Patent Application
20190237845
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
The present disclosure relates generally to antenna solutions, and more particularly in one exemplary aspect to antenna solutions for use in, for example, installations within buildings or other structures or venues.
Antennas in wireless communication networks are critical devices for both transmitting and receiving wireless signals. With the evolution of network communication technology migrating from less to more capable technology; e.g., third generation systems (“3G”) to fourth generation systems (“4G”) and now fifth generation systems (“5G”), higher-bandwidth WLAN (e.g., Wi-Fi) systems replacing earlier variants, etc., the need for antennas which can clearly receive fundamental frequencies or signals with minimal distortion are becoming more critical. Additionally, with consumers switching to a lifestyle of near constant Internet connection, the demand on these wireless networks has increased dramatically. As a result, wireless networks have prioritized capacity demands which have often times come at the expense of wireless coverage. One such proposed solution to the foregoing problem has been to bring these wireless networks closer to the consumer. The Assignee of the present application has sought to provide antenna solutions for use in, for example, in-building environments.
Exemplary antenna solutions for such applications are described in co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/472,170 entitled “Low Passive Intermodulation Distributed Antenna System for Multiple-Input Multiple-Output Systems and Methods of Use”, filed Aug. 28, 2014, and co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/964,374 entitled “Broadband Omni-Directional Dual-Polarized Antenna Apparatus and Method of Manufacturing and Use”, filed Dec. 9, 2015, each of the foregoing being previously incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
However, antennas such as those described in the aforementioned U.S. patent applications may be difficult to install in certain cases, thereby introducing an obstacle to their more widespread adoption. For example, many such antenna solutions require the ceiling tile in a building to be removed, a hole to be drilled into the aforementioned ceiling tile, and the securing of the antenna to the ceiling tile using, for example, a nut with a large washer to protect against damaging the ceiling tile during the installation process (and to support the antenna during subsequent operation).
Accordingly, there is a need for apparatus, systems and methods that provide for more convenient antenna installations in, for example, in-building or other structural environments. Additionally, such solutions should ideally reduce changes needed to support antenna installation, as well as minimize the possibility of damaging the components to which these antennae are installed.
Moreover, such solutions would ideally improve upon antenna operating performance, e.g., improve or maintain antenna isolation between operating bands while providing a minimal level of distortion to the radiation pattern (thereby making the antenna operate in a more omni-directional manner).
The aforementioned needs are satisfied herein by providing antenna apparatus, systems and methods that provide for, inter alia, simple and more convenient antenna installation in, for example, in-building environments, while simultaneously providing for desirable operational characteristics (e.g., wider operating bandwidth, polarization and/or spatial diversity), and which also meet one or more aesthetic design goals (e.g., a radome form-factor that is less spatially intrusive, requires no aesthetic customization prior to installation, etc.).
In one aspect, an antenna apparatus is disclosed. In one embodiment, the antenna apparatus includes a radome or cover element; a lower flange disposed adjacent to the radome; an antenna housing, the lower flange being disposed between the radome and the antenna housing; a signaling interface; and a spring-loaded mount apparatus. The spring-loaded mount apparatus includes: a housing, a plurality of torsion springs located in or on the housing; and a plurality of spring arms, each of the plurality of spring arms being coupled with one or more of the plurality of torsion springs.
In one variant, the spring-loaded mount apparatus serves both a mechanical and an electrical function.
In another variant, the electrical function includes serving as a ground plane for the antenna apparatus.
In yet another variant, the plurality of spring arms each includes a plurality of undulations, the plurality of undulations increasing an electrical length for the ground plane as compared with a spring arm that does not include the plurality of undulations.
In yet another variant, the plurality of torsion springs are configured to place the plurality of spring arms against the lower flange.
In yet another variant, the plurality of spring arms each include at least one tie down location, the tie down locations configured to be used with a tie down in order to place the spring-loaded mount apparatus into an installation configuration.
In yet another variant, the antenna apparatus further includes a quarter wave monopole antenna, the quarter wave monopole antenna being disposed within the radome cover.
