Patent Application
20250015494
The present application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202210250993.2, filed Mar. 15, 2022 and to Chinese Patent Application No. 202111437201.4, filed Nov. 30, 2021, the entire content of each of which is incorporated herein by reference as if set forth fully herein.
The present disclosure generally relates to the field of base station antennas, and more specifically, to a multi-band phase shifter assembly, a multi-band antenna system, and a base station antenna.
Cellular communications systems are well known in the art. In a cellular communications system, a geographic area is divided into a series of sections that are referred to as “cells” which are served by respective base stations. The base station may include one or more base station antennas that are configured to provide two-way radio frequency (“RF”) communications with mobile subscribers that are within the cell served by the base station.
In order to accommodate the ever-increasing volumes of cellular communications, cellular operators have added cellular services in a variety of new frequency bands. In some cases, it is possible to use linear arrays of so-called “wide-band” or “ultra-wide-band” radiating elements to provide service in multiple frequency bands. Therefore, for example, a radiating element operating within a frequency range of 1.7 to 2.7 GHz can be used to support cellular services in multiple different frequency bands. Base station antennas may also typically include multiple radiating element arrays, and these arrays are designed to operate in different frequency bands. For example, in a common multi-band antenna system, the antenna may have at least one linear array of one or more “low-band” radiating elements providing service in some or all of 617 to 960 MHz frequency bands (for example, Digital Dividend and/or GSM900 at 790 to 862 MHZ) and at least one linear array of “medium-band” radiating elements providing service in some or all of, for example, 1427 to 2690 MHz frequency bands (for example, UTMS and/or GSM1800 at 1920 to 2170 MHz). However, the multi-band antenna often has an increased width to adapt to an increased number of radiating element arrays. Due to local zoning ordinances and/or weights of antenna towers and wind loading constraints, etc., there are often limitations on the sizes of base station antennas that can be deployed at a given base station. These constraints may effectively limit the number of radiating element arrays that may be included in the multi-band antenna.
Furthermore, phase shifters for different frequency bands can also be provided in such a multi-band antenna system to adjust the dip angle of the radiation pattern or the “antenna beam” generated by each radiating element array. Such down adjustment can be used to adjust the coverage area of each radiating element array.
However, with the integration of more and more frequency bands and more and more functional modules (for example, phase shifters, filters, coaxial cables and radiating element arrays, etc.) in the base station antenna, the installation space and/or operation space (such as welding space) in the base station antenna is further restricted. Therefore, improving the space utilization rate of the base station antenna is an urgent problem to be solved. In addition, the installation space and/or operation space in the base station antenna should also be improved.
According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a multi-band phase shifter assembly is provided, comprising: a first substrate; a first rotary wiper arm phase shifter arranged on a first surface of the first substrate, the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter being configured to perform a phase shift operation on a first radio frequency signal in a first frequency band; a second rotary wiper arm phase shifter arranged on a second surface of the first substrate opposite to the first surface, the second rotary wiper arm phase shifter being configured to perform a phase shift operation on a second radio frequency signal in a second frequency band, the second frequency band being different from the first frequency band; first filters, which are configured to pass the first radio frequency signal while blocking the second radio frequency signal, wherein an input end of each first filter is connected to a corresponding output port of the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter; second filters, which are configured to pass the second radio frequency signal while blocking the first radio frequency signal, wherein an input end of each second filter is connected to a corresponding output port of the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter; and a conductive structure spanning the first substrate, the conductive structure being configured to electrically connect an output end of a first filter with a corresponding output end of a second filter so as to be electrically connected together to a common output port of the multi-band phase shifter assembly.
According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a multi-band antenna system is provided, comprising: at least one multi-band phase shifter assembly according to various embodiments of the present disclosure; a radiating element array, which is configured to be capable of operating in at least a first frequency band and a second frequency band, wherein a common output port of the multi-band phase shifter assembly is electrically connected with at least a part of the radiating elements in the radiating element array.
According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, a base station antenna is provided. The base station antenna includes the multi-band antenna system according to various embodiments of the present disclosure.
The present disclosure will be described below with reference to the attached drawings, wherein the attached drawings illustrate certain embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be presented in many different ways and is not limited to the embodiments described below; in fact, the embodiments described below are intended to make the disclosure of the present disclosure more complete and to fully explain the protection scope of the present disclosure to those of ordinary skill in the art. It should also be understood that the embodiments disclosed in the present disclosure may be combined in various ways so as to provide more additional embodiments.
