1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns an electronic entity with a magnetic antenna.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electronic entities of this type generally comprise an electronic circuit having in particular two terminals to which is connected a magnetic antenna generally formed of a winding of several turns produced in conductive material.
This type of electronic entity includes in particular contactless microcircuit cards (where the magnetic antenna constitutes the only means of communication of the microcircuit with the exterior) and so-called “dual” or “hybrid” microcircuit cards (where electrical contacts are provided on one face of the card that provide an alternative mode of communication of the microcircuit with the exterior). In microcircuit cards of either type, the turns of the magnetic antenna are generally produced in the form of windings of copper wire or conductive tracks, in both cases disposed within the layers physically constituting the card.
In all cases, to increase the induced current that the magnetic antenna delivers to the electronic circuit, the designer of the electronic entity is constrained to increase the number of turns in order to increase the magnetic flux through the antenna.
Increasing the number of turns rapidly leads to problems, however: on the one hand, the increase of the area that carries the turns relative to the available area can cause problems of congestion, all the more so in that the geometry of the turns is relatively fixed, which is a particular nuisance in the case of electronic entities with small dimensions; on the other hand, the small number of areas generally available to receive the turns (often deposited in the same plane, for example) make bridging techniques necessary for the looping of the electrical circuit, as described for example in patent application FR 2 769 390.
The invention aims to limit these problems and therefore to propose an electronic entity with a magnetic antenna, the design of which facilitates integration of the antenna into the electronic entity, for example through greater freedom in its design and a reduction of its area, without its compromising performance.
The invention therefore proposes an electronic entity comprising an electronic circuit to which is connected an antenna, characterized in that the antenna comprises a loop electrically connected to the electronic circuit and a resonator formed of a conductive winding with free ends coupled to said loop.
The introduction of the resonator coupled to the loop on the one hand amplifies the electrical signals passing through it and on the other hand provides greater flexibility in the design of the antenna.
The resonator is capacitively coupled to the loop, for example, for particularly beneficial operation of the antenna, as explained hereinafter.
To this end, the resonator comprises a turn facing the loop over at least a portion of its perimeter, for example.
To maximize the capacitive coupling, the turn faces the loop over virtually all its perimeter and/or the turn and the loop are at a distance less than 0.5 mm over said perimeter portion.
According to one implementation possibility, the resonator can comprise a plurality of turns. In this case, in order to obtain a particularly efficient resonator, the turns are separated two by two by a distance less than 0.5 mm.
According to one possible embodiment, the loop is inside the resonator. According to another embodiment, the resonator is inside the loop.
The loop and the resonator can be deposited on the same flat support.
Alternatively, the loop is produced in a first plane, the resonator is produced in a second plane different from the first plane, and the resonator is situated in line with the loop, for example a median turn of the resonator is placed in line with the loop to obtain particularly efficient coupling.
For example, the resonant frequency of the resonator alone (or no-load resonator frequency) is at most 10% higher than a communication frequency of the electronic circuit with the exterior devices (for example a contactless reader). Thus the coupling of the loop involving a resonant frequency of the circuit as a whole slightly lower than the resonant frequency of the resonator alone, the resonant frequency of the circuit as a whole is particularly suitable for profiting from the amplification phenomenon.
The antenna considered here is a magnetic antenna, i.e. an antenna that essentially generates an induction current.
The electronic circuit functions at a communication frequency below 100 MHz, for example.
Said communication frequency can be between 1 MHz and 50 MHz, for instance, in particular between 13 MHz and 15 MHz.
In this latter case, the resonant frequency of the resonator alone can then advantageously be between 13.6 MHz and 17 MHz.
The exterior dimensions of the electronic entity are less than 100 mm, for example, or even less than 30 mm. The resonator is particularly beneficial in these conditions where the available area is small.
The resonator can then advantageously comprise more than ten turns.
The electronic entity can therefore be a pocket electronic entity. It is a microcircuit card, for example. In this case, the antenna can advantageously extend over only around half the area of the card.
Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent in the light of the following description, given with reference to the appended drawings, in which:
For example, the electronic circuit 4 is received in a module that has just been deposited on the electronic entity 2 in order to make the connection of the electronic circuit 4 to the antenna (here in practice to the loop 6), for example as described in the document FR 2 863 747.
