CN117199778A

CN117199778A - Antenna assembly and antenna module for wireless communication system

Info

Publication number: CN117199778A
Application number: CN202310636918.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: J-W·兹维尔斯
Original assignee: Qorvo US Inc
Current assignee: Qorvo US Inc
Priority date: 2022-06-08
Filing date: 2023-06-01
Publication date: 2023-12-08

Abstract

The present application relates to an antenna assembly and an antenna module for a wireless communication system. The wireless communication system includes one or more cross polarized antenna assemblies with optimized propagation delays that form part of an antenna module with two primarily orthogonal polarizations. Isolation or cross-talk in each antenna module is minimized by implementing a sectorized plane isolation and correlation enhancer in the form of a ground plane opening structure.

Description

Antenna assembly and antenna module for wireless communication system

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/350,062 filed on 8 6 and 2022 and provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/358,941 filed on 7 and 2022, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to antenna assemblies and antenna modules for wireless communication systems.

Background

Typically, charging an Electric Vehicle (EV) using wireless charging techniques requires positioning the electric vehicle above a Ground Plane Charging Pad (GPCP) and most accurately aligned. Wireless charging techniques with such accuracy require that the wireless communication system establish a reliable wireless communication network between the GPCP and the EV that is capable of identifying the location of the EV with reference to the GPCP.

It is therefore desirable to develop an antenna assembly to form part of an antenna module coupled to a control unit as part of a wireless communication system that is optimized to operate at two principal orthogonal polarizations with low output correlation, low cross polarization and high gain while transmitting and/or receiving Ultra Wideband (UWB) signals for determining the EV distance and direction from the GPCP.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide an antenna assembly forming part of an antenna module coupled to a control unit as part of a wireless communication system to solve technical problems associated with the prior art.

In a first aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure provide an antenna assembly comprising: an elongated central section along a first axis having a first end and a second end; a first helical segment extending outwardly from the first end, back toward the second end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongate central segment; a second helical segment extending outwardly from the second end, back toward the first end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongated central segment. According to the same embodiment, each of the elongated central section, the first helical section and the second helical section is electrically conductive and forms an antenna element. In an embodiment, the elongated central section, the first helical section and the second helical section reside in a first plane. In yet another embodiment, the first helical segment and the second helical segment are on opposite sides of the elongated central segment. The antenna assembly further comprises an antenna substrate on and/or in which the antenna element resides, wherein the antenna substrate is composed of a dielectric material. According to an embodiment, the antenna assembly comprises a connection member connected to and extending from the elongated central section, wherein the connection member is electrically conductive.

In a second aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure provide an antenna module that includes a ground plane assembly that further includes a ground plane having a top surface and a bottom surface. The antenna module further includes a plurality of antenna assemblies disposed above the top surface of the ground plane, each antenna assembly including: an elongated central section along a first axis having a first end and a second end; a first helical segment extending outwardly from the first end, back toward the second end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongate central segment; a second helical segment extending outwardly from the second end, back toward the first end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongated central segment. Each of the elongated central section, the first helical section, and the second helical section is electrically conductive and forms an antenna element.

According to an embodiment, the antenna module further comprises a plurality of central openings in the ground plane, wherein each central opening is an elongated opening having a first end and a second end, and wherein the plurality of central openings form part of the ground plane opening structure. In yet another embodiment, the plurality of antenna assemblies includes three antenna assemblies radially disposed at equal distances and equal distribution angles equal to 120 degrees about points on the ground plane assembly. According to an embodiment, the ground plane component is circular, and wherein the point on the ground plane component is a center point of the ground plane component. The ground plane opening structure includes three central openings extending radially outward from the equal length and equal distribution angle equal to 120 degrees, each of the three central openings having a first end intersecting at the center point and a second end extending between adjacent pairs of the plurality of antenna assemblies, thereby forming a "Y" shape in the ground plane.

In one embodiment, the ground plane opening structure further comprises nine sub-center openings, wherein each three of the nine sub-center openings extend radially outward from a point formed on a bisector of an angle between one of three pairs of adjacent center openings at an equal distribution angle equal to 120 degrees, wherein two of the three sub-center openings extend parallel to the pair of adjacent center openings, and one of the three sub-center openings extends and is connected to the center point. The ground plane opening structure may further comprise three external openings, wherein each external opening is an elongated opening in the ground plane that is parallel to one of the three antenna assemblies and in opposite sides of the antenna assembly with respect to the center point. The ground plane opening structure may also include one or more loads coupled to the ground plane opening structure.