In yet another variant, the ground plane for the antenna apparatus is configured such that a radiating pattern for the quarter wave monopole antenna is omnidirectional in nature, the radiating pattern being further directed away from the ground plane of the antenna apparatus.
In another aspect, a spring-loaded mount apparatus is disclosed. In one embodiment, the spring-loaded mount apparatus includes: a housing having a plurality of torsion springs located in or on the housing; and a plurality of spring arms, each of the plurality of spring arms being coupled with one or more of the plurality of torsion springs.
In a variant, the spring-loaded mount apparatus is activated via removal of one or more removable ties.
In another variant, the spring-loaded mount apparatus is activated via physical actuation, the physical actuation including a switch apparatus.
In yet another variant, the spring-loaded mount apparatus is activated via use of an electromechanical actuation apparatus.
In yet another aspect, a method of manufacturing the aforementioned antenna apparatus is disclosed.
In yet another aspect, a method of manufacturing the aforementioned spring-loaded mount apparatus is disclosed.
In yet another aspect, a method of installing the aforementioned antenna apparatus is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes drilling or cutting an installation hole into a structure; routing a cable assembly through the installation hole; assembling the cable assembly to the antenna apparatus; partially inserting the antenna apparatus into the installation hole, the partially inserted antenna apparatus being in an installation configuration; actuating spring-retention arms on the antenna apparatus, thereby causing the antenna apparatus to transition into a default configuration; and fully inserting the antenna apparatus into the installation hole.
Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments, along with the accompanying drawings.
The features, objectives, and advantages of the disclosure will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:
Reference is now made to the drawings wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.
As used herein, the term “antenna” refers without limitation to any system that incorporates a single element, multiple elements, or one or more arrays of elements that receive/transmit and/or propagate one or more frequency bands of electromagnetic radiation. The radiation may be of numerous types, e.g., microwave, millimeter wave, radio frequency, digital modulated, analog, analog/digital encoded, digitally encoded millimeter wave energy, or the like. The energy may be transmitted from location to another location, using, one or more repeater links, and one or more locations may be mobile, stationary, or fixed to a location on earth such as a base station.
As used herein, the term “feed” refers without limitation to any energy conductor and coupling element(s) that can transfer energy, transform impedance, enhance performance characteristics, and conform impedance properties between an incoming/outgoing RF energy signals to that of one or more connective elements, such as for example a radiator.
As used herein, the term “radiator” refers generally and without limitation to an element that can function as part of a system that receives and/or transmits radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation; e.g., an antenna.
As used herein, the terms “top”, “bottom”, “side”, “up”, “down”, “left”, “right”, and the like merely connote a relative position or geometry of one component to another, and in no way connote an absolute frame of reference or any required orientation. For example, a “top” portion of a component may actually reside below a “bottom” portion when the component is mounted to another device (e.g., to the underside of a ceiling tile).
As used herein, the term “wireless” means any wireless signal, data, communication, or other interface including without limitation Wi-Fi (e.g., IEEE Std. 802.11 a/b/g/n/v/as), Bluetooth, 3G (e.g., 3GPP, 3GPP2, and UMTS), HSDPA/HSUPA, TDMA, CDMA (e.g., IS-95A, WCDMA, etc.), FHSS, DSSS, GSM, PAN/802.15, WiMAX (802.16), 802.20, narrowband/FDMA, OFDM, PCS/DCS, Long Term Evolution (LTE) or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), analog cellular, Zigbee, Near field communication (NFC)/RFID, CDPD, satellite systems such as GPS and GLONASS, and millimeter wave or microwave systems.
Detailed descriptions of the various embodiments and variants of the apparatus and methods of the present disclosure are now provided. While primarily discussed in the context of a ceiling tile installation procedure for the installation of the antenna apparatus as described herein, it is not necessarily a prerequisite that the antenna embodiments described herein are mounted within a ceiling. For example, it is appreciated that variants of the antenna apparatus described herein could be suitable for installation in, for example, walls (e.g., removable wall tiles, drywall and/or other types of wall structures), floors, utility boxes (whether indoor or outdoor), transportation vehicles (e.g., buses, aerial vehicles, nautical vehicles among others), or other suitable mounting structures and the like. These and other variants would be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill given the contents of the present disclosure.
