CN1717841A - Combination of tube assembly and clip for wireless antenna grounding - Google Patents

Abstract

An antenna grounding assembly for a hand-held device, the grounding assembly comprising: an antenna having an antenna shaft connected between a grounding block and a protective sheath; an antenna tube affixed within the hand-held device and holding the antenna, the antenna tube having an upper end through which the antenna shaft is extended or retracted, and an inner end opposite the upper end; and a grounding clip installed into the inner end of the antenna tube, the grounding clip having a base and at least one contact pin extending axially along the antenna tube for resilient contact with the grounding block.

Description

Combination tube assembly and clip for wireless antenna grounding

technical field

The present invention relates to antenna grounding and mounting techniques, and in particular to antenna mounting and grounding in mobile devices.

Background technique

To maximize signal reception and minimize noise, good grounding of the antenna is required. Unfortunately, in many mobile devices where the antenna is stored in a retracted state, proper grounding is not achieved. This is generally the result of improper contact between the antenna contact block and ground in the antenna tube assembly.

Further, even when the antenna has a ground in the fully retracted position, in many cases the ground is ineffective when the antenna is not fully retracted. This can happen if the user does not push the antenna all the way into its fitting, but instead lets it partially extend.

Another problem with current grounding technology occurs during assembly of the antenna that the assembly tube can move axially. If the antenna requires proper grounding in the fully retracted position, this axial movement moves the fully retracted position of the antenna, resulting in an ineffective ground.

Another problem with retractable antennas is that they can transfer water into the antenna tube when they are moved from an extended state to a retracted state, especially when the mobile device is used in the rain.

Contents of the invention

The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by providing an excellent antenna tube and clip combination for the antenna. In particular, the invention includes a clip inserted into the end of the antenna tube. The clip includes at least one contact leg extending axially along the antenna tube to provide an extended surface for contacting the antenna contact block when the contact block is in the retracted state. The length of the contact area allows contact even when the antenna is not fully retracted. A further spring force in the contact leg ensures good contact with the antenna contact piece.

The present invention further has a flange at one end of the mounting tube to greatly reduce the possibility of axial movement during manufacture. The flange fits or fits into a slot on a printed circuit board (PCB). The flanges and slots can be manufactured with high precision so as to provide a constant position for the fully retracted state of the antenna once the tube is mounted on the PCB. Without the slot and flange, slight axial movement of the tube could cause the contact point for fully retracting the antenna to be displaced towards or away from the fitting on the housing of the device in which the antenna is mounted. Grounding is facilitated by having a constant contact distance between the housing fitting and the fully retracted position.

The present invention further has an easy method of waterproofing the antenna by providing a plastic tube that fits within the antenna tube assembly and captures any water brought into the tube assembly by the antenna being retracted. The use of a cap at the other end of the tube ensures that no water can enter from that end.

The present invention thus provides an antenna ground assembly for a hand-held device, said ground assembly comprising: an antenna having an antenna shaft connected between a ground block and a protective cover; an antenna tube attached within said hand-held device and holding the The antenna, the antenna tube has an upper end through which the antenna shaft is extended or retracted, and the antenna tube has an inner end opposite the upper end; and a ground clip mounted on the inner end of the antenna tube The ground clip has a base and at least one contact leg extending axially along the antenna tube for resilient contact with the ground block.

The present invention further provides an antenna ground assembly for a handheld device, said ground assembly comprising: an antenna having an antenna shaft connected between a ground block and a protective cover; an antenna tube attached inside said handheld device and holding the The antenna, the antenna tube has an upper end with a flange through which the antenna shaft is extended or retracted, and the antenna tube has an inner end opposite to the upper end; the antenna tube installed on the a ground clip in the inner end; and a printed circuit board having a slot therein to which the antenna tube is mounted using surface mount technology clips and into which the flanged end fits to limit Axial movement of the antenna tube.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the antenna tube and assembly of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the antenna tube and assembly;

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the contact end of the antenna tube and fitting;

Figure 4 is a rear elevational view of the ground clip of the present invention;

Figure 5 is a top perspective view of the ground clip of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a bottom perspective view of the ground clip;

Figure 7 is a top plan view of the ground clip;

Figure 8 is a front elevational view of the ground clip;

Figure 9 is a left front view of the ground clip;

Figure 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of the pipe and ground clip of the present invention;

Figure 11 is a partial cross-sectional view of the tube and ground clip of the present invention showing more of the tube;

Figure 12 is a partial cross-sectional view of the tube and ground clamp of Figure 11 rotated to a different angle;

Figure 13 is an end view of the tube and ground clip of Figure 11;

Figure 14 is a partial cross-sectional view of the pipe and grounding clamp of the present invention;

Figure 15 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the pipe and ground clip of the present invention;

Figure 16 is a schematic plan view of an optional contact leg for the ground clip of the present invention;

Figure 17 is a schematic plan view of another optional contact leg for the ground clip of the present invention;

Figure 18 is a cross-sectional view of the flange and groove assembly of the present invention; and

Fig. 19 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a tubular assembly of the present invention including a waterproof member.