In an embodiment, each of the plurality of antenna assemblies is identical to each other. Each of the plurality of antenna assemblies is substantially perpendicular to the ground plane assembly. The antenna module further comprises an antenna substrate on and/or in which the antenna element resides, wherein the antenna substrate is composed of a dielectric material. The ground plane assembly also includes a ground plane substrate on and/or in which the ground plane resides. The ground plane substrate forms a portion of a bottom surface of the ground plane opening structure.

According to an embodiment, the first helical segment and the second helical segment are on opposite sides of the elongated central segment. The elongated central section, the first helical section, and the second helical section reside in a first plane. The ground plane assembly also includes a plurality of vias. Each of the three antenna assemblies further includes a connection member connected to and extending from the elongated central section, wherein the connection member is electrically conductive and inserted into each of the respective through holes. The ground plane assembly is planar and resides in a second plane. The operating frequency of the antenna module may be in the range between 5 and 20 GHz.

In a third aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a wireless communication system that includes a control unit and an antenna module associated with the control unit. The antenna module includes a ground plane assembly that also includes a ground plane having a top surface and a bottom surface. The antenna module further includes a plurality of antenna assemblies disposed above the top surface of the ground plane, each antenna assembly including: an elongated central section along a first axis having a first end and a second end; a first helical segment extending outwardly from the first end, back toward the second end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongate central segment; a second helical segment extending outwardly from the second end, back toward the first end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongated central segment. Each of the elongated central section, the first helical section, and the second helical section is electrically conductive and forms an antenna element.

In another aspect, any of the foregoing aspects, and/or the various individual aspects and features as described herein, may be combined singly or together to obtain additional advantages. Any of the various features and elements disclosed herein may be combined with one or more other disclosed features and elements unless indicated to the contrary herein.

Those skilled in the art will recognize the scope of the present disclosure and appreciate additional aspects thereof upon reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the associated drawings.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of this specification, illustrate several aspects of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

Fig. 1 illustrates a front view of an exemplary antenna assembly according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2A shows an antenna assembly having a connection member extending from an elongated central section.

Fig. 2B illustrates an isometric view of an exemplary antenna assembly.

Fig. 3 illustrates an exemplary antenna module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 shows an exemplary view of an antenna module with a through hole forming part of a ground plane assembly.

Fig. 5 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module.

Fig. 6 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module with connection terminals forming part of a ground plane assembly.

Fig. 7A and 7B illustrate schematic diagrams of other exemplary embodiments of antenna assemblies according to the present disclosure.

Fig. 8A and 8B illustrate radiation patterns of an antenna module designed according to an embodiment of this disclosure.

Fig. 9 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module comprising three substantially similar antenna assemblies.

Fig. 10 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module further comprising a ground plane opening structure.

Fig. 11 shows a top view of the antenna module of fig. 10, further comprising three secondary ground plane openings.

Fig. 12 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module with capacitive loading forming part of the ground plane opening structure.

Fig. 13 illustrates an exemplary antenna module as shown in fig. 10, further including additional ground plane openings forming part of a single unitary ground plane opening structure.

Fig. 14 is a top view of the antenna module of fig. 13.

Fig. 15A and 15B illustrate a wireless communication system having a first networking device mounted below a bottom surface of an electric vehicle and a second networking device mounted above a top surface of a ground plane charging pad.

Detailed Description

The embodiments set forth below represent the information necessary to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and illustrate the best mode of practicing the embodiments. Upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawing figures, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the disclosure and will recognize applications of these concepts not particularly addressed herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications fall within the scope of the disclosure and the accompanying claims.

As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It will be understood that when an element such as a layer, region or substrate is referred to as being "on" or extending "onto" another element, it can be directly on or extend directly onto the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on" or "directly extending onto" another element, there are no intervening elements present. Also, it will be understood that when an element such as a layer, region or substrate is referred to as being "over" or "extending over" another element, it can extend directly over the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on" or extending "directly over" another element, there are no intervening elements present.

As used herein, unless expressly stated otherwise, "connected" means that one component/feature is in direct physical contact with another component/feature. Likewise, unless expressly stated otherwise, "coupled" or "connected" or "coupled" means that one component/feature is directly or indirectly coupled to (or in direct or indirect communication with) another component/feature, and not necessarily directly and physically connected. Thus, although the drawings may depict example arrangements of elements, additional intervening elements, devices, features, or components may be present in a practical embodiment.