The antenna enables the electronic circuit 4 to communicate at a distance with other electronic devices such as a card reader, for example. The antenna is a magnetic antenna not only for exchange of information between the electronic circuit 4 and the exterior electronic device at a predetermined frequency but also to provide a remote power feed to the electronic circuit 4.
For portable pocket electronic entities of everyday size (namely dimensions of the order of 10 cm or less), which exchange information with a range of the order of 1 meter, or even a few meters, such an antenna functions through a magnetic field (i.e. at a distance at most of the order of the wavelength) at frequencies up to around 100 MHz (at which the wavelength is 3 m).
The electronic entity 2 described here is a contactless type card, for example, which can exchange information with an exterior electronic device, for example according to the ISO standard 14 443, on a 13.56 MHz carrier.
Here the loop 6 is produced by a single turn and therefore forms, as already indicated, a conductive circuit connected at each of its ends to one of the terminals of the electronic circuit 4.
For example, the loop 6 is produced by etching a copper track on a support 10 produced in a dielectric material that constitutes a layer of the electronic entity 2, in particular in the case described here where the electronic entity is a microcircuit card. Other embodiments of the loop 6 can naturally be envisaged, such as depositing a copper wire or a conductive ink, for example.
The resonator 8, also formed here by conductive tracks (for example obtained by etching copper with a width of about 0.15 mm, for example between 0.12 mm and 0.2 mm, and a spacing of about 0.15 mm, for example between 0.12 mm and 0.2 mm), is disposed at a sufficiently small distance from the latter to enable capacitive coupling between these two elements.
In the example represented in
One of the turns of the resonator 8 (the exterior turn in
Alternatively, the proximity of the turn of the resonator 8 and the loop 6 can take place over only a portion of their perimeter (for example of the order of half of the latter), which ensures sufficient capacity coupling in certain cases.
According to another variant, the capacitive coupling could be produced by connecting the loop 6 and the resonator 8 by means of a capacitor.
The disposition of the resonator 8 in the form of turns generates an inductive behavior of that element, while the proximity of the portions (here rectilinear) of the spiral two by two and the absence of looping (because of the free ends of the spiral) induces a capacitive behavior.
The resonator therefore has a high Q at a resonant frequency.
This Q at resonance will advantageously be used to amplify, at the communication frequency used, the signals to which the resonator is subjected. Those amplified signals are transmitted to the loop by capacitive coupling. To this end, the resonator 8 is designed (in terms of the disposition of these tracks, their width and the spacing between them, and in terms of the materials used for the resonator 8 and the support 10) in order to have inductive and capacitive effects that cause a resonance at a frequency close to the communication frequency of the electronic circuit, as illustrated in the examples described hereinafter.
For the calculation of the values of inductance and capacitance generated for given characteristics of the resonator, see for example the documents “Inductance Calculation Techniques, part II: Calculations and Handbook Methods”, by Marc T. Thompson, in Power Control and Intelligent Motion, December 1999, “Design and Optimization of a 10 nH Square-Spiral Inductor for Si RF ICs”, by Tuan Huu Bui, University of North Carolina, October 1999, “Capacity Limits and Matching Properties of Integrated Capacitors”, by Robert Aparicio and Ali Hajirniri, in IEEE Journal of Solid State Circuits, Vol. 37 No. 3, March 2002, “Interdigital sensors and transducers” by Alexander V. Mamishev et al., in Proceedings of the IEEE, Vol. 92, No. 5, May 2004 and “Be Careful of Self and Mutual Inductance Formulae”, by H. Kim and C. C-P. Chen, University of Wisconsin, Madison, 2001.
The use of a plurality of turns in the resonator, as is the case the embodiment of the invention shown in
Moreover, as for the loop 6, there are numerous possibilities for implementation of the resonator 8 other than the conductive material tracks, for example the use of a copper wire (between 0.088 mm and 0.15 mm wide and with a spacing between 0.112 mm and 0.2 mm) or the deposition of a conductive ink (between 0.15 mm and 0.3 mm wide and with a spacing between 0.3 mm and 0.5 mm).