It should be understood that the terms used herein are only used to describe specific examples, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. All terms used herein (including technical terms and scientific terms) have meanings normally understood by those skilled in the art unless otherwise defined. For brevity and/or clarity, well-known functions or structures may not be further described in detail.
As used herein, when an element is said to be “on” another element, “attached” to another element, “connected” to another element, “coupled” to another element, or “in contact with” another element, etc., the element may be directly on another element, attached to another element, connected to another element, coupled to another element, or in contact with another element, or an intermediate element may be present. In contrast, if an element is described as “directly” “on” another element, “directly attached” to another element, “directly connected” to another element, “directly coupled” to another element or “directly in contact with” another element, there will be no intermediate elements. As used herein, when one feature is arranged “adjacent” to another feature, it may mean that one feature has a part overlapping with the adjacent feature or a part located above or below the adjacent feature.
As used herein, spatial relationship terms such as “upper”, “lower”, “left”, “right”, “front”, “back”, “high” and “low” can explain the relationship between one feature and another in the drawings. It should be understood that, in addition to the orientations shown in the attached drawings, the terms expressing spatial relations also comprise different orientations of a device in use or operation. For example, when a device in the attached drawings rotates reversely, the features originally described as being “below” other features now can be described as being “above” the other features”. The device may also be oriented by other means (rotated by 90 degrees or at other locations), and at this time, a relative spatial relation will be explained accordingly.
As used herein, the term “A or B” comprises “A and B” and “A or B”, not exclusively “A” or “B”, unless otherwise specified.
As used herein, the term “schematic” or “exemplary” means “serving as an example, instance or explanation”, not as a “model” to be accurately copied”. Any realization method described exemplarily herein may not be necessarily interpreted as being preferable or advantageous over other realization methods. Furthermore, the present disclosure is not limited by any expressed or implied theory given in the above technical field, background art, summary of the invention or embodiments.
As used herein, the word “basically” means including any minor changes caused by design or manufacturing defects, device or component tolerances, environmental influences, and/or other factors.
In addition, for reference purposes only, “first”, “second” and similar terms may also be used herein, and thus are not intended to be limitative. For example, unless the context clearly indicates, the words “first”, “second” and other such numerical words involving structures or elements do not imply a sequence or order.
It should also be understood that when the term “comprise/include” is used herein, it indicates the presence of the specified feature, entirety, step, operation, unit and/or component, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or a plurality of other features, steps, operations, units and/or components and/or combinations thereof.
Based on the above structure of the first phase shifter 110′ and the second phase shifter 130′, a welding operation is needed on the back of the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100′ in order to electrically connect the output end of the first phase shifter 110′ to the corresponding coaxial cable, which is relatively costly. In addition, as shown in
Next, a multi-band antenna system 10 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure and a multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 included therein will be described with reference to
Referring to
The multi-band antenna system 10 may include at least one radiating element array 20 (which may be configured as a wideband radiating element array 20 capable of operating in a first frequency band and a second frequency band) and the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100. The multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 may be configured to receive one or more radio frequency signals in different frequency bands from a radio device (called a Radio), and feed the corresponding radio frequency signals to the radiating element array 20 after performing a phase shift operation on the corresponding radio frequency signals. As shown in
The multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 may include a first substrate 101 (for example, a dielectric substrate), a first phase shifter 110 configured to perform a phase shift operation on the first radio frequency signal in the first frequency band, a first filter 120 coupled to the first phase shifter 110, a second phase shifter 130 configured to perform a phase shift operation on the second radio frequency signal in the second frequency band, and a second filter 140 coupled to the second phase shifter 130.
The first phase shifter 110 and the second phase shifter 130 of the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure may form a superimposed structure. The first phase shifter 110 may be arranged on a first surface of the first substrate 101, and the second phase shifter 130 may be arranged on a second surface of the first substrate 101 opposite to the first surface. This superimposed structure is advantageous. The wiring flexibility of each phase shifter together with the corresponding filter can be improved, and thus some of the problems involved in the phase shifter 110′ of
As shown in
The first rotary wiper arm phase shifter 110 may include a first input port 105, a first output port 106, a second output port 107, and a first printed trace 103 (an arc-shaped transmission line in the drawing) and a first wiper arm electrically connected between the first output port and the second output port. In some embodiments, the first wiper arm may be configured as a first wiper arm printed circuit element, and a first coupling portion coupled to the first input port of the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter 110 via a printed trace and a second coupling portion coupled to the first printed trace are printed on the first wiper arm printed circuit element. The first wiper arm may be configured to couple the first input port to the first printed trace and to be capable of sliding relative to the first printed trace so as to adjust the phase change experienced by the sub-component of the RF signal from the first input port to the corresponding output port. In other words, the rotatable first wiper arm can variably couple the position of the first radio frequency signal from the first input port to the fixed arc-shaped transmission line to perform a phase shift operation for the first radio frequency signal.