Relative terms, such as "below" or "above" or "upper" or "lower" or "horizontal" or "vertical" may be used herein to describe one element, layer or region's relationship to another element, layer or region as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that these terms and those discussed above are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising" (comprises, comprising) and/or (includes, including) when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. It will be further understood that terms used herein should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of this specification and the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

The term "electromagnetic field" refers to an electric field, a magnetic field, or a combination thereof. More specifically, the electromagnetic field describes the strength of the force interaction between a stationary charged object or a moving charged object at a distance. For example, electromagnetic fields may be used to describe interactions of antennas and/or other bodies in wireless communications. The electromagnetic field may be constant or time-varying.

In addition, in the following description, the terms X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction are sometimes used to describe directions. The X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction are orthogonal to each other. Further, in the following description, "viewing in the top plane" means viewing the relevant object from the Z-axis direction, and the description "viewing from the front" or "front view" means viewing the relevant object from the Y-axis direction.

Furthermore, in this disclosure, the terms "identical," "substantially similar," or "substantially identical" do not denote identical objects, but rather denote "substantially identical" objects. For example, "substantially identical" to an object may refer to another object in which the difference between the two remains within the range of manufacturing errors.

It should be understood that features of the various exemplary embodiments described herein may be combined with one another unless specifically indicated otherwise. The specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative embodiments of the application and are not intended to limit the application. The application is intended to cover any alternatives, modifications, equivalents and alternatives that may be included within the spirit and scope of the application as defined by the description and appended claims.

Fig. 1 illustrates a front view of an exemplary antenna assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The antenna assembly 100 includes an antenna element 10 residing in and/or on an antenna substrate 20. According to an embodiment, the antenna substrate 20 may provide mechanical support and/or electrical isolation to the antenna element 10. The antenna substrate 20 may be one or more of a printed circuit board material, an integrated circuit package substrate, and/or a non-conductive fabricated antenna backing structure comprising a dielectric material or any other suitable insulating layer, such as FR-4.

The antenna element 10 includes an elongated central section 12 extending along a first axis P and having a first end 12a and a second end 12b, a first helical section 14, and a second helical section 16. The elongate central section 12, the first helical section 14 and the second helical section 16 are electrically conductive and are formed to reside in a first plane T ₁ Is a part of the unitary piece of (a). According to an embodiment, the height H of the antenna element 10 along the first axis P ₁ In the range of 7mm to 13 mm. In yet another embodiment, the antenna element 10 is along a first plane T ₁ The width W1 of the axis L and perpendicular to the first axis P is in the range of 6 to 15.

Fig. 2A illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an antenna assembly 100 having a connection member 18. According to an embodiment, the first helical segment 14 further includes a first section 14a extending outwardly from the first end 12a of the elongated central segment 12, a second section 14b extending back toward the second end 12b of the elongated central segment 12, and a third section 14c extending inwardly and at least partially along the elongated central segment 12. In the same embodiment, the second helical segment 16 further includes a fourth section 16a extending outwardly from the second end 12b of the elongated central segment 12, a fifth section 16b extending back toward the first end 12a of the elongated central segment 12, and a sixth section 16c extending inwardly and at least partially along the elongated central segment 12.

According to an embodiment, the first helical segment 14 and the second helical segment 16 are on opposite sides of the elongated central segment 12. In an embodiment, the thickness of the antenna element 10 along its structural plane may be uniform or non-uniform and in the range of 0.1mm to 2 mm. According to an embodiment, the width of each segment and section of the antenna element 10 along the axis L perpendicular to the axis P may be uniform or non-uniform along its structural geometry and according to table 1.

TABLE 1

Sections or segments	Width range (mm)
		W ₁₂	0.5-2
W ₁₄	0.5-2
		W _14a	0.5-2
W _14b	0.5-2
		W _14c	0.5-2
W ₁₆	0.5-2
		W _16a	0.5-2
W _16b	0.5-2
		W _16c	0.5-2

It should be noted that although fig. 2A depicts the antenna assembly 100 as a single unit, the size of each segment and section of the antenna element 10 residing in and/or on the antenna substrate 20 may affect the operating frequencies of the antenna assembly 100, which are within and outside of the range of 6GHz to 12 GHz.