Finally, although rectilinear portions are imposed on the resonator specified by way of example hereinabove, clearly curved portions could be used instead.
There is represented in
The electronic circuit 4 is represented in the standard way by a resistor RIC and a capacitor CIC in parallel. In the case where the electronic circuit is an integrated circuit, this data is generally supplied by the fabricator of the electronic circuit, or can be measured.
The loop 6 is mainly represented by the series combination of an inductor LB and a resistor RB. To model also cases where the loop 6 is formed of a plurality of turns, there is also provided an inter-turn capacitor CB connected in parallel with the inductance LB of the loop 6.
The resonator 8 is represented by an LC circuit that combines an inductor LR and a capacitor CR the physical origin of which is explained hereinafter.
As indicated with reference to
This kind of antenna is adapted here to an ID1 type card with dimensions 85.6 mm×54 mm.
The antenna represented in
All the elements of the antenna, namely the loop 36 and the resonator 38, are here formed in the same plane, for example by deposition on a support in a dielectric material, for example paper or a plastic material (of relative permittivity between 2 and 7).
The conductive tracks are here produced in copper by etching.
This embodiment, produced here for a card with dimensions 81 mm×50 mm, produces a resonator capacitance CR of 0.6165 pF and a resonator inductance LR of 219.7 μH, which defines a no-load resonant frequency (i.e. of the resonator alone) of 13.678 MHz. The coupling with the loop having the effect of very slightly reducing the resonant frequency compared to the unloaded resonator, the antenna is particularly beneficial for a microcircuit card whose electronic circuit communicates with the exterior at a frequency of 13.56 MHz (for example a PHILIPS MIFAR PRO X electronic circuit).
The loop 36 is naturally terminated at each end intended to be connected to the electronic circuit by a connection land 33, 34.
Because of the use of a single turn for the loop 36 and a winding with free ends (i.e. with no looping) for the resonator circuit 38, the antenna proposed in
Accordingly, as for the antenna described with reference to
Inside the area delimited by the loop 46, the antenna comprises a resonator 48 formed by a winding with free ends of about forty turns. Each turn is produced by four rectilinear portions.
The characteristics of the
As for the
A fourth embodiment of the invention is described next with reference to
In this embodiment, a support 55 carries on a first face represented in
On a second face of the support 55, opposite the first face and represented in
The loop 56 and the resonator 58 are respectively positioned on the first face and the second face of the support 55 so that at least a substantial portion of the length of the loop 56 is located in line with the resonator 58, preferably in line with rectilinear portions of the resonator 58, for example exterior portions of the latter, or alternatively median portions of the latter (which enhances the phenomenon of capacitive coupling between the loop 56 and the resonator 58).
Thus certain portions of the resonator 58 and the loop 56 are separated only by the thickness of the dielectric material support 55 and the disposition that has just been referred to therefore also produces capacitive coupling between the loop 56 and the resonator 58.
If it is required to obtain a particularly efficient coupling, a thin support is used, for example a support less than 0.5 mm thick, even less than 0.3 mm thick, and even less than 0.15 mm thick.
The operation of the electronic entity that uses the antenna described with reference to
That antenna includes a resonator 78 formed of a plurality of turns produced by means of rectilinear conductive track portions. The conductive track that traces out the resonator 78 thus forms a spiral with two free ends 71, 72.
Note here, as is the case in
The interior turn of the resonator (i.e. the turn that terminates at one end in the free end 72) produces an area which, as seen clearly in
The loop 76 is situated at a sufficiently small distance from the interior turn of the resonator 78 (over at least a portion of their perimeter, and in the example described here over all the perimeter of the turn forming the loop 76) so that capacitive coupling exists between the loop 76 and the resonator 78.
The operation of the antenna according to this fifth embodiment therefore follows from the same principles as for the preceding embodiments that have been explained with reference to
The antenna represented in
The antenna also comprises a resonator 88 situated in the interior area defined by the turn 86.
The resonator is formed by a conductive track parallel to the loop 86 and situated at a small distance from the latter, and is extended on either side in the vicinity of the connecting lands 83, 84 as far as two face-to-face terminals 87, 89, also at a small distance from each other and each formed by a widening of the conductive track that forms the resonator 88.