The second rotary wiper arm phase shifter 130 may include a second input port 131, a third output port 132, a fourth output port 133, and a second printed trace 104 (an arc-shaped transmission line in the drawing) and a second wiper arm electrically connected between the third output port and the fourth output port. In some embodiments, the second wiper arm may be configured as a second wiper arm printed circuit element, and a third coupling portion coupled to the second input port of the second rotary wiper arm phase shifter 130 via a printed trace and a fourth coupling portion coupled to the second printed trace are printed on the second wiper arm printed circuit element. The second wiper arm may be configured to couple the second input port to the second printed trace and to be capable of sliding relative to the second printed trace so as to adjust the phase change experienced by the sub-component of the RF signal from the second input port to the corresponding output port. In other words, the rotatable second wiper arm can variably couple the position of the second radio frequency signal from the second input port to the fixed arc-shaped transmission line to perform a phase shift operation for the second radio frequency signal.
Each phase shifter may have, for example, 5, 7, 9 or more output ports. In the illustrated embodiment, the phase shifter has five output ports, of which four are differentially variably phase-shifted and one maintains an output of a fixed phase. However, an output that has a fixed phase relation with the input is optional. As a result, the first phase shifter 110 and the second phase shifter 130 may respectively perform 1:5 of power distribution along the radio transmission direction. In other embodiments, the first phase shifter 110 and the second phase shifter 130 may also respectively perform, for example, 1:7 or 1:9 or other ratios of power distribution along the radio transmission direction.
It should be understood that those skilled in the art can easily recognize other types of phase shifters, such as cavity phase shifters, which can be used without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.
As shown in
In the illustrated embodiment, the first filter 120 provided for the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter 110 and the second filter 140 provided for the second rotary wiper arm phase shifter 130 may be printed as filter microstrip lines (for example, resonant stubs, or stepped impedance microstrip lines) on corresponding circuit printed boards and printed integrally with corresponding phase shift circuits. In other words, the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter 110 and the corresponding first filter 120 may be integrated on a first printed circuit board, and the second rotary wiper arm phase shifter 130 and the corresponding second filter 140 may be integrated on a second printed circuit board. Such an integration structure is advantageous in that it can simplify the composition of the antenna system and can also save space. For example, unnecessary cable connections can be omitted.
The first filter 120 may be configured to pass the first radio frequency signal while blocking the second radio frequency signal, and the second filter 140 may be configured to pass the second radio frequency signal while blocking the first radio frequency signal. In some embodiments, the first filter 120 and the second filter 140 may be respectively configured as band-rejection filters. In some embodiments, the first filter 120 and the second filter 140 may be respectively configured as band-pass filters.
In the illustrated embodiment, a corresponding filter may be configured as a resonant stub, which can be used as a band-rejection filter to block energy in a specific frequency band. The resonant frequency mainly depends on the length of the stub and how the stub is terminated, for example, a quarter-wavelength open stub or a half-wavelength short-circuit stub.
It should be understood that those skilled in the art can easily recognize other types of filters, which can be used without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the filter may be configured separately from the phase shifter and may be electrically connected with each other via a coaxial cable. In some embodiments, the first filter 120 and/or the second filter 140 may be configured as notch filters, respectively. In some embodiments, the first filter 120 and/or the second filter 140 may be configured as cavity filters, respectively. Details are not described herein again.
Referring to
Continuing to refer to
It should be understood that those skilled in the art can easily recognize other types of conductive structures 126, which can be used without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the conductive structure 126 may be configured as a coaxial connector.
Next, a multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 integrated with a plurality of phase shifters according to some embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to
It should be understood that those skilled in the art can easily recognize further extended solutions of the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100, which can be used without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.