Fig. 2B shows an isometric view of the antenna assembly 100 with the connection member 18. The connection member 18 is electrically conductive and mechanically connected to and extends from the elongate central section 12 of the antenna element 10. In one embodiment, the connection member 18 provides mechanical support to the antenna assembly 100. In yet another embodiment, the connection member 18 is configured to provide an electrical connection path to at least one of a signal feed and a control unit (not shown) to the antenna element 10 residing in and/or on the antenna substrate 20.

Fig. 3 illustrates an exemplary antenna module 110 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The antenna module 110 includes an antenna assembly 100 disposed above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30. The antenna assembly 100 is substantially similar to the antenna assembly 100 as described in fig. 1 and fig. 2A and 2B, and has similar reference numerals as those discussed.

Referring now to fig. 3, an antenna assembly 100 includes an antenna element 10 and an antenna substrate 20. The ground plane assembly 30 includes a ground plane 32 residing in and/or on a ground plane substrate 34. According to an embodiment, the connection member 18 is inserted through the ground plane assembly 30 and provides mechanical support to the antenna assembly 100 and serves to mechanically retain the antenna assembly 100 above the ground plane assembly 30. According to a further embodiment, the connection member 18 is further configured to electrically connect the antenna element 10 to at least one of a signal feed line and a control unit (not shown). The connection member 18, and thus the antenna element 10, is electrically isolated from the ground plane 32, which is not necessarily the "ground". The ground plane 32 may provide an electromagnetic reference to the antenna element 10. The ground plane 32 acts as a reflector for electromagnetic waves emitted by the antenna element 10.

Fig. 4 shows an exemplary view of an antenna module 110 having a through hole 36 in the ground plane assembly 30. According to an embodiment, the via 36 includes a vertically extending hole in the ground plane assembly 30 that forms a top surface opening above the top surface of the ground plane 32 and a bottom surface opening (not shown) above the bottom surface 30b of the ground plane assembly 30. The ground plane assembly 30 is in the second plane T ₂ May be planar.

The connection member 18 may enter the through hole 36 from the top surface opening, pass through an electrically isolated channel in the ground plane assembly 30, and exit from the bottom surface opening (not shown) to provide a connection path for the connection member 18 and the antenna element 10 to at least one of the signal feed line and the control unit (not shown) above the bottom surface of the ground plane assembly 30 and opposite the surface on which the antenna assembly 100 resides. As previously mentioned, the vias 36 electrically isolate the connecting member 18 and thus the antenna element 10 from the ground plane 32. In an embodiment, the through-holes 36 further provide mechanical support to hold the antenna assembly 100 in a desired orientation above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30. The ground plane 32 may be circular with a diameter D in the range of 20mm to 60mm and beyond. In one embodiment, the thickness of the ground plane 32 along its structural plane may be uniform or non-uniform and in the range of 0.001mm to 0.5 mm. In some embodiments, the impedance matching and radiation pattern of the antenna module 110 varies with the size of the ground plane 32.

Fig. 5 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module 110 including an antenna assembly disposed above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30100. The antenna assembly 100 is in a first plane T ₁ Is planar and has a first axis P. The ground plane assembly 30 is in the second plane T ₂ The middle is planar. The antenna assembly 100 may be disposed above the ground plane assembly 30 at a point Q on the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30.

The antenna assembly 100 may be oriented such that the antenna element 10 faces the second plane T from the point Q on the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30 ₂ Is provided. At point Q and a first plane T ₁ Is relative to the second plane T ₂ An angle theta is determined between the first sides of (a). The antenna assembly 100 forms a non-zero angle with the ground plane assembly 30 in the range of 45 to 180 degrees. In some embodiments, the performance of the antenna module 110 varies with the angle θ.

Fig. 6 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module 110 having connection terminals 38 forming part of the ground plane assembly 30. The connection terminal 38 includes a first port 38a above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30 that shares one or more connection paths with a second port 38b above the bottom surface of the ground plane assembly 30. In an embodiment, the first port 38a is configured to structurally hold the antenna assembly 100 above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30 and provide a first connection path to the connection member 18 and thus to the antenna element 10 to the second port 38 b.

The second port 38b may be configured to provide the first port 38a with a first connection path to the connection member 18 and a second connection path to the ground plane 32, wherein the first connection path and the second connection path are isolated from each other. According to another embodiment, the first port 38a electrically isolates the connection member 18 and thus the antenna element 10 from the ground plane 32. In one embodiment, the second port 38b provides an interface for connecting one of the single or multi-wire signal feeds to the antenna module 110 (not shown).