Moreover, while primarily discussed in the context of use with a low profile quarter wave monopole antenna such as, for example, the ICEFIN series of antennas manufactured by the Assignee hereof, the present disclosure has broad applicability to any number of differing antenna designs and antenna solutions. For example, the principles of the present disclosure including, for example, the spring-loaded mount design may equally be applied to the in-building broadband omni-directional dual-polarized multiple-in multiple-out (MIMO) antenna apparatus described in co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/964,374 entitled “Broadband Omni-Directional Dual-Polarized Antenna Apparatus and Method of Manufacturing and Use”, filed Dec. 9, 2015, as well as the MIMO antenna described in co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/472,170 entitled “Low Passive Intermodulation Distributed Antenna System for Multiple-Input Multiple-Output Systems and Methods of Use”, filed Aug. 28, 2014, each of the foregoing being previously incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Referring now to
In another significant use case, the antenna apparatus 200 may be used in Internet of Things (IoT) applications including in, for example, vending, metering, and/or other industrial applications. As a brief aside, IoT devices can use any number of lower- and higher-layer protocol stacks. Many are based on the IEEE Std. 802.15.4 WPAN MAC/PHY (including ZigBee and Thread), while others utilize BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy, also referred to colloquially as Bluetooth Smart). These technologies utilize unlicensed portions of the radio frequency spectrum (e.g., ISM bands in the U.S.) for communication, and may attempt to avoid interference or conflict with other ISM-band technologies such as Wi-Fi (IEEE Std. 802.11). Currently, the following non-exhaustive list of exemplary technologies are available for IoT applications:
ZigBee—
ZigBee 3.0 is based on IEEE Std. 802.15.4, and operates at a nominal frequency of 2.4 GHz as well as 868 and 915 MHz (ISM), supports data rates on the order of 250 kbps, and has a range on the order of 10-100 meters. ZigBee radios use direct-sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) spectral access/coding, and binary phase-shift keying (BPSK) is used in the 868 and 915 MHz bands, and offset quadrature phase-shift keying (OQPSK) that transmits two bits per symbol is used for the 2.4 GHz band.
Z-Wave—
Z-Wave technology is specified by the Z-Wave Alliance Standard ZAD12837 and ITU-T G.9959 (for PHY and MAC layers). It operates in the U.S. at a nominal frequency of 900 MHz (ISM). Z-Wave has a range on the order of 30 meters, and supports full mesh networks without the need for a coordinator node (as in 802.15.4). It is scalable, enabling control of up to 232 devices. Z-Wave uses a simpler protocol than some others, which can ostensibly enable faster and simpler development. Z-Wave also supports AES128 encryption and IPv6.
6LowPAN—
6LowPAN (IPv6 Low-power wireless Personal Area Network) is an IP-based network protocol technology (rather than an IoT application protocol technology such as Bluetooth or ZigBee), as set forth in RFC 6282. 6LowPAN defines encapsulation and header compression mechanisms, and is not tied to any particular PHY configuration. It can also be used along with multiple communications platforms, including Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 802.15.4 and sub-1 GHz ISM. The IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) stack enables embedded objects or devices to have their own unique IP address, and connect to the Internet. IPv6 provides a basic transport mechanism to e.g., enable complex control systems, and to communicate with devices via a low-power wireless network.
Thread—
Thread is a royalty-free protocol based on various standards including IEEE Std. 802.15.4 (as the air-interface protocol) and 6LoWPAN. It is intended to offer an IP-based solution for IoT applications, and is designed to interoperate with existing IEEE Std. 802.15.4-compliant wireless silicon. Thread supports mesh networking using IEEE Std. 802.15.4 radio transceivers, and can handle numerous nodes, including use of authentication and encryption.