In some embodiments, the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 may be extended to three or more RF frequency bands. As a result, the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 may be configured as a three-layered or more-layered structure. Taking a three-layered structure as an example, the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 may additionally include a third rotary wiper arm phase shifter, a plurality of corresponding third filters, a second substrate (located between the first rotary wiper arm phase shifter and the third rotary wiper arm phase shifter), and a conductive structure spanning the second substrate. The third rotary wiper arm phase shifter may be configured to perform a phase shift operation on a third radio frequency signal in a third frequency band, and the third filter may be configured to pass the third radio frequency signal while blocking the first radio frequency signal and the second radio frequency signal. Here, the input end of each third filter is connected to a corresponding output port of the third rotary wiper arm phase shifter, and the conductive structure spanning the second substrate is configured to electrically connect an output end of the third filter to a corresponding output end of the first filter. An output end of the first filter may be directly electrically connected to the corresponding common output port. An output end of the second filter may be electrically connected to the corresponding common output port via the conductive structure. Moreover, an output end of the third filter may be electrically connected to the corresponding common output port via the conductive structure.
In some embodiments, the number of phase shifters and the number of ports on the filters may increase with each additional frequency band. Additionally, the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 may be configured for high-band or low-band operations. In an example relating to low-band frequencies, the first frequency band may include 880 to 960 MHz and the second frequency band may include 790 to 862 MHz. In another example relating to high-band frequencies, the first frequency band may include 1710 to 1880 MHz and the second frequency band may include 1920 to 2170 MHz. Regarding this example, alternatively, a third frequency band of 2.5 to 2.7 GHZ may be included. In another alternative embodiment, the first frequency band may be 1710 to 2170 MHz and the second frequency band may be 2.5 to 2.7 GHZ.
The multi-band phase shifter system 200 also includes a double-layer connecting rod assembly that drives the phase shifter wiper arm of the multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 to pivot. As shown in
Each wiper arm connecting block 271 is connected to the wiper arm 150 of the outer phase shifter 110 and includes a horizontal arm 272 and a vertical arm 273 which are connected to each other. Each wiper arm connecting block 271 is substantially L-shaped. The horizontal arm 272 horizontally extends outwards from the left part or right part of the connecting rod connecting block 261. The vertical arm 273 vertically extends downwards from the outer end of the horizontal arm 272, and is provided with a sliding groove 274 extending in a longitudinal direction. The sliding groove 274 is used to receive a sliding column 151 on the free end of the wiper arm 150. When the wiper arm 150 is driven by the upper connecting rod 160 to pivot around a pivot shaft thereof, the sliding column 151 may reciprocate in the sliding groove 274. In some embodiments, the lower end of the vertical arm 273 may be bent outwards, and the lower end of the sliding groove 274 is opened downwards to facilitate the mounting of the sliding column 151 from the backward to the sliding groove 274. The two wiper arm connecting blocks 271 and the connecting rod connecting block 261 may be respectively formed and mutually connected by means of snap-fit connection, welding, bonding, etc., or the two wiper arm connecting blocks 271 can be integrally formed with the connecting rod connecting block 261. The upper connecting rod 160 is supported slidably between the inner surfaces of the first substrates 101 of the two multi-band phase shifter assemblies 100 by two or more upper connecting rod brackets 161 (see
Each wiper arm connecting block 291 is connected to the wiper arm 155 of the inner phase shifter 130, and includes a horizontal arm 292 and vertical arms 293 which are connected to each other. The horizontal arm 292 outwards extends horizontally from the left or right side of the connecting rod connecting block 281. The vertical arm 293 extends vertically from the outer end of an extension part 292 upwards and downwards, and is provided with a sliding groove 294 extending in the longitudinal direction. The sliding groove 294 is used to receive the sliding column 156 on the free end of the wiper arm 155. When the wiper arm 155 is driven by the lower connecting rod 180 to pivot around a pivot shaft thereof, the sliding column 151 may reciprocate in the sliding groove 294. In some embodiments, enhancement ribs 295 are located between the vertical arm 293 and the horizontal arm 292 to enhance the strength of the two. The two wiper arm connecting blocks 291 and the connecting rod connecting block 281 may be respectively formed and mutually connected by means of snap-fit connection, welding, bonding, etc., or the two wiper arm connecting blocks 291 can be integrally formed with the connecting rod connecting block 281. The lower connecting rod 180 is supported slidably between the inner surfaces of the first substrates 101 of the two multi-band phase shifter assemblies 100 by two or more lower connecting rod brackets 181, and is located below the upper connecting rod 160. Therefore, the lower connecting rod assembly 280 is supported slidably between the two multi-band phase shifter assemblies 100, and is located below and separated from the upper connecting rod assembly 260.