Detailed ways

Reference is now made to FIGS. 1 and 2 . 1 and 2 illustrate the tubular assembly 10 for the retractable antenna 25 . The tubular assembly 10 includes an outer metal wall 12 formed to a precise inner diameter that ensures small deviations.

Tube assembly 10 is mounted to printed circuit board (PCB) 14 using surface mount technology clips (SMT) 16 . The SMT clips provide electrical contact between the tubular assembly 10 and the PCB 14.

The antenna 25 includes an outer protective sheath 30 at the outer end of the antenna, an antenna shaft 32, and a contact block 34 (more clearly seen in FIG. 3). The antenna 25 is held on the hand-held device at the upper end of the shaft using a fitting 36 . The fitting 36 provides stability to the antenna 25 and further provides weather protection for the tube assembly 10 to limit the ingress of water.

The user is able to extend the antenna 25 by pulling the cover 30 outwardly relative to the handheld device. This causes the antenna shaft 32 to move through the fitting 36 , which pulls the antenna contact block 34 . The contact block 34 moves from a position proximate the inner end 18 of the tubular assembly 10 to a position toward the outer end 20 of the tubular assembly 10 .

Similarly, retraction is performed by pushing the outer protective sheath 30 towards the handheld device, causing the antenna contact block 34 to move towards the inner end 18 of the tubular assembly 10 .

To facilitate grounding, the present invention provides conductive and typically metallic grounding clips 40 . The ground clip 40 can be best seen in FIGS. 3 to 15 .

Clip 40 consists of at least one, but preferably two resiliently flexible contact clips or contact legs 42 attached to or integrally formed with a base ring 44 .

In operation, the ground clip 40 is installed in the inner open end 18 of the tubular assembly 10 . The tubular assembly 10 is formed with a circumferentially extending slot 46 for holding the ground clip 40 in place. Specifically, the clip 40 can be inserted into the tube 10 until, for insertion of the clip and its removal (if necessary) the base ring 44 snaps (snaps) securely between the groove 46 and the inwardly curved lip 48 of the tube. Insertion and removal of the clip is facilitated by angled protrusions 41 at the inner and outer ends of the base ring 44 in the space between them.

The end of the tubular assembly 10 is preferably formed with a tapered lip 48 . It is then mounted on the lip 48 using some elastic deformation of the clip, and the clip 40 is then fitted into the space between the groove 46 and the lip 48 . Preferably, a small jig is used to accomplish this insertion. The ground clip 40 is thus locked into place between the tapered lip 48 and the groove 46 of the tubular assembly 10 .

Each contact leg 42 is substantially in the shape of a dog leg, which provides clearance between each leg and the slot 46, and allows the longer portion 43 of each leg to taper from the apex 52 of the dog leg to the protrusion 50, The protrusion 50 is adapted to bear against the inner surface of the tube 10 . Surface 55 of each leg portion 43 between apex 52 and protrusion 50 is a flexible contact area for contact between clip 40 and contact block 34 at the inner end of the antenna shaft when the antenna is fully or partially retracted. electrical contact.

Reference is now made to FIG. 15 . FIG. 15 shows that contact leg 42 makes physical and electrical contact with antenna contact block 34 if antenna contact block 34 is located between points 54 and 56 of contact area 55 . Contact leg 42 is preferably gold plated in this area to ensure optimum contact and grounding.

The ground clip 40 is preferably formed by sequential dies. This ensures that the clamps have precisely controlled dimensions for consistent fit within each tubular assembly 10 . This ensures a better repeatable position of the legs 42 when one tubular assembly 10 is compared to another.

The slope between design points 54 and 56 produces the optimum contact area. This is achieved by ensuring that the contact area 55 is as long as possible and the contact leg 42 is elastically soft. This assembly enables a long contact area 55 which creates more opportunities for the antenna 25 to ground. In particular, the antenna 25 does not need to be fully retracted into the tube to achieve proper grounding.

