Antenna unit structure applied to base station

Abstract

Provided in the present application is an active antenna unit structure applied to a base station. The active antenna unit structure comprises: an upper housing assembly, a lower housing assembly, and a transceiver board and an antenna assembly, which are packaged between the upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly. The upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly are provided with heat dissipation teeth located in an external environment of packaging, the transceiver board is integrated with at least one of a transceiver chip, a power source, a filter and a power amplifier, and at least one of the transceiver chip, the power source, the filter and the power amplifier is in contact with the lower housing assembly and / or the upper housing assembly by means of a thermally conductive material, so as to dissipate heat by means of the heat dissipation teeth of the lower housing assembly and / or the upper housing assembly.

Description

An antenna unit structure used in a base station

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to a Chinese patent application filed with the Patent Office of China on July 28, 2023, with application number 202310949098.4 and invention name “An antenna unit structure applied to a base station”. The entire contents of the Chinese patent application are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present application relates to the technical field of communication equipment, and in particular to an active antenna unit structure applied to a base station. Background Art

[0004] Massive MIMO (Massive MIMO) is a key technology in the 5G era. It controls the phase and amplitude of the transmitted (or received) signal for each antenna channel, generating a directional beam to enhance the signal in the beam direction and compensate for wireless propagation losses to achieve beamforming gain. This beamforming gain can be used to improve cell coverage in scenarios such as wide-area coverage, deep coverage, and high-rise coverage. However, MIMO technology also results in higher output power and heat dissipation, posing greater challenges to heat dissipation.

[0005] Currently, common base station active antenna units are encapsulated and protected by housings. However, as operators continue to increase their demands for miniaturization and lightweighting of base stations, the integration and heat flux density of the active antenna unit's transceiver boards continue to increase. This leads to a more severe "thermal cascade effect" in heat dissipation, making it impossible to meet the heat dissipation requirements of high-power base station products.

[0006] To this end, under the development trend of miniaturization and lightweighting of base stations, how to alleviate the "thermal cascade effect" caused by single-sided heat dissipation of the casing, so as to meet the heat dissipation requirements of high-power base station products with lighter overall weight and smaller overall volume is the technical problem to be solved by this application.

[0007] Summary of the Invention

[0008] An embodiment of the present application provides an active antenna unit structure for use in a base station, comprising: an upper housing assembly, a lower housing assembly, and a transceiver board encapsulated between the upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly; wherein: the upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly are provided with heat dissipation teeth located in an environment outside the package, the transceiver board integrates at least one of a transceiver chip, a power supply, a filter, and a power amplifier, and at least one of the transceiver chip, the power supply, the filter, and the power amplifier is in contact with the lower housing assembly and / or the upper housing assembly through a thermally conductive material so as to dissipate heat through the heat dissipation teeth of the lower housing assembly and / or the upper housing assembly. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments recorded in the embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative labor.

[0010] FIG1 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the active antenna unit structure according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0011] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the arrangement between the upper housing component, the lower housing component and the heat dissipation teeth in the active antenna unit structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0012] FIG3 is a two-dimensional schematic diagram of heat dissipation of a transceiver board in an active antenna unit structure according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0013] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the structural relationship between the upper housing component and the antenna component in the active antenna unit structure of an embodiment of the present application.

[0014] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of the structural relationship between the upper housing assembly and the piezoelectric fan according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] As mentioned above, currently, the active antenna units in common base stations are housed in a single-sided housing with heat sinks to protect the transceiver board and dissipate heat from the components. As operators continue to demand smaller and lighter base stations, the integration density and heat flux of transceiver boards continue to increase. This leads to a more severe "thermal cascade effect" in these heat sinks, making them unable to meet the cooling requirements of high-power base station products.