The multi-band phase shifter system 200 includes two support frame components. Front support frames 220 and rear support frames 240 of the two support frame components are respectively used to support the front and rear ends of the two multi-band phase shifter components 100. Specifically, a pair of front support frames 220 are used to support the front ends of the two multi-band phase shifter components 100 and are arranged in mirror symmetry.
The frame body 225 includes a lower substrate receiving port 226, an upper substrate receiving port 227 and a holding claw array 228 located therebetween. The lower substrate receiving port 226 is fixed to the bottom plate 221 and is used to accommodate the lower insertion rod 104F of the first substrate 101. The cross-sectional shapes of the lower substrate receiving port 226 and the lower insertion rod 104F can be designed to match. The holding claw array 228 includes an intermediate plate 229 and multiple pairs of cable holding claws 230 extending outwards from the left and right sides of the intermediate plate 229. The intermediate plate 229 extends upwards from the top wall of the lower substrate receiving port 226. The multiple pairs of cable holding claws 230 are used to hold various cables of the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130. In some embodiments, the multiple pairs of cable holding claws 230 are arranged in a longitudinal direction on the intermediate plate 229, the lowermost pair of cable holding claws 230 is used to hold input cables of the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130, while the other pairs of cable holding claws 230 are used to hold output cables of the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130. In some embodiments, the lowermost pair of cable holding claws 230 are open to each other, that is, the intermediate plate 229 is disconnected at the lowermost pair of cable holding claws 230 to better adapt to the input cable with a larger diameter. The upper substrate receiving port 227 is fixed at the top of the intermediate plate 229 and is used to accommodate the upper insertion rod 103F of the first substrate 101. The cross-sectional shapes of the upper substrate receiving port 227 and the upper insertion rod 103F can be designed to match. The lower substrate receiving port 226 and the upper substrate receiving port 227 can be designed to be closed or have an opening (as shown in the figure, the lower substrate receiving port 226 is closed and the upper substrate receiving port 227 is opened).
The front support frame 220 may further include enhancement ribs 231 to enhance the connection strength of the frame body 225. The enhancement ribs 231 extend upwards from the bottom plate 221, and are connected at multiple points to and support the lower substrate receiving port 226, the upper substrate receiving port 227 and the holding claw array 228 of the support frame 225 in a vertical direction. In some embodiments, the contours of the enhancement ribs 231 may be designed to be of an arc shape or interface shape for fixing other accessories.
A pair of rear support frames 240 are used to support the rear ends of two multi-band phase shifter components 100, and they are arranged in mirror symmetry.
The frame body 245 includes a lower substrate receiving port 246, an upper substrate receiving port 247 and a holding claw array 248 located therebetween. The lower substrate receiving port 246 is fixed to the bottom plate 241 and is used to accommodate the lower insertion rod 104R of the first substrate 101. The cross-sectional shapes of the lower substrate receiving port 246 and the lower insertion rod 104R can be designed to match. The holding claw array 248 includes an intermediate plate 249 and multiple pairs of cable holding claws 250 extending outwards from the left and right sides of the intermediate plate 249. The intermediate plate 249 extends upwards from the top wall of the lower substrate receiving port 226. The multiple pairs of cable holding claws 250 are used to hold various cables of the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130. In some embodiments, the multiple pairs of cable holding claws 250 are arranged on the intermediate plate 249 in a vertical direction and are used to hold output cables of the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130. The upper substrate receiving port 247 is fixed at the top of the intermediate plate 249 and is used to accommodate the upper insertion rod 103R of the first substrate 101. The cross-sectional shapes of the upper substrate receiving port 247 and the upper insertion rod 103R can be designed to match. The lower substrate receiving port 246 and the upper substrate receiving port 247 can be designed to be closed or have an opening (as shown in the figure, the lower substrate receiving port 246 is closed, and the upper substrate receiving port 247 is opened).
The rear support frame 240 may further include enhancement ribs 251 to enhance the connection strength of the frame body 245. The enhancement ribs 251 extend upwards from the bottom plate 241, and are connected at multiple points to and support the lower substrate receiving port 246, the upper substrate receiving port 247 and the holding claw array 248 of the frame body 245 in a vertical direction. In some embodiments, the contours of the enhancement ribs 251 may be designed to be of an arc shape or interface shape for fixing other accessories.
