Patent Grant
10910698
This application claims priority of Taiwan Patent Application No. 108105956 filed on Feb. 22, 2019, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein.
The disclosure generally relates to a mobile device, and more particularly, it relates to a mobile device and an antenna structure therein.
With the advancements being made in mobile communication technology, mobile devices such as portable computers, mobile phones, multimedia players, and other hybrid functional portable electronic devices have become more common. To satisfy user demand, mobile devices can usually perform wireless communication functions. Some devices cover a large wireless communication area; these include mobile phones using 2G, 3G, and LTE (Long Term Evolution) systems and using frequency bands of 700 MHz, 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, and 2700 MHz. Some devices cover a small wireless communication area; these include mobile phones using Wi-Fi and Bluetooth systems and using frequency bands of 2.4 GHz, 5.2GHz, and 5.8 GHz.
In order to improve their appearance, designers often incorporate metal elements into mobile devices. However, these newly added metal elements tend to negatively affect the antennas used for wireless communication in mobile devices, thereby degrading the overall communication quality of the mobile devices. As a result, there is a need to propose a mobile device with a novel antenna structure, so as to overcome the problems of the prior art.
In an exemplary embodiment, the disclosure is directed to a mobile device which includes a metal mechanism element, a dielectric substrate, a holder, a feeding radiation element, a ground plane, a shorting element, a circuit element, a first parasitic radiation element, a second parasitic radiation element, and an additional radiation element. The metal mechanism element has a slot. The slot has a first closed end and a second closed end. The dielectric substrate has a first surface and a second surface which are opposite to each other. The holder is disposed on the metal mechanism element and is configured to support the dielectric substrate. The feeding radiation element has a feeding point. The feeding radiation element covers at least one portion of the slot. The ground plane is coupled to the metal mechanism element. The shorting element is coupled to the metal mechanism element. The circuit element is coupled between the shorting element and a first grounding point on the ground plane. The feeding radiation element, the ground plane, the shorting element, and the circuit element are all disposed on the second surface of the dielectric substrate. The first parasitic radiation element is coupled to a second grounding point on the ground plane. The second parasitic radiation element is coupled to a third grounding point on the ground plane. The additional radiation element is adjacent to or coupled to the feeding radiation element. The first parasitic radiation element, the second parasitic radiation element, and the additional radiation element are all disposed on the first surface of the dielectric substrate. An antenna structure is formed by the feeding radiation element, the circuit element, the first parasitic radiation element, the second parasitic radiation element, the additional radiation element, and the slot of the metal mechanism element.
In some embodiments, each of the ground plane and the shorting element is a ground copper foil extending from the metal mechanism element onto the second surface of the dielectric substrate.
In some embodiments, the feeding radiation element substantially has a geometric shape.
In some embodiments, the slot has a first side and a second side which are opposite to each other. The feeding radiation element extends across at least the first side of the slot.
In some embodiments, the feeding radiation element has a specific side which is far away from the feeding point, and the specific side is substantially aligned with at least one side of the additional radiation element.
In some embodiments, the mobile device further includes a first conductive via element penetrating the dielectric substrate. The first parasitic radiation element is coupled through the first conductive via element to the second grounding point.
In some embodiments, at least one of the first parasitic radiation element and the second parasitic radiation element substantially has an L-shape.
In some embodiments, the mobile device further includes a second conductive via element penetrating the dielectric substrate. The second parasitic radiation element is coupled through the second conductive via element to the third grounding point.
In some embodiments, the second parasitic radiation element further includes a first widening portion. The first widening portion covers at least one portion of the slot.
In some embodiments, at least one portion of the additional radiation element substantially has a straight-line shape which is substantially parallel to the slot.
In some embodiments, the additional radiation element further includes a second widening portion. The second widening portion has a vertical projection on the second surface of the dielectric substrate, and the vertical projection at least partially overlaps the feeding radiation element.
In some embodiments, the additional radiation element is floating and does not directly touch the feeding radiation element.
In some embodiments, the antenna structure covers a first frequency band, a second frequency band, a third frequency band, a fourth frequency band, and a fifth frequency band. The first frequency band is from 699 MHz to 960 MHz. The second frequency band is from 1710 MHz to 2170 MHz. The third frequency band is from 2200 MHz to 2690 MHz. The fourth frequency band is from 3400 MHz to 4300 MHz. The fifth frequency band is from 5150 MHz to 5925 MHz.
In some embodiments, the length of the slot is shorter than 0.48 wavelength of the first frequency band.
In some embodiments, the length of the first parasitic radiation element is substantially equal to 0.25 wavelength of the second frequency band.