Bluetooth Smart/BLE—
Bluetooth Smart or BLE is intended to provide considerably reduced power consumption and cost while maintaining a similar communication range to that of conventional Bluetooth radios. Devices that employ Bluetooth Smart features incorporate the Bluetooth Core Specification Version 4.0 (or higher—e.g., Version 4.2 announced in late 2014) with a combined basic-data-rate and low-energy core configuration for a RF transceiver, baseband and protocol stack. Version 4.2, via its Internet Protocol Support Profile, allows Bluetooth Smart sensors to access the Internet directly via 6LoWPAN connectivity (discussed supra). This IP connectivity enables use of existing IP infrastructure to manage Bluetooth Smart “edge” devices. In 2017, the Bluetooth SIG released Mesh Profile and Mesh Model specifications, which enable using Smart for many-to-many device communications. Moreover, many mobile operating systems including 10S, Android, Windows Phone, BlackBerry, and Linux, natively support Bluetooth Smart.
The Bluetooth 4.2 Core Specification specifies a frequency of 2.4 GHz (ISM band), supports data rates on the order of 1 Mbps, utilizes GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying) modulation, and has a typical range on the order of 50 to 150 meters. BLE uses frequency hopping (FHSS) over 37 channels for (bidirectional) communication, and over 3 channels for (unidirectional) advertising. The Bluetooth 4.0 link-layer MTU is 27 bytes, while 4.2 used 251 bytes. Core specification 5.0 (adopted Dec. 6, 2016) yet further extends and improves upon features of the v4.2 specification.
Notably, the antenna apparatus 200 of the present disclosure may also consist of a multi-band antenna (e.g., operating in the frequency bands of two or more of 608-960 MHz, 1695-2200 MHz, 2300-2700 MHz, and 4900-5900 MHz, as but one non-limiting example). These multiple bands may be associated with a common air interface protocol, or two or more different air interface protocols.
Referring now to
It will also be appreciated that the radome/cover 202 may also be heterogeneous in its construction; e.g., with two or more materials utilized in portions of its structure. For instance, in one variant, the radome/cover may be segmented along a longitudinal plane of the apparatus, such that different materials (or compositions/blends of a common general material) may be used on one half of the radome/cover versus the other. As such, the radome/cover may also be comprised of two or more component or constituent pieces, such as to facilitate such use of heterogeneous construction or materials, or for other purposes. Use of heterogeneous materials or portions of the radome cover may also allow for differential radio frequency energy propagation characteristics, such as e.g., shaping the radiated emissions from the antenna apparatus during operation.
The antenna apparatus 200 may also include a spring-loaded or otherwise biased mount apparatus 208. The spring-loaded mount apparatus 208 is shown in its unconstrained/default configuration with the arms 214 of the spring-loaded mount apparatus 208 being kept, for example, under tension against the lower flange 206. The spring-loaded mount arms 214 may further include tie-down locations 216, with these tie-down locations 216 also acting to provide additional rigidity to the spring-loaded mount arms 214. The end features 222 may include curved surfaces (as illustrated) in order to prevent damage to the item (e.g., the ceiling tile or other mounting surface) to which the antenna apparatus 200 is ultimately to be mounted during installation (as well as once the antenna apparatus 200 is installed). In some implementations, the end features 222 may include coverings (e.g., that are made of rubber or other relatively soft material(s)) in order to prevent, for example, the aforementioned damage during/after installation. The spring-loaded mount arms 214 may also be made from a conductive material in some implementations so that the arms 214 may then act as, for example, a ground plane for the antenna apparatus 200 (e.g., a ground plane for a quarter wave monopole antenna radiator, as but one non-limiting example). Herein lies another salient advantage of the antenna apparatus described herein, namely the ability for the spring-loaded mount arms 214 to serve both mechanical and electrical functions. For example, in the context of monopole-type antenna radiators, these types of radiators may only function adequately when electrically coupled with a suitable ground structure (e.g., the spring-loaded mount arms 214).