Fig. 7A and 7B illustrate two exemplary embodiments of the antenna assembly 100. It should be noted that antenna assemblies 100' and 100 "as shown in fig. 7A and 7B include the elements previously described with reference to antenna assembly 100 as shown in fig. 1 and 2A and 2B, respectively. Therefore, they will continue to have the same reference numerals. However, according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, antenna assemblies 100' and 100″ may be at a height H ₁ And/or width W ₁ At least one of the associated values differs from the antenna assembly 100 as previously described with reference to fig. 1.

Antenna assemblies 100' and 100″ each including antenna element 10 residing on and/or in antenna substrate 20 may differ from antenna assembly 100 in at least one of a range of values associated with the width of a segment or section of antenna element 10, including a range of values of non-uniform widths of elongate central section 12, first section 14a, second section 14b, third section 14c, fourth section 16a, fifth section 16b, and sixth section 16c, such as by W ₁₂ 、W _14a 、W _14b 、W _14c 、W _16a 、W _16b 、W _16c And (5) parameterizing.

Fig. 8A and 8B illustrate radiation patterns of an antenna module 110 designed according to an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in fig. 8A and 8B, the radiation pattern of the antenna module 110 is both omnidirectional and hemispherical. The structural design, geometry, and dimensions associated with the various portions of the antenna module 110 introduce a second primary polarization that is perpendicular to the first primary polarization. The second primary polarization may increase the output gain of the antenna module 110 and reduce any output correlation associated with the antenna module 110, which may make it a good candidate for applications requiring wider bandwidth, low cross polarization, and higher isolation.

Fig. 9 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module 110' that includes three substantially similar antenna assemblies 100 disposed above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30. All three antenna assemblies 100 as shown in fig. 9 are substantially similar to the antenna assemblies 100 described with reference to fig. 1 and fig. 2A and 2B, and will continue to have the same reference numerals as those discussed. The ground plane assembly 30 is substantially similar to the ground plane assembly 30 described with reference to fig. 3-6. All elements of the ground plane assembly 30 as shown in fig. 9 that were previously described with reference to fig. 3-6 will continue to have the same reference numerals as those discussed.

Although only three antenna assemblies 100 are shown in fig. 9, the same design is applicable to any number of multiple antenna assemblies 100 disposed above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30 to form an antenna module 110', in accordance with various other embodiments of the present disclosure. Since all three antenna assemblies 100 shown in fig. 9 are substantially similar to each other (having elements with the same reference numerals), only one of the three antenna assemblies 100 is described in fig. 9 for the sake of simplifying the present disclosure.

Referring now to fig. 9, each of the antenna assemblies 100 includes a connection member 18 mechanically connected to and extending from the antenna element 10. The antenna element 10 resides on and/or in an antenna substrate 20 to form an antenna assembly 100. The connecting member 18 is inserted through the ground plane assembly 30 at one of three imaginary points Q on the ground plane assembly 30. The point Q on the ground plane assembly 30 is equally angularly distributed about an imaginary center point C on the ground plane assembly 30Radially arranged. Angle->Substantially equal to 120 degrees. The point Q on the ground plane assembly 30 is equidistant from the center point C. Each of the three points Q shares a substantially equal distance R from the center point C in the 1/4 wavelength range. The distance RR between two adjacent points Q is substantially equal and is in the range of 1/4 wavelength (wavelength at the highest frequency of use). According to an embodiment, each of the connection members 18 mechanically supports the antenna assembly 100 and holds it in a spatial orientation above a respective point Q on the ground plane assembly 30 such that the antenna element 10 of each antenna assembly 100 faces outwardly and in a direction opposite the center point C.

The angle θ is formed at each of the three points Q on the ground plane assembly 30 and at the antenna assembly 100 and ground plane assembly 30. Referring now to the antenna module 110' shown in fig. 9, each of the three antenna assemblies 100 may form a non-zero angle θ with the ground plane assembly 30 in the range of 30 degrees to 120 degrees. According to an embodiment, each of the antenna assemblies 100 may share a substantially equal angle θ with the ground plane assembly 30. All three antenna assemblies 100 may be substantially perpendicular to the ground plane assembly 30, with an angle in the range of 60 to 120 degrees.

The antenna module 110' is configured to act as an ultra wideband and omni-directional radiation module. The antenna assembly 100 may be tuned to different frequencies or frequency bands, the same frequencies or frequency bands, or some combination thereof.