In a preferred embodiment, clip 40 includes two contact legs 42 . The use of two legs ensures that proper contact is maintained with the antenna contact block 34 by providing a three point contact to ground. The first two contact points are between the block 34 and the two contact areas 55 on the contact leg 42 . Further, the spring force on the antenna contact block 34 by the contact leg 42 will force the antenna contact block 34 into contact with the interior of the tubular assembly 10, creating a third ground point, as best shown in FIG. The optimal configuration of the contact legs 42 will not be diametrically opposite each other, but at an angle between 90 and 120 degrees from each other.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that other contact leg 42 configurations are possible. A contact leg can for example be used as long as the leg is stable enough to provide a good contact area 55 . Reference is now made to FIGS. 16 and 17 which illustrate alternative configurations of the contact legs 42 . In FIG. 16 the contact legs are shown with forked ends 43 . The pronged end 43 provides sufficient stability that the contact leg 42 does not move when the antenna contact block 34 is retracted.

Optionally, the contact leg 42 can be bent, as shown in FIG. 17 . Figure 17 shows the contact leg 42 with a single contact point 55 at one end. However, the contact area 55 is bent around the antenna contact block 34 to ensure that the contact leg 42 does not move to the side of the antenna contact block 34 when the antenna 25 is retracted.

Grounding is further facilitated by mounting the tube assembly 10 on the PCB 14. As indicated above, the tube assembly 10 is mounted to the PCB 14 using surface mount technology clips 16. Two SMT clips 16 are used and these clips 16 are connected to associated clips on the PCB 14. The clips 16 will hold the tubular assembly 10 in the X and Y directions. The combination of the two clips will limit rotation about the X and Y axes.

Reference is now made to FIG. 18 . The present invention further includes a radially extending flange 60 at the front or upper end of the tubular assembly 10 . Flange 60 fits into a slot 62 cut into PCB 14 . The combination of the flange 60 and the groove 62 ensures that the tubular assembly 10 will not move in the axial direction of the tube.

An advantage of the mounting technique described above is that the contact performance will be improved. If the tube is allowed to move axially, the pinch point of the antenna contact block 34 will vary, making accurate grounding more difficult. The use of the flange 60 and the groove 62, both of which can be manufactured with high precision, ensures that the tubular assembly 10 is always correctly installed axially. This mounting technique only allows rotation about the axis of the tubular assembly 10 . This does not affect the contact of the retracted antenna 25 and thus does not affect the grounding performance.

After the tube is fully assembled, those skilled in the art will understand that the plastic parts inside the housing will also help hold the tube assembly 10 in the correct position.

By providing the tube 70 within the tubular assembly 10, the present invention further provides improved water resistance. When the antenna 25 is retracted, water can enter the tube assembly 10 from the fitting 36 . This is overcome by the plastic tube 70 and cap 72 .

Refer to Figure 19. Tube 70 is preferably constructed of plastic and is attached or secured to fitting 36 . A tube 70 extends from the fitting 36 to the contact area 55 . Preferably, there is a small gap between the tube 70 and the tubular assembly 10 to facilitate insertion of the plastic tube 70 into the tubular assembly 10 . Further, the plastic tube 70 can be inserted into the tube assembly 10 using the opening of the fitting 36 even after closing the case of the mobile device.

In operation, water that may collect on the shaft 36 due to rain can be pushed into the fitting 36 when the antenna 25 is retracted. This water will remain in the tube 70 instead of touching the sides of the tube assembly 10 .

Further waterproofing is accomplished by adding a cap 72 to the end of the tubular assembly 10 . Cap 72 can be constructed of metal or plastic and fits snugly and securely over the end of tubular assembly 10, thereby providing a seal.

The above-described embodiments of the present invention are meant to be illustrations of preferred embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. In addition, various changes apparent to those skilled in the art are within the scope of the present invention. The only limitations on the invention are set forth in the appended claims.

Industrial applicability

The present invention is directed to the mounting and grounding of antennas in mobile devices.

Claims (40)

1. antenna ground assembly that is used for handheld device, described grounding assembly comprises:

Antenna has the antenna axis that is connected between ground connection piece and the protective sleeve;

It spool is attached in the described handheld device and keeps described antenna, described antenna pipe to have the upper end, stretch or withdraw by the described antenna axis in this upper end, and described antenna pipe has the inner of described relatively upper end; With

Earth clip is installed in described the inner of described day spool, and described earth clip has base portion and contacts leg with at least one, and this contact leg is used for and described ground connection piece Elastic Contact to stretching, extension along described antenna tubular axis.

2. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein, spool further had tapered antelabium in described the inner in described day.

3. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein, described day spool further is included in the groove of described the inner and described upper end.

4. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 3, wherein, the described base portion of described earth clip is fit to be fixedly mounted between the described groove and described tapered antelabium of described day spool.

5. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 4, wherein, the described base portion of described earth clip is used for described earth clip and is installed in described tapered antelabium at elastically deformable radially.

6. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 5, wherein, described earth clip remains on the appropriate location by described tapered antelabium and described groove.

7. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 6, wherein, the described base portion of described earth clip comprises angled protrusion, is used for removing described earth clip from described day spool.

8. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1 has two contact legs.

9. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein, described at least one contact leg is the dog-leg shape.

10. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 9, wherein, described contact leg is tapered from the summit to the protrusion at an end of described contact leg.

11. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 10, wherein, described protrusion is fit to lean against on the inner surface of described day spool.

12. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 12, wherein, the described contact leg between described summit and described protrusion is an elastomeric flexible.

13. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 12, wherein, described earth clip is gold-plated.

14. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein, described contact leg has forked end.

15. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein, described contact leg is crooked.

16. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1 wherein, uses the surface mounting technology folder that described day spool is installed to printed circuit board (PCB).

17. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 16, wherein, described day spool further comprises flange in the top, and described printed circuit board (PCB) comprises groove to accept described flange, is limited in axial the moving of described day spool thus.

18. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 17, wherein, moving of spool further limited by the plastic assembly in described handheld device in described day.

19. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 1 further comprises: the assembly parts on described handheld device, described assembly parts are positioned on the described upper end, and have the hole, and described antenna axis passes this hole.

20. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 19 further comprises: be connected to described assembly parts and extend into the pipe of described day spool, described pipe provides waterproof for described antenna ground assembly.

21. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 20 further comprises: calotte, regulate this calotte with on the described the inner that is installed in described day spool well, described calotte provides sealing for described sky spool.

22. an antenna ground assembly that is used for handheld device, described grounding assembly comprises:

Antenna has the antenna axis that is connected between ground connection piece and the protective sleeve;

It spool is attached in the described handheld device and keeps described antenna, and described antenna pipe has flanged (FLGD) upper end, stretched or withdraw by the described antenna axis in this upper end, and this antenna pipe has the inner relative with described upper end;

Be installed in the earth clip of described the inner of described day spool; With

The printed circuit board (PCB) that wherein has groove use the surface mounting technology folder to make described day spool be installed to described printed circuit board (PCB), and described flanged (FLGD) end is installed into described groove to limit moving axially of described day spool.

23. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 22, wherein, described earth clip comprises that base portion contacts leg with at least one, and this contact leg, is used for and described ground connection piece Elastic Contact to extension along described antenna tubular axis.

24. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 23, wherein, spool further had tapered antelabium in described the inner in described day.

25. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 24, wherein, described day spool further is included in the groove of described the inner and described upper end.

26. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 25, wherein, the described base portion of described earth clip is fit to be fixedly mounted between the described groove and described tapered antelabium of described day spool.

27. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 26, wherein, the described base portion of described earth clip is used for installing described earth clip at elastically deformable radially on described tapered antelabium.

28. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 27, wherein, described earth clip remains on the appropriate location by described tapered antelabium and described groove.

29. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 28, wherein, the described base portion of described earth clip comprises angled protrusion, is used for removing described earth clip from described day spool.

30. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 23 has two contact legs.

31. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 23, wherein, described at least one contact leg is the dog-leg shape.

32. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 31, wherein, described contact leg is tapered from the summit to the protrusion at an end of described contact leg.

33. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 32, wherein, described protrusion is fit to lean against on the inner surface of described day spool.

34. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 33, wherein, the described contact leg between described summit and described protrusion is an elastomeric flexible.

35. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 34, wherein, described earth clip is gold-plated.

36. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 23, wherein, described contact leg has forked end.

37. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 23, wherein, described contact leg is crooked.

38. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 22 further comprises: the assembly parts on described handheld device, described assembly parts are positioned on described flanged (FLGD) upper end, and have the hole, and described antenna axis passes this hole.

39. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 38 further comprises: be connected to described assembly parts and extend into the pipe of described day spool, described pipe provides waterproof for described antenna ground assembly.

40. antenna ground assembly as claimed in claim 39 further comprises: calotte, regulate this calotte with on the described the inner that is installed in described day spool well, described calotte provides sealing for described sky spool.

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