In other embodiments, the support frame assembly, including the front support frame 220 and the rear support frame 240, may not only be used to support the printed circuit board of the phase shifter, but also may be used to support any other printed circuit boards inside the base station antenna, such as the printed circuit boards of duplexers, the printed circuit boards of power dividers, etc.
The assembly process of the multi-band phase shifter system 200 will be described hereafter. Firstly, ends of each cable (including the input cable and the output cable) used for the phase shifter (including the outer phase shifter 110 or the inner phase shifter 130 of the two multi-band phase shifter assemblies 100) are prepared so that the inner conductor and the outer conductor are exposed in sequence. The prepared end of the cable is inserted into the connecting ring 301 penetrating through the cable clamp 300, and the inner conductor of the cable is soldered to the printed circuit board of the phase shifter. Then, the connecting plate 302 of the cable clamp 300 is welded at the cuts 304 and 305 to the printed circuit board of the phase shifter (including the outer phase shifter 110 or the inner phase shifter 130), and the connecting ring 301 of the cable clamp 300 is welded to the outer conductor of the cable at openings 303 of the cable.
In each of the two multi-band phase shifter assemblies 100, the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130 are respectively fixed to the inner surface and the outer surface of the plate body 102 of the first substrate 101 of each multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 by fastening pieces such as rivets, and the wiper arms 150 and 155 are mounted on the outer phase shifter 110 and the inner phase shifter 130. The upper insertion rod 103F and the lower insertion rod 104F at the front end of the first substrate 101 are respectively inserted into the upper substrate receiving port 227 and the lower substrate receiving port 226 of the front support frame 220 so as to connect the first substrate 101 to the front support frame 220. The upper insertion rod 103R and the lower insertion rod 104R at the rear end of the first substrate 101 are respectively inserted into the upper substrate receiving port 247 and the lower substrate receiving port 246 of the rear support frame 240 so as to connect the first substrate 101 to the rear support frame 240.
The positioning holes of the upper connecting rod 160 are aligned to the positioning columns 263 of the connecting rod connecting block 261, and the upper connecting rod 160 is pushed towards the connecting rod connecting block 261. The holding hooks 264 of the connecting rod connecting block 261 are outwards transformed elastically and restored to original shapes after the upper connecting rod 160 is accommodated, thereby connecting the upper connecting rod 160 to the upper connecting rod assembly 260. Similarly, the positioning holes of the lower connecting rod 180 are aligned to the positioning columns 283 of the connecting rod connecting block 281, and the lower connecting rod 180 is pushed towards the connecting rod connecting block 281. The holding hooks 284 of the connecting rod connecting block 281 are outwards transformed elastically and restored to original shapes after the lower connecting rod 180 is accommodated, thereby connecting the lower connecting rod 180 to the lower connecting rod assembly 280.
For the first multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 in the two multi-band phase shifter assemblies 100, the projection 222 of the front support frame 220 and the projection 242 of the rear support frame 240 respectively penetrate through the groove in the reflection board to removably connect the first multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 to the reflection board. The upper connecting rod assembly 260 and the lower connecting rod assembly 280 may be slidably connected to the inner surface of the first substrate 101 of the first multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 via the upper connecting rod bracket 161 and the lower connecting rod bracket 181 respectively. For the second multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 in the two multi-band phase shifter assembly 100, the projection 222 of the front support frame 220 and the projection 242 of the rear support frame 240 respectively penetrate through the groove in the reflection board to removably connect the second multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 to the reflection board. The upper connecting rod assembly 260 and the lower connecting rod assembly 280 may be slidably connected to the inner surface of the first substrate 101 of the second multi-band phase shifter assembly 100 via the upper connecting rod bracket 161 and the lower connecting rod bracket 181 respectively. Therefore, the assembly of the multi-band phase shifter system 200 is completed.
The multi-band phase shifter according to the present disclosure reduces the space required for installation and greatly improves the spatial utilization rate of the base station antenna by two multi-band phase shifter assemblies arranged side by side, as well as the double-layer connecting rod assembly and a pair of support frame assemblies.
Although exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been described, those skilled in the art should understand that many variations and modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, all variations and changes are included in the protection scope of the present disclosure defined by the claims. The present disclosure is defined by the attached claims, and equivalents of these claims are also included.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202111437201.4 | Nov 2021 | CN | national |
| 202210250993.2 | Mar 2022 | CN | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2022/080003 | 11/17/2022 | WO |
