Mobile Case Antenna Arrays for Millimeter-Wave Signal Penetration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mobile computing device covers lack functionality beyond basic protection, limiting the ability of mobile devices to provide cloud computing services and efficiently transmit high-frequency wireless signals, especially in environments like buildings and vehicles where signal penetration is challenging due to higher penetration loss and path loss.
Innovation Solution
A personal cloud cover case (PCCC) with integrated antenna arrays and wireless transmission circuits that enable millimeter wave signal transmission and reception, providing both long-range and short-range wireless networks, and featuring a flexible design with embedded components like wireless charging units and biometric sensors, to enhance device functionality and signal penetration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If millimeter wave signals are used for high-frequency wireless transmission, then data transmission speed and bandwidth are improved, but signal penetration loss and path loss increase significantly in environments like buildings and vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the mobile device into two functional parts: the main device and a separate case cover with integrated antenna arrays. This segmentation allows the antenna system to be optimized independently for millimeter wave transmission, placing multiple antenna elements strategically on the case cover to improve signal propagation and reduce penetration loss while maintaining high data transmission speeds.
Solution Approach 2:
The case cover is designed to enclose and protect the mobile device while simultaneously housing the antenna arrays and wireless transmission circuits. The antenna elements are integrated into the case structure, creating a nested configuration where the case serves both protective and communication functions, allowing millimeter wave signals to transmit through the case material with reduced loss.
2Adaptability or versatility
If simple case covers are used for device protection, then device portability and simplicity are maintained, but functional capabilities beyond protection are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The case cover is designed as a multi-functional component that simultaneously provides: (1) physical protection for the mobile device, (2) millimeter wave antenna arrays for satellite and terrestrial communication, (3) wireless transmission circuits for signal processing, and (4) potential biometric sensing capabilities. This universal design allows a single component to fulfill multiple roles, enhancing adaptability without proportionally increasing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges previously separate functions into the case cover structure: protection function + communication function + signal transmission function. By combining these functions into a single integrated case design, the system achieves enhanced versatility while managing complexity through unified structural design rather than multiple separate components.
3Reliability
If antenna arrays are integrated into the case cover for millimeter wave transmission, then wireless signal coverage and penetration are improved, but manufacturing complexity and production difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The antenna system is segmented into multiple independent antenna elements distributed across the case cover surface. Each element can be manufactured and tested separately, then assembled into the final case structure. This segmentation simplifies the manufacturing process by breaking down the complex antenna array into manageable components while maintaining overall signal coverage and reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The case cover is designed as a thin-walled structure that can be molded or formed to incorporate antenna elements directly into the case material or attach them to the outer surface. This approach simplifies manufacturing by integrating the antenna structure with the case molding process rather than requiring separate complex assembly steps, while still providing the necessary signal penetration characteristics.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The PCCC enhances the mobile device's ability to provide cloud computing services and improves wireless signal penetration and coverage in challenging environments, offering efficient data transmission and reception across various frequency bands, while maintaining device protection and extending battery life through integrated components.
Implementation Method 1
a first antenna array comprising a plurality of antenna elements arranged in a two-dimensional array configuration... capable of transmitting and receiving millimeter wave signals to and from at least one base station and at least one satellite
Implementation Method 2
a first wireless transmission circuit connected to the first antenna array and configured to directly send or receive data in frequencies ranging from approximately 10 GigaHertz (GHz) to approximately 80 GHz
Data Source
AI summary
A wireless hub includes a vehicle power connector that can draw power from a vehicle battery on a vehicle, a first wireless transmission circuit that can send or receive data with base stations in a long-range wireless network, a second wireless transmission circuit that can provide a short-range wireless network and to transfer data to and from electronic devices, and a network processor that can process data in the first wireless transmission circuit and the second wireless transmission circuit. The wireless hub has an antenna array for millimeter wave communications. Antenna array beamforming techniques can be applied in various wireless systems, including cellular networks, Wi-Fi, radar systems, and satellite communications, to improve coverage, capacity, and link quality. Using antenna arrays, the system can shape and direct the radiation pattern of the transmitted or received signal. Beam steering can steer the main lobe of the radiation pattern in a particular direction. This allows the system to focus the transmitted or received energy towards the intended target, resulting in improved signal strength and reduced interference from other directions.