the L1 band. The diagram 400 shown in FIG. 4 again shows that the stacked antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A can achieve similar performance with a similar occupied space, while being half the height of the stacked antenna structure of the prior art. FIG. 5 shows a diagram 500 of the antenna efficiency according to frequency of the stacked antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A compared to a stacked antenna structure of the prior art. It can be seen that in the L5 band, the stacked antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A has an antenna efficiency of ~30% in the L5 band, while the stacked antenna structure of the prior art has an almost identical antenna efficiency of ~30% in the L5 band. In addition, in the L1 band, the stacked antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A has an antenna efficiency of ~60% in the L1 band, while the stacked antenna structure of the prior art has an almost identical antenna efficiency of ~60% in the L1 band. The diagram 500 shown in FIG. 5 again shows that the stacked antenna structure 100 of FIG. 1A can achieve similar performance with a similar occupied space, while being half the height of the stacked antenna structure of the prior art. FIG. 6A shows the antenna radiation characteristics 600 of the stacked antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A in the L5 band, while FIG. 6B shows the antenna radiation characteristics 650 of the stacked antenna structure 100 shown in FIG. 1A in the L1 band. FIG. 7A shows the antenna radiation characteristics 700 of the stacked antenna structure of the prior art in the L5 band, while FIG. 7B shows the antenna radiation characteristics of the stacked antenna structure of the prior art in the L1 band. It should be recognized that although certain aspects of the present disclosure are described in terms of specific design examples, these descriptions merely illustrate the broader methods of the present disclosure and can be modified according to the needs of a particular design. In some cases, certain steps may be unnecessary or optional. In addition, certain steps or functions can be added to the disclosed embodiments, or the execution order of two or more steps can be rearranged. All such variations are considered to be covered within the content of the present disclosure described and claimed herein. Although the foregoing detailed description has shown, described, and pointed out the novel features of the present disclosure as applied to various embodiments, it is to be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the devices or methods shown may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the principles of the present disclosure. The foregoing description is the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the present disclosure. The description is in no way limiting, but rather is to be regarded as illustrative of the general principles of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure is to be determined with reference to the claims for patent. 100: Building block antenna structure 110: External antenna structure 112: External antenna radiator 114: Internal feeder gap region 116, 116a, 116b: External antenna feeder 118: External antenna alignment feature 119: Internal antenna accommodation perimeter 120: Intermediate antenna structure 126: Intermediate antenna feeder 129: Intermediate antenna accommodation perimeter 130: Internal antenna structure 132: Internal antenna radiator 136, 136a, 136b: Internal antenna feeder 200: Solder mask 200a, 200b: Solder mask region 210: Cutout 250: PCB layout The features, objects, and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG. 1A is a top perspective view of a first exemplary building block antenna in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 1B is a top perspective view of the external antenna structure of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 1C is a top perspective view of the internal antenna structure of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 1D is a bottom perspective view of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 1E is a top perspective exploded view of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIGS. 1F through 1H are top perspective views of a single feeder variant of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, showing the feeder positions at 0°, 90°, and 180°, respectively. FIGS. 1I through 1K are top perspective views of a dual feeder variant of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, showing the feeder positions at 0°, 90°, and 180°, respectively. FIG. 1L is a bottom plan view of a variant of the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, showing the application of the solder mask and the printed circuit board layout for the first exemplary building block antenna of FIG. 1A. FIG. 2A is a top perspective view of a second exemplary building block antenna in accordance with the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 2B is a top perspective view of an external antenna structure of the second exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 2A according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 2C is a top perspective view of an intermediate antenna structure of the second exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 2A according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 2D is a top perspective view of an internal antenna structure of the second exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 2A according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 3A is a Smith chart of a stacked antenna structure for the prior art according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 3B is a Smith chart of the first exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 1A according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is a graph of return loss according to frequency for the first exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 1A and a stacked antenna structure of the prior art according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a graph of antenna efficiency according to frequency for the first exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 1A and a stacked antenna structure of the prior art according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 6A is a graph of antenna radiation characteristics at 1176 MHz for the first exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 1A according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 6B is a graph of antenna radiation characteristics at 1575 MHz for the first exemplary modular antenna of FIG. 1A according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 7A is a graph of antenna radiation characteristics at 1176 MHz for a stacked antenna structure of the prior art according to the principles of the present disclosure. FIG. 7B is a graph of antenna radiation characteristics at 1575 MHz for a stacked antenna structure of the prior art according to the principles of the present disclosure. All the drawings disclosed herein are © 2023 - 2024 Taoglas Group Holdings Limited. All rights reserved. 100: Modular antenna structure 110: External antenna structure 112: External antenna radiator 114: Internal feeder gap region 116: External antenna feeder 130: Internal antenna structure 132: Internal antenna radiator 136: Internal antenna feeder
Claims
1. A modular antenna structure, the modular antenna structure comprising: An external antenna structure includes one or more external antenna feeds and an external antenna radiator, the external antenna structure further including an internal antenna receiving periphery, the internal antenna receiving periphery further including one or more feed line gap regions configured to receive one or more internal antenna feeds; and an internal antenna structure including a periphery similar in shape to the internal antenna receiving periphery, the internal antenna structure including the one or more internal antenna feeds and an internal antenna radiator; wherein the external antenna structure includes a thickness similar to the internal antenna structure, the external antenna structure operates in a different frequency band than the internal antenna structure; wherein the one or more feed line gap regions are disposed between the external antenna structure and the internal antenna structure.