Fig. 10 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module 110 "that further includes a ground plane opening structure 50. The structural size and geometry of the antenna module 110' as described in fig. 9 will be reduced. To reduce the structural size of the antenna module 110', the antenna assemblies 100 may be disposed more closely to one another above the top surface 30a of the ground plane assembly 30. However, unintended consequences such as polarization mismatch loss, propagation delay distortion, interference, or signal phase shift may occur. To overcome these limitations, a sectorized plane isolation and correlation enhancer in the form of a ground plane opening structure 50 is introduced. The ground plane opening structure 50 forms part of an antenna module 110' to prevent any unintended signal interference and phase shift in various technologies including, but not limited to, multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technology. The ground plane opening structure 50 forms part of the antenna module 110 'to reduce signal correlation, enhance signal isolation, and prevent any adverse effects of signal interference and phase shift on determining the angle of arrival (AoA) of a signal by the antenna module 110'.

In one embodiment, three substantially similar center openings 52 are formed in the ground plane 32. Each of the central openings 52 is an elongated opening, such as a slot, having a first end and a second end, and extends radially outwardly from a center point C on the ground plane assembly 30 at equally distributed angles. The three central openings together form a "Y" shape, with adjacent pairs of central openings 52 forming an angle of 120 degrees. The ground plane substrate 34 may form a bottom surface of the central opening 52. The first ends of each of the three center openings 52 intersect one another above the center point C to form a portion of an overall opening in the ground plane 32 configured to cancel the near field impedance associated with the ground plane 32. Each of the three central openings 52 extends such that the second end of each of the three central openings 52 forms an opening, such as a slot, between each of the two adjacent antenna assemblies 100.

Fig. 11 is a top view of an antenna module 110' having the ground plane opening structure 50 shown in fig. 10, the antenna module further including three external openings 56. Three antenna assemblies 100 are disposed above the top surface of the ground plane 32 residing above the ground plane substrate 34. The structural shape and size of each of the three center openings 52 can be adjusted to optimally tune the ground plane opening structure 50 to the desired center isolation frequency. The open portion of the ground plane opening structure 50 may be filled with a dielectric material (not shown) having a dielectric constant epsilon configured to further tune the ground plane opening structure 50 to a desired center isolation frequency. In an embodiment, the three external openings 56 form part of the ground plane opening structure 50 such that each of the three external openings 56 extends partially along one of the three equidistant chords around the center point C and forms an opening, such as a slot, in the ground plane 32.

The external opening 56 is an elongated opening in the ground plane 32 parallel to one of the plurality of antenna assemblies 100 and in an opposite side of one of the plurality of antenna assemblies 100 with respect to point C. The external opening 56 is formed so as to be along the plane T of the ground plane assembly 30 ₂ An imaginary line extending through the area between adjacent pairs of antenna assemblies 100 is a perpendicular bisector with respect to the outer opening 56. Each outer opening 56 may be coupled to one of the three center openings 52 to further tune the isolation frequency. The central opening 52 may be of length L ₃ And width W ₃ Is a rectangular shape of (c). In one embodiment, L ₃ In the range of 1/4 wavelength and W ₃ In the range of 0.5mm and 2 mm. Each pair of adjacent central openings 52 extends from a central point C and share an equal angle a with each other. The angle alpha may be substantially equal to 120 degrees.

Fig. 12 shows an exemplary embodiment of the antenna module 110 "of fig. 10, wherein the ground plane opening structure 50 further comprises three capacitive loads 54, each forming part of the first end of each respective one of the three central openings 52. The capacitive load 54 may be replaced with at least one of a variable reactive load, a combination of active and reactive loads, and a switch (not shown) coupled to the ground plane opening structure 50 to tune the ground plane opening structure 50 at a desired center frequency ω to further enhance isolation, reduce polarization mismatch loss, and/or minimize propagation delay distortion. According to an embodiment, the expected center frequency ω may correspond to a frequency or center frequency of the antenna module 110 "transmitting and/or receiving signals using Ultra Wideband (UWB) wireless technology.

Fig. 13 shows an exemplary embodiment of an antenna module 110' "that includes an additional sub-center opening 52' that forms part of a single unitary ground plane opening structure 50'. According to an embodiment, the ground plane opening structure 50 'as shown in fig. 13 further comprises a plurality of additional sub-center openings 52' extending parallel to the three center openings 52 as described with reference to fig. 10.