[0016] To this end, the present application aims to provide an active antenna unit structure for use in a base station, which can reduce the adverse effects of the "thermal cascade effect" on the heat dissipation of the entire machine, and achieve efficient heat dissipation with a lighter overall weight and a smaller overall volume. Specifically, the active antenna unit structure of the present application includes: an upper housing assembly, a lower housing assembly, and a transceiver board encapsulated between the upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly. The upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly are provided with heat dissipation teeth located in the environment outside the package; the transceiver board integrates the main heat-generating components such as transceiver chips, power supplies, filters and power amplifiers. Among them, these components are in contact with the lower housing assembly and / or the upper housing assembly through heat-conducting materials, thereby dissipating heat to the external environment of the package with the help of the heat dissipation teeth provided by the lower housing assembly and / or the upper housing assembly. Compared with the active antenna unit of the traditional architecture, the active antenna unit structure of the present application can effectively reduce the impact of the "thermal cascade effect" on the heat dissipation of the whole machine, and more efficiently transfer the heat of components such as transceiver chips, power supplies, filters and power amplifiers to the external environment. Under the same heat consumption conditions, shorter heat dissipation teeth can meet the heat dissipation requirements, thereby making the whole machine lighter and smaller.

[0017] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions in this specification, the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of this specification, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this specification, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts should fall within the scope of protection of this specification.

[0018] 1 is a schematic diagram of an active antenna unit structure according to an embodiment of the present application, including: a lower housing assembly 10 , a transceiver board 20 , a radio frequency connector assembly 30 , an upper housing assembly 40 , an antenna assembly 50 , and a radome 60 .

[0019] The lower housing assembly 10 and the upper housing assembly 40, when packaged, form the housing body of the active antenna unit structure. The transceiver board 20 is enclosed within the interior space of the lower housing assembly 10 and the upper housing assembly 40. The upper housing assembly 40, the transceiver board 20, and the lower housing assembly 10 are secured together with waterproof screws 42 to maintain the housing body's seal.

[0020] In order to meet the electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) requirements of the base station for the transceiver board 20, the lower housing assembly 10 and the upper housing assembly 40 are both made of conductive shielding materials, and the packaging contact area between the lower housing assembly 10 and / or the upper housing assembly 40 and the transceiver board 20 can be filled with conductive shielding glue.

[0021] Unlike the traditional active antenna unit structure, this embodiment is provided with heat dissipation teeth 01 and heat dissipation teeth 41 at the lower housing component 10 and the upper housing component 40, respectively. The heat dissipation teeth 01 and 41 are located outside the housing package to facilitate convection heat exchange with the outside world.

[0022] As an example, refer to the upper half of Figure 2 . In this embodiment, the lower housing assembly 10 and heat dissipation teeth 01 are integrally formed via die-casting or extrusion. During this integral molding process, the heat dissipation teeth 01 are distributed within the outer contour of the lower housing assembly 10. Similarly, the upper housing assembly 40 and heat dissipation teeth 41 can also be integrally formed via die-casting or extrusion, with the heat dissipation teeth 41 distributed within the outer contour of the upper housing assembly 4.

[0023] Alternatively, refer to the lower half of Figure 2. In this embodiment, the heat dissipation teeth 01 are made using Phase Change Inhibited (PCI) thermal conduction technology and are fixed to the lower housing assembly 10 by any of riveting, gluing, and laser welding. In order to improve the heat dissipation effect of the heat dissipation teeth 01, the heat dissipation teeth 01 appropriately extend from the main structure of the lower housing assembly 10 to increase the heat dissipation area. Similarly, the heat dissipation teeth 41 can also be made using PCI thermal conduction technology and fixed to the upper housing assembly 40 by any of riveting, gluing, and laser welding, and appropriately extend from the main structure of the upper housing assembly 40.

[0024] Further, referring to Figure 3, the transceiver board 20 of this embodiment integrates a transceiver chip 21, a power amplifier 22, a power supply 23, and a filter 24 using surface mount soldering. The antenna assembly 50 of this embodiment is located on the side of the upper housing assembly 40 facing away from the lower housing assembly 10. The upper housing assembly 40 is provided with a through-hole structure, through which the RF connector 30 connects the transceiver board 20 and the antenna assembly 50, establishing signal interconnection between the transceiver board 20 and the antenna assembly 50.

[0025] In the structure shown in Figure 3, the transceiver chip 21, power amplifier 22, power supply 23 and filter 24 are in contact with the lower housing assembly 10 and / or the upper housing assembly 40 through thermally conductive materials (such as thermally conductive gel, thermally conductive pad, silicone grease, etc.), thereby conducting heat to the heat dissipation teeth 11 or the heat dissipation teeth 41 for dissipation to the environment outside the package.

[0026] As an example, in the active antenna unit structure, the power amplifier 22 generates significantly more heat than the transceiver chip 21, power supply 23, and filter 24. To address this issue, this embodiment isolates the power amplifier 22 from other components for independent heat dissipation, thereby reducing the thermal cascade effect between the power amplifier 22 and other components and improving the heat dissipation density of the entire active antenna unit. Specifically, the transceiver chip 21, power supply 23, and filter 24 are in contact with the lower housing assembly 10 via thermally conductive material. Heat generated by these components is directed into the lower housing assembly 10 and then transferred to the external environment via the heat dissipation teeth 01. The power amplifier 22, on the other hand, is in contact with the upper housing assembly 40 via thermally conductive material. Heat generated by the power amplifier 22 is directed into the upper housing assembly 40 via the transceiver board 20 and then transferred to the external environment via the heat dissipation teeth 41.

[0027] Further, refer to Figures 4 and 5. In this embodiment, the upper housing assembly 40 has multiple heat dissipation teeth 41, which are located between the antenna assembly 50 and the upper housing assembly 40. Among them, gaps are left between the multiple heat dissipation teeth 41 of the upper housing assembly 40 to form a chimney effect air duct. The chimney effect refers to the phenomenon that the temperature difference between the air inside and outside the structure produces an air density difference, driving the high-temperature air inside the structure to flow upward, and the cold air outside the structure is continuously sucked in from the bottom. Based on the chimney effect air duct design, the heat of the transceiver chip 21, the power amplifier 22, the power supply 23 and the filter 24 can be more efficiently conducted to the upper housing assembly 40.

[0028] It should be noted that a certain gap should be left between the outer walls of the through-hole structure of the upper casing assembly 40 in this embodiment, so as to maintain a certain air inlet and outlet volume of the upper casing assembly 40 to improve the effect of convective heat exchange.

[0029] In addition, in order to prevent the through-hole structure from affecting the overall sealing of the casing, a sealing ring for waterproofing the through-hole structure can also be provided between the antenna assembly 50 and the upper casing assembly 40 in this embodiment. As an exemplary introduction, refer to Figures 1 and 5. The antenna assembly 50 of this embodiment is a substrate structure, which includes an antenna substrate 51. Among them, the through-hole structure of the upper casing assembly 40 is multiple (the number is not limited), and each through-hole structure extends in the direction away from the lower casing assembly 10 to form a hole column 43. The upper casing assembly 40 is fixed to the antenna substrate 51 through the hole column 43 formed by the multiple through-hole structures.

[0030] In this embodiment, the post 42 is integrally die-cast with the upper housing assembly 40, and each post 42 corresponds to a sealing ring. That is, each sealing ring is positioned on the end face of its corresponding post 42 that contacts the antenna substrate 51. Due to the design of the post 42, the antenna substrate 51 functions as a sealing cover for the through-hole structure, and the sealing rings effectively prevent moisture from entering the internal space of the housing package.

[0031] In addition, in this embodiment, a fan can be installed on the lower housing assembly 10 and / or the upper housing assembly 40 to dissipate heat from the lower housing assembly 10 and / or the upper housing assembly 40. Here, the installation of a fan on the upper housing assembly 40 is taken as an example. Referring to Figure 5, the fan of this embodiment adopts a piezoelectric fan 45 that does not generate a magnetic field. The piezoelectric fan 45 is fixed to the upper housing assembly 40 by screws, and the air outlet is facing the upper housing assembly 40, and is powered by the transceiver board 20. It should be noted that this embodiment does not specifically limit the way in which the transceiver board 20 supplies power to the piezoelectric fan 45. As one of the feasible solutions, the power supply connector on the transceiver board 20 can be connected to the piezoelectric fan 45 via the through-hole structure of the upper housing assembly 40.

[0032] To sum up, the active antenna unit structure of this embodiment integrates the main heat-generating components on the transceiver board. While improving the integration to save space, it also allows the components on the transceiver board to dissipate heat to the external environment through the heat dissipation teeth of different side casings, which can reduce the thermal cascade effect between components caused by excessive integration to a certain extent.

[0033] In actual applications, since the antenna unit structure of this embodiment uses shorter heat dissipation teeth to achieve highly efficient heat dissipation, it is particularly suitable for the development trend of miniaturization of base stations. In addition, components such as power supply, filter and power amplifier are all integrated on a transceiver board, which also simplifies the difficulty of production and assembly of the active antenna unit. If the solution is finally implemented, it will have high practicality.

[0034] The foregoing description of this specification describes specific embodiments. Other embodiments are within the scope of the appended claims. In some cases, the actions or steps recited in the claims can be performed in an order different from that described in the embodiments and still achieve the desired results. Furthermore, the processes depicted in the accompanying drawings do not necessarily require the specific order shown or the sequential order to achieve the desired results. In certain embodiments, multitasking and parallel processing are also possible or may be advantageous.

[0035] The above are merely examples of the present invention and are not intended to limit this specification. For those skilled in the art, various modifications and variations of this specification are possible. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of this specification shall be included within the scope of the claims of this specification. In addition, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort shall fall within the scope of protection of this document.

Claims

1. An active antenna unit structure applied to a base station, comprising: An upper housing assembly, a lower housing assembly, and a transceiver board encapsulated between the upper housing assembly and the lower housing assembly; The upper housing component and the lower housing component are provided with heat dissipation teeth located in the environment outside the package, and the transceiver board integrates at least one of a transceiver chip, a power supply, a filter and a power amplifier. At least one of the transceiver chip, the power supply, the filter and the power amplifier is in contact with the lower housing component and / or the upper housing component through a thermally conductive material so as to dissipate heat through the heat dissipation teeth of the lower housing component and / or the upper housing component.

2. The active antenna unit structure according to claim 1, wherein: Also included: an antenna assembly and a radio frequency connector; The antenna assembly is arranged on a side of the upper housing assembly facing away from the lower housing assembly, the upper housing assembly is provided with a through-hole structure, and the RF connector connects the transceiver board and the antenna assembly via the through-hole structure.

3. The active antenna unit structure according to claim 2, wherein: The upper casing component has a plurality of heat dissipation teeth, which are arranged between the antenna component and the upper casing component. Gaps are left between the plurality of heat dissipation teeth of the upper casing component to form an air duct with a chimney effect.

4. The active antenna unit structure according to claim 2, wherein: Also includes: Piezoelectric fan; The piezoelectric fan is arranged on the upper casing assembly to dissipate heat from the upper casing assembly, and the power supply connector of the transceiver board is connected to the piezoelectric fan via a through-hole structure.

5. The active antenna unit structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: In the case where the transceiver board integrates the transceiver chip, power supply, filter and power amplifier at the same time, the power amplifier is in contact with the upper casing assembly through the thermal conductive material so as to dissipate heat through the heat dissipation teeth of the upper casing assembly; the transceiver chip, power supply and filter are in contact with the lower casing assembly through the thermal conductive material so as to dissipate heat through the heat dissipation teeth of the lower casing assembly.

6. The active antenna unit structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The upper housing component and the lower housing component are both made of conductive shielding material, and the upper housing component and the transceiver board have a package contact area.

7. The active antenna unit structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The packaging contact area between the lower housing component and the transceiver board is filled with conductive shielding glue.

8. The active antenna unit structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The thermally conductive material includes at least one of thermally conductive gel, thermally conductive pad and silicone grease.

9. The active antenna unit structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The heat dissipation teeth of the upper casing assembly are fixed to the upper casing assembly by riveting, gluing and laser welding, and the heat dissipation teeth of the upper casing assembly are connected from the main structure of the upper casing assembly to the upper casing assembly. and / or, the heat dissipation teeth of the lower casing assembly are fixed to the lower casing assembly by riveting, gluing and laser welding, and the heat dissipation teeth of the lower casing assembly extend from the main structure of the lower casing assembly.

10. The active antenna unit structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The heat dissipation teeth of the upper housing assembly and the upper housing assembly are integrally formed by a die-casting process or an extrusion process; And / or, the heat dissipation teeth of the lower casing assembly and the lower casing assembly are integrally formed by a die-casting process or an extrusion process.

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