In some embodiments, the length of the second parasitic radiation element is substantially equal to 0.25 wavelength of the second frequency band.
In some embodiments, the length of the additional radiation element is substantially equal to 0.25 wavelength of the third frequency band.
In some embodiments, the circuit element is a resistor, an inductor, a capacitor, a switch element, or a combination thereof.
In some embodiments, the mobile device further includes an auxiliary radiation element coupled to the additional radiation element. The auxiliary radiation element is disposed on the first surface of the dielectric substrate. The auxiliary radiation element substantially has a straight-line shape.
In another exemplary embodiment, the disclosure is directed to an antenna structure which includes a metal mechanism element, a dielectric substrate, a holder, a feeding radiation element, a ground plane, a shorting element, a circuit element, a first parasitic radiation element, a second parasitic radiation element, and an additional radiation element. The metal mechanism element has a slot. The slot has a first closed end and a second closed end. The dielectric substrate has a first surface and a second surface which are opposite to each other. The holder is disposed on the metal mechanism element and is configured to support the dielectric substrate. The feeding radiation element has a feeding point. The feeding radiation element covers at least one portion of the slot. The ground plane is coupled to the metal mechanism element. The shorting element is coupled to the metal mechanism element. The circuit element is coupled between the shorting element and a first grounding point on the ground plane. The feeding radiation element, the ground plane, the shorting element, and the circuit element are all disposed on the second surface of the dielectric substrate. The first parasitic radiation element is coupled to a second grounding point on the ground plane. The second parasitic radiation element is coupled to a third grounding point on the ground plane. The additional radiation element is adjacent to or coupled to the feeding radiation element. The first parasitic radiation element, the second parasitic radiation element, and the additional radiation element are all disposed on the first surface of the dielectric substrate.
The invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
In order to illustrate the purposes, features and advantages of the invention, the embodiments and figures of the invention are shown in detail as follows.
Certain terms are used throughout the description and following claims to refer to particular components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, manufacturers may refer to a component by different names. This document does not intend to distinguish between components that differ in name but not function. In the following description and in the claims, the terms “include” and “comprise” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean “include, but not limited to . . .”. The term “substantially” means the value is within an acceptable error range. One skilled in the art can solve the technical problem within a predetermined error range and achieve the proposed technical performance. Also, the term “couple” is intended to mean either an indirect or direct electrical connection. Accordingly, if one device is coupled to another device, that connection may be through a direct electrical connection, or through an indirect electrical connection via other devices and connections.
The dielectric substrate 130 may be an FR4 (Flame Retardant 4) substrate, a PCB (Printed Circuit Board), or an FCB (Flexible Circuit Board). The dielectric substrate 130 has a first surface E1 and a second surface E2 which are opposite to each other. The second surface E2 of the dielectric substrate 130 is adjacent to the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110. It should be noted that the term “adjacent” or “close” over the disclosure means that the distance (spacing) between two corresponding elements is smaller than a predetermined distance (e.g., 5 mm or shorter). Specifically, the first parasitic radiation element 170, the second parasitic radiation element 180, and the additional radiation element 190 are all disposed on the first surface E1 of the dielectric substrate 130. The ground plane 140, the feeding radiation element 150, the shorting element 160, and the circuit element 165 are all disposed on the second surface E2 of the dielectric substrate 130.
The metal mechanism element 110 may be a metal housing of the mobile device 100. In some embodiments, the metal mechanism element 110 is a metal upper cover of a notebook computer or a metal back cover of a tablet computer, but it is not limited thereto. For example, if the mobile device 100 is a notebook computer, the metal mechanism element 110 may be the so-called “A-component” in the field of notebook computers. The metal mechanism element 110 has a slot 120. The slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110 may substantially have a straight-line shape. Specifically, the slot 120 has a first closed end 121 and a second closed end 122 which are far away from each other. The mobile device 100 may further include a nonconductive material, which fills the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110, so as to provide the functions of waterproof or dustproof.
The holder 115 may be made of a nonconductive material, such as a plastic material. The holder 115 is disposed on the metal mechanism element 110 and is configured to support and fix the dielectric substrate 130 and all of the components thereon. The dielectric substrate 130 extends across the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110. The ground plane 140 may be a ground copper foil, which may substantially have a stepped-shape. For example, the ground plane 140 may be coupled to the metal mechanism element 110, and the ground plane 140 may extend from the metal mechanism element 110 onto the second surface E2 of the dielectric substrate 130. The shorting element 160 may be another ground copper foil, which may substantially have another stepped-shape. For example, the shorting element 160 may be coupled to the metal mechanism element 110, and the shorting element 160 may extend from the metal mechanism element 110 onto the second surface E2 of the dielectric substrate 130. In some embodiments, an antenna structure is formed by the feeding radiation element 150, the circuit element 165, the first parasitic radiation element 170, the second parasitic radiation element 180, the additional radiation element 190, and the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110.