Fig. 14 shows a top view of the antenna module 110' "as previously shown in fig. 13. The ground plane opening structure 50 'includes nine sub-center openings 52' and three center openings 52 as shown in fig. 13. The three imaginary points E on the ground plane assembly 30 lie on one of three straight lines CQ extending between the point C and each of the three points Q on the ground plane assembly 30. For each point E, three sub-center openings 52' extend outwardly and at equally distributed angles of 120 degrees to form additional openings in the ground plane 32. According to an embodiment, point E shares a substantially equal distance with center point C.

The sub-center openings 52 'may extend radially outward from the point E at equally distributed angles, wherein for each point E, two of the three sub-center openings 52' extend parallel to their respective adjacent center openings 52, and one of the three sub-center openings 52 'extends toward and connects to the center point C, thereby forming an overall ground plane opening structure 50'.

The shape, size, or a combination thereof of each of the plurality of center openings 52 and sub-center openings 52 'may be adjusted to further tune the ground plane opening structure 50' to a desired center frequency to enhance isolation and correlation of signals at and around the desired center frequency ω. The expected center frequency ω may correspond to a frequency or center frequency of a frequency band of the antenna module 110' "that transmits and/or receives signals using Ultra Wideband (UWB) wireless technology. The hollow portion of the ground plane opening structure 50' is filled with a dielectric material having a dielectric constant epsilon and configured to optimally tune the operation of the ground plane opening structure 50' for the center frequency of the antenna module 110' "radiation.

Fig. 15A and 15B illustrate a wireless communication system 200 having a first networking device 111 mounted below the bottom surface of an electric vehicle 60 and a second networking device 111' mounted in and/or above the top surface 62a of a ground plane charging pad 62. Each of the first networking device 111 and the second networking device 111 'includes one or more antenna modules 110 "coupled to one of the first control unit 64 or the second control unit 64'.

The antenna module 110 "is substantially similar to the antenna module 110" described with reference to fig. 10 to 14 and will continue with the same reference numerals as discussed. The first networked device 111 and the second networked device 111' form a wireless communication system 200 configured to receive, process, and transmit information signals 66 related to positioning, orientation, and alignment of the vehicle 60 relative to the ground plane charging pad 62.

Fig. 15A illustrates a first of two scenarios according to which the electric vehicle 60 approaches the top surface of the ground plane charging pad 62 from the far field, wherein a horizontal gap exists between one of the front side or the back side of the electric vehicle 60 and the ground plane charging pad 62. According to one embodiment, during far field approach, radiation propagation is along a horizontal path above the ground surface 70. The second primary polarization of the antenna modules 110 "facilitates alignment in a primary line-of-sight direction between the first networking device 111 and the second networking device 111', which further enhances ultra-wideband wireless communication between the one or more antenna modules 110" of the first networking device 111 and the one or more antenna modules 110 "of the second networking device 111".

The information signal 66 carries information data corresponding to the distance between the first networking device 111 and the second networking device 111' or a function related to said distance. In another embodiment, the information signal 66 may also carry information data corresponding to or related to the angle between the first networked device 111 and the second networked device 111'.

Determining the position of the electric vehicle 60 relative to the ground plane charging pad 62 includes determining both the direction and distance of the electric vehicle 60 to the ground plane charging pad 62. Real-time analysis and processing of the transmitted and/or received information signals 66 by the control unit 64 of the first networked device 111 and the control unit 64 'of the second networked device 111' provides the electric vehicle 60 with information that enables the electric vehicle 60 to be directed toward the ground plane charging pad 62.

Fig. 15B illustrates a second of two scenarios according to which an electric vehicle 60 may need to precisely align itself above the surface of a ground plane charging pad 62. According to a second scenario, at least a portion of the bottom surface of the electric vehicle 60 vertically overlaps a portion of the top surface of the ground plane charging pad 62. Near field proximity and alignment requires precisely positioning and aligning the first networking device 111 of the electric vehicle 60 in the lateral and longitudinal directions over the second networking device 111' of the ground plane charging pad 62.

The first networking device 111 and the second networking device 111' form a wireless communication system 200 to transmit and receive information signals 66. According to an embodiment, the information signal 66 carries information data corresponding to or relating to the distance between the first networked device 111 and the second networked device 111'. The information signal 66 may also carry information data corresponding to the angle between the first networked device 111 and the second networked device 111' or a function related to said angle.

Real-time analysis and processing of the transmitted and/or received information signals 66 by the control unit 64 of the first networking device 111 and the control unit 64 'of the second networking device 111' enables the electric vehicle 60 to be directed toward the ground plane charging pad 62 and to determine its lateral offset relative to the top surface of the ground plane charging pad 62.