2. The modular antenna structure according to claim 1, wherein, The one or more external antenna feeds include two external antenna feeds.
3. The modular antenna structure according to claim 2, wherein, The two external antenna feed lines are offset from each other by 90 degrees (90º).
4. The modular antenna structure according to claim 2, wherein, The two external antenna feed lines are offset from each other by 180 degrees (180º).
5. The modular antenna structure according to claim 2, wherein, The one or more internal antenna feeds include two internal antenna feeds.
6. The modular antenna structure according to claim 5, wherein, The two internal antenna feed lines are positioned in a similar orientation to the two external antenna feed lines.
7. The modular antenna structure according to claim 5, wherein, One of the two internal antenna feed lines is positioned in a similar orientation to one of the two external antenna feed lines; and wherein a second internal antenna feed line is offset by ninety degrees (90º) from a second external antenna feed line.
8. The modular antenna structure according to claim 5, wherein, One of the two internal antenna feed lines is positioned in a similar orientation to one of the two external antenna feed lines; and wherein a second internal antenna feed line is offset from a second external antenna feed line by 180 degrees.
9. The modular antenna structure according to claim 1, wherein, The one or more external antenna feeds include a single external antenna feed; and wherein the one or more internal antenna feeds include a single internal antenna feed.
10. The modular antenna structure according to claim 9, wherein, The single external antenna feed line and the single internal antenna feed line are positioned on the same side of the modular antenna structure.
11. The modular antenna structure according to claim 9, wherein, The single external antenna feed line is offset by ninety degrees (90º) relative to the single internal antenna feed line.
12. The modular antenna structure according to claim 9, wherein, The single external antenna feed line is offset by 180 degrees (180º) relative to the single internal antenna feed line.
13. The modular antenna structure according to claim 1, wherein, Multiple solder mask areas are located on a bottom surface of the outer antenna structure and a bottom surface of the inner antenna structure.
14. The modular antenna structure according to claim 1, wherein, The internal antenna structure includes one or more first alignment features, which are configured to engage with one or more second alignment features located on the external antenna structure.
15. The modular antenna structure according to claim 14, wherein, The engagement of one or more first alignment features with one or more second alignment features enables a top surface of the inner antenna structure to be coplanar with a top surface of the outer antenna structure.
16. The modular antenna structure according to claim 15, wherein, The engagement of one or more first alignment features and one or more second alignment features enables a bottom surface of the internal antenna structure to be coplanar with a bottom surface of the external antenna structure.
17. A modular antenna structure, the modular antenna structure comprising: An external antenna structure includes one or more external antenna feed lines and an external antenna radiator, the external antenna structure further includes an intermediate antenna receiving periphery, the intermediate antenna receiving periphery further includes one or more intermediate feed line gap regions, the one or more intermediate feed line gap regions being configured to receive one or more intermediate antenna feed lines; an intermediate antenna structure includes an external periphery similar in shape to the intermediate antenna receiving periphery, the intermediate antenna structure further includes an internal antenna receiving periphery, the internal antenna receiving periphery further includes one or more internal feed line gap regions, the one or more internal feed line gap regions being configured to receive one or more internal antenna feed lines; and an internal antenna structure includes a periphery similar in shape to the internal antenna receiving periphery, the internal antenna structure including the one or more internal antenna feed lines and an internal antenna radiator; wherein the one or more intermediate feed line gap regions are disposed between the external antenna structure and the intermediate antenna structure.
18. The modular antenna structure according to claim 17, wherein, The external antenna structure includes a thickness similar to that of the intermediate antenna structure and the internal antenna structure.
19. The modular antenna structure according to claim 18, wherein, The external antenna structure operates in a different frequency band than the internal antenna structure.
20. The modular antenna structure according to claim 19, wherein, The intermediate antenna structure operates in a frequency band different from both the internal antenna structure and the external antenna structure.