The two terminals 87, 89 enable the connection of a capacitor the capacitive behavior whereof is added to the inductive behavior of the conductive track of the resonator that approximates a turn. These two conjugate effects produce the resonator effect.
Moreover, because of the proximity of the conductive track that forms the resonator 88 to the loop 86, on the one hand, and the connecting lands 83, 84, on the other hand, capacitive coupling exists between the loop 86 and the resonator 88.
The sixth embodiment therefore operates according to the same principles as the embodiments described hereinabove.
The embodiment described with reference to
The card diagrammatically represented in
Thus the card comprises in its vertical half represented on the left in
In its vertical half situated on the right in
This area corresponding to the magnetic stripe 97 nevertheless leaves, on either side, regions with relatively large dimensions where the implantation of electrical and electronic circuits is possible, namely a region 99 of elongate shape situated between the area corresponding to the magnetic stripe 97 and the right-hand edge of the card, and a main area 95 situated between the embossing area 91 and the area corresponding to the magnetic stripe 97.
Note that a small portion of the main area 95 cannot receive implanted electrical circuits as represented in
Note also that the main area 95 comprises an area 90 for implantation of the electronic circuit of the card.
When it is required to obtain a sufficient range for the ID1 card that has just been described, it is impossible to use the narrow area 92 because the latter can receive only a limited number of turns.
One is therefore constrained to implant the antenna in the vertical half (represented on the right in
It is proposed here, as seen in
The loop 96 comprises a single turn connected at its two ends to the electronic circuit of the card by means of connecting lands 93, 94 that naturally lie in the implantation area 90.
It is further proposed to implant a resonator 98 in the interior of the loop 96.
The resonator is formed of rectilinear conductive track portions that form a spiral winding with free ends.
Just like the loop 96, the resonator 98 extends primarily over the area of the main regions 95 and the region 99 of elongate shape.
Here the resonator 98 is obtained by spiral winding conductive wires 0.112 mm wide with an interturn width of 0.088 mm.
The resonator 98 therefore amplifies signals at the communication frequency of the electronic circuit (here 13.56 MHz), the signals being further exchanged between the resonator 98 and the loop 96 by capacitive coupling between these two elements, as already described for the preceding embodiments.
Although the exterior dimensions of the antenna (namely the loop 96 here) are small (here slightly less than half the area of the ID1 card), sufficient sensitivity of the antenna is nevertheless obtained, and thus a sufficient range of the card in remote operation.
This antenna consists on the one hand of a loop 106 having a single turn and connecting lands 103, 104 to the electronic circuit of the electronic entity considered here and on the other hand a resonator 108 formed of a spiral winding of a plurality of turns (here about 20 turns), the two ends 101, 102 of the winding being left free. As described with reference to
This embodiment further includes a conductive element 109 with small dimensions (such as a conductive track portion) connecting the resonator 98 and the loop 96 directly. This conductive element 99 can slightly modify the electrical characteristics of the circuit (for example for better adaptation to the communication frequency of the electronic circuit used), but does not call into question the operating principles of the antenna according to the invention as described primarily with reference to
The antenna represented in
The antenna further comprises a resonator 118 formed of conductive tracks situated in the same plane and that trace out a spiral general shape with free ends 111, 112.
The exterior turn of the resonator 118 is sufficiently close over the greater part of its periphery to at least one of the turns of the loop 116 to generate capacitive coupling between the loop 116 and the resonator 118, to obtain operation of the antenna represented in
In this embodiment, the aim was to use a loop 116 with a plurality of turns (here two turns), which made it necessary to use a bridge. However, thanks to the resonator 118, it has been possible to reduce the number of turns of the loop 116, which solves implantation problems, for example. This solution is in fact satisfactory in particular when the number of turns connected to the electronic circuit (i.e. to the connecting lands 113, 114) must be limited but the area defined inside those turns can be used.
What is more, for the same area and the same number of turns, the presence of the resonator increases the range of the electronic entity relative to an electronic entity with no such resonator.
There is deposited on a first layer 125 of the microcircuit card a loop 126 adapted to be connected to the electronic circuit of the card by means of connecting lands 123, 124 situated substantially at the center of the area of the first layer 125.