The feeding radiation element 150 may substantially have a T-shape. The feeding radiation element 150 covers at least one portion of the width W1 or the whole width W1 of the slot 120. That is, the feeding radiation element 150 has a vertical projection on the metal mechanism element 110, and the vertical projection of the feeding radiation element 150 at least partially overlaps the slot 120. In some embodiments (please refer to
The shorting element 160 substantially has a straight-line shape. The shorting element 160 and the ground plane 140 are respectively positioned on an upper side and a lower side of the slot 120, and are respectively coupled to the metal mechanism element 110. The circuit element 165 is coupled in series between the shorting element 160 and a first grounding point GP1 on the ground plane 140. The circuit element 165 has a vertical projection on the metal mechanism element 110. The vertical projection of the circuit element 165 may at least partially overlap the slot 120, or may be completely inside the slot 120. In some embodiments, the circuit element 165 is a resistor, an inductor, a capacitor, a switch element, or a combination thereof. For example, the aforementioned resistor may be a fixed resistor or a variable resistor, the aforementioned inductor may be a fixed inductor or a variable inductor, and the aforementioned capacitor may be a fixed capacitor or a variable capacitor. In addition, the aforementioned switch element may operate in a closed state or an open state. It should be noted that the circuit element 165 can increase the operation bandwidth of the antenna structure of the mobile device 100, regardless the left side or right side of the feeding radiation element 150 where the circuit element 165 is positioned.
The first parasitic radiation element 170 may substantially have an L-shape. The first parasitic radiation element 170 has a first end 171 and a second end 172. The first end 171 of the first parasitic radiation element 170 is coupled to a second grounding point GP2 on the ground plane 140. The second end 172 of the first parasitic radiation element 170 is an open end. The first parasitic radiation element 170 has a vertical projection on the metal mechanism element 110. The vertical projection of first parasitic radiation element 170 may at least partially overlap the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110, or may not overlap the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110 at all. In some embodiments, the mobile device 100 further include a first conductive via element 131. The first conductive via element 131 penetrates the dielectric substrate 130, and thus the first end 171 of the first parasitic radiation element 170 is coupled through the first conductive via element 131 to the second grounding point GP2. However, the invention is not limited thereto. In alternative embodiments, the aforementioned first conductive via element 131 is omitted, such that the first end 171 of the first parasitic radiation element 170 is adjacent to the second grounding point GP2 but does not directly touch the ground plane 140. The two different designs can achieve similar operation performance since there is a coupling effect induced between the first parasitic radiation element 170 and the ground plane 140.
The second parasitic radiation element 180 may substantially have an L-shape. The second parasitic radiation element 180 has a first end 181 and a second end 182. The first end 181 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 is coupled to a third grounding point GP3 on the ground plane 140. The second end 182 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 is an open end. The second end 182 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 and the second end 172 of the first parasitic radiation element 170 substantially extend in the same direction. In some embodiments, the second parasitic radiation element 180 further includes a first widening portion 185, which may be positioned at the second end 182 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 and may substantially have a rectangular shape or a square shape. The first widening portion 185 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 can cover at least one portion of the width W1 of the slot 120, or the whole width W1 of the slot 120. That is, the first widening portion 185 has a vertical projection on the metal mechanism element 110, and the vertical projection of the first widening portion 185 at least partially overlaps the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110. In some embodiments, the mobile device 100 further includes a second conductive via element 132. The second conductive via element 132 penetrates the dielectric substrate 130, and thus the first end 181 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 is coupled through the second conductive via element 132 to the third grounding point GP3. However, the invention is not limited thereto. In alternative embodiments, the aforementioned second conductive via element 132 is omitted, such that the first end 181 of the second parasitic radiation element 180 is adjacent to the third grounding point GP3 but does not directly touch the ground plane 140. The two different designs can achieve similar operation performance since there is a coupling effect induced between the second parasitic radiation element 180 and the ground plane 140.