The length, shape as well as the number of spring-loaded mount arms 214 may all be adjusted in order to manipulate the size of the ground plane as well as to manipulate the radiation pattern characteristics of the antenna. For example, the added length resultant from the undulating shape of the tie-down locations 216 as well as the curved end features 222 result in the selected radiation pattern characteristics for the exemplary antenna apparatus 200 of
The spring-loaded nature of the arms 214 may be accomplished via the incorporation of torsion springs 212 located within, for example, the spring-loaded mount apparatus 208. In some implementations, such as that shown in
These arms may be “unlocked” via an electromechanical mechanism in some implementations. For example, a switch may be placed on an external surface of the antenna apparatus 200. This switch may consist of one or more of a toggle switch, a rocker switch, a push-button switch and/or other types of switches that can “make” or “break” an electrical circuit disposed within the antenna apparatus 200. Upon activation of the switch, the aforementioned physical locking features may disengage from the spring-loaded mount arms 214, thereby causing the arms 214 to swing into their default configuration as-is shown in, for example,
As referenced above, the arms 214 may also be biased by other biasing means which may not be “springs” per se. For instance, use of spring steel or other such material may be used without a coiled or helical configuration; e.g., such bending of resilient member. Alternatively, non-metallic biasing components/material may be utilized to cause the arms 214 to be displaced in the desired direction(s) when unconstrained or released, including without limitation elastomers. Shape metal alloys (SMA) may also be utilized to provide desired biasing characteristics, consistent with the present disclosure. For example, an internal electrical circuit may be used to apply current to an SMA filament. The SMA filament may then alter its shape to, for example, an installation configuration or a default configuration. Once current is removed from the SMA filament, the antenna apparatus may revert to its prior configuration (i.e., default configuration or installation configuration).
The antenna apparatus may further consist of a signaling interface 210 (or two or more signaling interfaces 210 for, e.g., MIMO applications). The signaling interface 210 may be configured to transmit signaling from an external cable to the radiating components of the antenna apparatus 200. Additionally, the signaling interface 210 may be configured to receive signaling from the radiating components of the antenna apparatus 200 and provide this received signaling to an external cable. The signaling interface 210 may consist of one of a number of differing design specifications. For example, the signaling interface may consist of an N-female direct mount connector, an N-male direct mount connector. In some implementations, the signaling interface may consist of a New Motorola Mount (NMO) type connection. These NMO type connections may consist of an NMO plus high frequency connector (NMOHF), NMO Pogo Pin connector, direct mount plus N female connector (DMN). The signaling interface 210 may also consist of a so-called pigtail-type connection in some variants. Other suitable connectors for use as the signaling interface 210 would be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill given the contents of the present disclosure.
Referring now to
Referring now to
It may be desirable to only partially insert the antenna apparatus 200 into the hole 308 so as to prevent damage to the ceiling tile 302 during spring-loaded actuation. In other words, due to the constraints of the dimension of the hole 308, the arms may fold out slower as the antenna apparatus is inserted (and/or pulled) into the hole 308, thereby preventing excessive forces caused by the torsion springs 212 to be applied to the top surface of the ceiling tile 302. The antenna apparatus 200 is pulled (via the attached external cable 310) and/or pushed into the hole 308 until the top surface of the lower flange 206 is placed into contact with the bottom surface of the ceiling tile 302 as shown in
Referring now to
It will be recognized that while certain aspects of the present disclosure are described in terms of specific design examples, these descriptions are only illustrative of the broader methods of the disclosure, and may be modified as required by the particular design. Certain steps may be rendered unnecessary or optional under certain circumstances. Additionally, certain steps or functionality may be added to the disclosed embodiments, or the order of performance of two or more steps permuted. All such variations are considered to be encompassed within the present disclosure described and claimed herein.
While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointed out novel features of the present disclosure as applied to various embodiments, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the device or process illustrated may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the principles of the present disclosure. The foregoing description is of the best mode presently contemplated of carrying out the present disclosure. This description is in no way meant to be limiting, but rather should be taken as illustrative of the general principles of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure should be determined with reference to the claims.
This application claims the benefit of priority to co-owned and co-pending U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/622,660 of the same title, filed Jan. 26, 2018, the contents of which being incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. This application is related to co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/472,170 entitled “Low Passive Intermodulation Distributed Antenna System for Multiple-Input Multiple-Output Systems and Methods of Use”, filed Aug. 28, 2014, and co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/964,374 entitled “Broadband Omni-Directional Dual-Polarized Antenna Apparatus and Method of Manufacturing and Use”, filed Dec. 9, 2015, each of the foregoing being incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62622660 | Jan 2018 | US |