From the connecting land 124 extends in a spiral a first strand 127 of the loop 126, referred to hereinafter as the exterior strand. The exterior strand 127 comprises a rectilinear portion that extends essentially between the connecting land 124 and an edge of the card and four rectilinear portions that extend over virtually all the perimeter of the card, at a small distance from the edge of the latter.
The second strand 129 of the loop 126 extends in a spiral from the connecting land 123, inside the spiral formed by the exterior strand 127. Because of this the second strand 129 is referred to as the interior strand.
The exterior strand 127 and the interior strand 129 are connected to each other at their ends opposite the connecting land 123, 124 by a connecting portion 130. The loop 126 is therefore able to form, with the electronic circuit of the card, a closed circuit.
Note that the various spacings between the various conductive track portions forming the loop 126 (i.e. the spacing between the two strands) are (taken two by two) of the same order of magnitude, and substantially equal two by two in each direction, in order on the one hand to limit the formation of interturn capacitances and, on the other hand, to provide a sufficient area inside the loop 126.
On a second layer 131 represented in
The first layer 125 and the second layer 131 are sufficiently close for capacitive coupling to exist between the resonator 128 and the loop 126 and in particular its exterior strand 127 which in the example given here is disposed substantially in line with the turns that form the resonator 128.
There is obtained in this way operation of the type described in principle with reference to
This antenna comprises a loop 146 formed of an exterior strand 147 and an interior strand 149.
Each strand 147, 149 extends in a spiral from a connecting land 143, 144 situated substantially at the center of the card.
The exterior strand 147 is formed by a spiral that extends in particular over virtually all the perimeter of the card (generally more than ¾ of that perimeter, and here more than ⅞ of that perimeter). Because of this in particular, the exterior strand 147 extends, as seen from the connecting land 143, over more than one turn (i.e. over more than 360°). In other words, any (imaginary) ray originating from the connecting land 143 has at least one intersection with the exterior strand 147.
The interior strand 149 extends in a spiral from the connecting land 144 and inside the area delimited by the exterior strand 147, so that it is interlaced with the exterior strand 147.
The exterior strand 147 and the interior strand 149 are connected, at their end opposite their respective connecting land 143, 144, by a connecting portion 145 and thus form a plane closed circuit when the electronic circuit is connected to the connecting lands 143, 144.
The antenna also comprises a resonator 148 formed by a spiral wound conductive track with free ends 141, 142.
The resonator 148 comprises about two turns wound around the loop 146, one turn of which is at a small distance from the exterior strand 147 of the loop 146 over virtually all the perimeter of the card. The resonator 148 also comprises a second portion electrically connected to the first and which is wound in a spiral inside the loop 146, partly in the vicinity of the exterior strand 147 and partly in the vicinity of the interior strand 149, almost as far as the connecting land of the latter.
The proximity of the resonator 148 and the loop 146 over an important portion of the length of the loop 146 enables capacitive coupling between the resonator 148 and the loop 146 and therefore operation as already given in principle with reference to
There is deposited on a first layer (represented in
The first layer also carries a first portion 158 of a resonator produced in the form of a winding with free ends, and here situated inside the loop 156. The exterior turn of this first portion 158 is situated at a small distance from the loop 156 to enable capacitive coupling between these two elements.
The end of the first portion 158 opposite its external turn terminates in a first metallic land 159 forming an armature as described hereinafter.
On a second layer represented in
Note in this connection that
The first layer and the second layer are moreover sufficiently close for there to be capacitive coupling between the first portion 158 of the resonator and its second portion 160, in particular at the level of the first and second metallic lands 159, 161 situated face to face and therefore forming a capacitor.
It will be noted that the embodiment described here provides a winding in the opposite direction of the two resonator portions 158, 160. Alternatively, the same winding direction could be used for both portions.
The examples that have just been given naturally represent only possible embodiments of the invention.
The electronic entity can in particular be other than a microcircuit card, such as a personal digital assistant or an electronic passport, for example.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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05 05279 | May 2005 | FR | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/FR2006/001188 | 5/24/2006 | WO | 00 | 6/10/2009 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
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WO2006/125916 | 11/30/2006 | WO | A |
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20090315799 A1 | Dec 2009 | US |