Those skilled in the art will recognize improvements and modifications to the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure. All such improvements and modifications are considered within the scope of the concepts disclosed herein and the claims that follow.

Claims

1. An antenna assembly, the antenna assembly comprising:

an elongated central section along a first axis having a first end and a second end;

a first helical segment extending outwardly from the first end, back toward the second end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongate central segment;

a second helical segment extending outwardly from the second end, back toward the first end, and at least partially inwardly along the elongated central segment; and is also provided with

Wherein each of the elongated central section, the first helical section and the second helical section is electrically conductive and forms an antenna element.

2. The antenna assembly of claim 1, wherein the elongated central section, the first helical section, and the second helical section reside in a first plane.

3. The antenna assembly of claim 2, wherein the first helical segment and the second helical segment are on opposite sides of the elongate central segment.

4. The antenna assembly of claim 3, further comprising an antenna substrate on or in which the antenna element resides, wherein the antenna substrate is comprised of a dielectric material.

5. The antenna assembly of claim 4, further comprising a connection member connected to and extending from the elongated central section, wherein the connection member is electrically conductive.

6. An antenna module, the antenna module comprising:

a ground plane assembly including a ground plane having a top surface and a bottom surface; and

a plurality of antenna assemblies disposed above a top surface of the ground plane, each antenna assembly comprising:

7. The antenna module of claim 6, further comprising a plurality of central openings in the ground plane, wherein each central opening is an elongated opening having a first end and a second end, and wherein the plurality of central openings form part of a ground plane opening structure.

8. The antenna module of claim 7, wherein the plurality of antenna assemblies comprises three antenna assemblies radially disposed at equal distances and equal distribution angles equal to 120 degrees about points on the ground plane assembly.

9. The antenna module of claim 8, wherein the ground plane assembly is circular, and wherein the point on the ground plane assembly is a center point of the ground plane assembly.

10. The antenna module of claim 9, wherein the ground plane opening structure includes three central openings extending radially outward from the equal length and equal distribution angle equal to 120 degrees, each of the three central openings having a first end intersecting at the center point and a second end extending between adjacent pairs of the plurality of antenna assemblies forming a "Y" shape in the ground plane.

11. The antenna module of claim 10, wherein the ground plane opening structure further comprises nine sub-center openings, wherein each three of the nine sub-center openings extend radially outward from a point on a bisector of an angle formed between one of three pairs of adjacent center openings at an equal distribution angle equal to 120 degrees, wherein two of the three sub-center openings extend parallel to one pair of adjacent center openings, and one of the three sub-center openings extends and connects to the center point.

12. The antenna module of claim 10, wherein the ground plane opening structure further comprises three external openings, wherein each external opening is an elongated opening in the ground plane that is parallel to one of the three antenna assemblies and in an opposite side of the antenna assembly relative to the center point.

13. The antenna module of claim 10, wherein the ground plane opening structure further comprises one or more loads coupled to the ground plane opening structure.

14. The antenna module of claim 10, wherein each of the plurality of antenna assemblies is identical to one another.

15. The antenna module of claim 14, wherein each of the plurality of antenna assemblies is substantially perpendicular to the ground plane assembly.

16. The antenna module of claim 15, further comprising an antenna substrate on or in which the antenna element resides, wherein the antenna substrate is comprised of a dielectric material.

17. The antenna module of claim 16, wherein the ground plane assembly further comprises a ground plane substrate on or in which the ground plane resides.

18. The antenna module of claim 17, wherein the ground plane substrate forms a portion of a bottom surface of the ground plane opening structure.

19. The antenna module of claim 18, wherein the first helical segment and the second helical segment are on opposite sides of the elongate central segment.

20. The antenna module of claim 19, wherein the elongated central section, the first helical section, and the second helical section reside in a first plane.

21. The antenna module of claim 20, wherein the ground plane assembly further comprises a plurality of vias.

22. The antenna module of claim 21, wherein each of the three antenna assemblies further comprises a connection member connected to and extending from the elongated central section, wherein the connection member is electrically conductive and inserted into each of the respective through holes.

23. The antenna module of claim 22, wherein the ground plane component is planar and resides in a second plane.

24. The antenna module of claim 23, wherein an operating frequency of the antenna module is in a range between 5 and 20 GHz.

25. A wireless communication system, the wireless communication system comprising:

a control unit;

an antenna module associated with the control unit, the antenna module comprising: