Antenna Feed Network With Phase-Shifting for Wider Beam Coverage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing base station antennas face challenges in matching a large number of dual-polarized antenna columns with fewer transceiver ports, leading to limited signal coverage and high costs, particularly when using 16-port RRUs.
Innovation Solution
An antenna system with a feeding network that connects two columns of antennas to one port, incorporating a phase shifter to adjust phase differences between frequency bands, enabling complementary beam forming and reducing the number of phase shifters, thus allowing more columns of antennas to be matched with fewer transceiver ports.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the number of antenna columns is increased to expand signal coverage area, then the coverage capability is improved, but the number of transceiver ports must be increased accordingly, resulting in increased costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the signals from two antenna columns into a single transceiver port by using a feeding network with a phase shifter. The phase shifter adjusts the phase of signals from one antenna column to create a phase difference with signals from another antenna column, allowing both columns to be fed through one port. This merging approach enables more antenna columns to be connected to fewer transceiver ports, expanding coverage area without proportionally increasing port count and reducing system cost.
2Device complexity
If fewer transceiver ports are used to reduce costs, then cost-effectiveness is improved, but the number of antenna columns must be reduced, limiting signal coverage area
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the phase parameter of signals using a phase shifter in the feeding network. By adjusting the phase difference between signals from different antenna columns, the system can combine multiple antenna columns into fewer transceiver ports while maintaining signal quality and coverage. This parameter change enables the decoupling of port count from antenna column count, allowing cost reduction without sacrificing coverage area.
3Power
If more antenna columns are connected to increase array aperture for beam forming, then beam forming gain is improved, but the cost of transceivers increases proportionally
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple antenna columns into fewer transceiver ports through the feeding network with phase shifting capability. This allows the system to maintain a large array aperture with more antenna columns for high beam forming gain, while connecting them to fewer, less expensive transceivers. The phase shifter enables coherent combining of signals from multiple columns, preserving the beam forming performance without requiring proportional increases in transceiver cost.
Data Source
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AI summary
This application provides a feeding network, an antenna, an antenna system, a base station, and a beam forming method. The antenna includes an array antenna, a feeding network, and an antenna port. The array antenna includes a plurality of radiating elements. Each output of each feeding network is connected to at least one radiating element in the array antenna. Each input of each feeding network is connected to the antenna port. Each feeding network has one input and two outputs, and one of the two outputs includes a phase shifter. The phase shifter has a first operating state. The first operating state means that in phase differences of two output signals, phase differences of signals in at least two frequency bands are different, so that beam forming corresponding to different frequency bands is distributed differently in space, and is complementary to each other in space. This increases coverage space of beam forming.