At least one portion of the additional radiation element 190 may substantially have a straight-line shape, which may be substantially parallel to the slot 120. The additional radiation element 190 has a first end 191 and a second end 192. The first end 191 of the additional radiation element 190 is an open end. The second end 192 of the additional radiation element 190 is adjacent to or is coupled to the feeding radiation element 150. For example, the additional radiation element 190 may further include a second widening portion 195, which may be positioned at the second end 192 of the additional radiation element 190 and may substantially have an L-shape or a rectangular shape. The second widening portion 195 has a vertical projection on the second surface E2 of the dielectric substrate 130. The vertical projection of the second widening portion 195 may at least partially overlap the wide portion 152 of the feeding radiation element 150. In some embodiments, the whole additional radiation element 190 is floating. The second end 192 of the additional radiation element 190 is an open end, which is adjacent to the wide portion 152 of the feeding radiation element 150 but does not directly touch the feeding radiation element 150. However, the invention is not limited thereto. In alternative embodiments, the mobile device 100 further includes a third conductive via element (not shown). The third conductive via element penetrates the dielectric substrate 130, and thus the second end 192 or the second widening portion 195 of the additional radiation element 190 is coupled through the third conductive via element to the wide portion 152 of the feeding radiation element 150. The two different designs can achieve similar operation performance since there is a coupling effect induced between the additional radiation element 190 and the feeding radiation element 150.
With respect to the antenna theory, the feeding radiation element 150 and the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110 can be excited to generate the first frequency band FB1, the second frequency band FB2, the third frequency band FB3, the fourth frequency band FB4, and the fifth frequency band FB5. The first parasitic radiation element 170 and the second parasitic radiation element 180 are configured to fine-tune the frequency shift amount and the impedance matching of the second frequency band FB2. The additional radiation element 190 is configured to fine-tune the frequency shift amount and the impedance matching of the third frequency band FB3. The fourth frequency band FB4 and the fifth frequency band FB5 are excited and generated because of the double-frequency effect. According to practical measurements, the length L1 of the slot 120 of the metal mechanism element 110 (i.e., the length L1 from the first closed end 121 to the second closed end 122) may be shorter than 0.48 wavelength (0.48λ) of the first frequency band FB1. Therefore, the incorporation of the first parasitic radiation element 170, the second parasitic radiation element 180, the additional radiation element 190, and the circuit element 165 can help to minimize the total size of the antenna structure of the mobile device 100.
In some embodiments, the element sizes of the mobile device 100 are described as follows. The length L1 of the slot 120 may be substantially equal to 0.4 wavelength (0.4λ) of the first frequency band FB1. The width W1 of the slot 120 may be from 2 mm to 4 mm, such as 3 mm. The distance D1 between the feeding point FP and the second closed end 122 of the slot 120 may be from 0.1 to 0.5 times the length L1 of the slot 120, such as 0.25 or 0.33 times the length L1. That is, the feeding point FP is closer to the second closed end 122 of the slot 120 than the first closed end 121 of the slot 120. The length of the first parasitic radiation element 170 (i.e., the length from the first end 171 to the second end 172) may be substantially equal to 0.25 wavelength (λ/4) of the second frequency band FB2. The length of the second parasitic radiation element 180 (i.e., the length from the first end 181 to the second end 182) may be substantially equal to 0.25 wavelength (λ/4) of the second frequency band FB2. The length of the additional radiation element 190 (i.e., the length from the first end 191 to the second end 192) may be substantially equal to 0.25 wavelength (λ/4) of the third frequency band FB3. The thickness H1 of the dielectric substrate 130 may be from 0.1 mm to 5 mm, such as 0.4 mm. The thickness H2 of the holder 115 may be greater than or equal to the thickness H1 of the dielectric substrate 130. The above ranges of element sizes are calculated and obtained according to many experiment results, and they help to optimize the operation bandwidth and impedance matching of the antenna structure of the mobile device 100.
The invention proposes a novel mobile device and a novel antenna structure, which are integrated with a metal mechanism element. The metal mechanism element does not negatively affect the radiation performance of the antenna structure because the metal mechanism element is considered as an extension portion of the antenna structure. Furthermore, because of the incorporation of the first parasitic radiation element, the second parasitic radiation element, the additional radiation element, and the circuit element, the slot length of the antenna structure of the invention does not necessarily reach 0.5 wavelength of the corresponding operation frequency. Such a design can minimize the total antenna size. In comparison to the conventional design, the invention has at least the advantages of small size, wide bandwidth, and beautiful device appearance, and therefore it is suitable for application in a variety of mobile communication devices.
Note that the above element sizes, element shapes, and frequency ranges are not limitations of the invention. An antenna designer can fine-tune these settings or values according to different requirements. It should be understood that the mobile device and antenna structure of the invention are not limited to the configurations of
Use of ordinal terms such as “first”, “second”, “third”, etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having the same name (but for use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.
While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements (as would be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
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| 108105956 A | Feb 2019 | TW | national |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20200274231 A1 | Aug 2020 | US |
