CN212366194U

CN212366194U - Antenna module with printed circuit system for vehicle

Info

Publication number: CN212366194U
Application number: CN202020147975.8U
Authority: CN
Inventors: N·安德里亚; C·麦特欧; L·C·吉安卢卡; F·保罗; D·保罗
Original assignee: Ask Industries SpA
Current assignee: Ask Industries SpA
Priority date: 2019-01-31
Filing date: 2020-01-30
Publication date: 2021-01-15
Anticipated expiration: 2030-01-30
Also published as: FR3092440B3; DE202020100452U1; JP3229963U; BR202020001955U2; FR3092440A3

Abstract

Antenna module (100) for a vehicle, comprising: the PCB comprises a base (1), a fixing system (2), a horizontal PCB (3), a front vertical PCB (4), a rear vertical PCB (5) and an IC (6), a capacitance element (7) mounted on the rear vertical PCB (5) and a cover (9) mounted on the base (1) so as to cover the horizontal PCB (3), the front vertical PCB (4), the rear vertical PCB (5), the IC (6) and the capacitance element (7).

Description

Antenna module with printed circuit system for vehicle

Technical Field

The utility model relates to an antenna module with printed circuit system for vehicle. The term "printed circuit" refers to a Printed Circuit Board (PCB).

Background

Antennas for vehicles are known on the market, which are housed in shark fins boxes provided on the roof of the vehicle.

EP2712023 discloses an antenna for a vehicle of this type, comprising:

-an umbrella-shaped capacitive element,

-an amplifier, and

-a coil arranged between the exit terminal of the umbrella-shaped capacitive element and the entrance terminal of the amplifier to resonate the capacitive element at a specified frequency.

The coil is a conventional coil comprising a winding wound on a core, the axis of the core coinciding with the axis of the coil. The axis of the coil is at the center of the amplitude of the umbrella-shaped capacitive element. In other words, the umbrella-shaped capacitive element is symmetrical to a longitudinal plane passing through the coil axis.

This type of antenna suffers from some drawbacks due to the provision of the conventional coil. For example, due to mechanical tolerances in the manufacture of the coil, it is difficult to obtain good stability of the resonance frequency. This may result in a difference in the equivalent concentration of inductance and a shift in the resonant frequency above an acceptable level. Furthermore, the use of coils requires mechanical support to hold the coil in place. This mechanical support is rather complicated because it must hold the coil and the capacitive element in place and must be free of electrical effects, that is, it cannot conduct electricity. Finally, the use of conventional coils limits the designer's freedom in antenna prototyping and creates an imbalance in trying to obtain the correct resonant frequency value, which is entirely dependent on the capacitive characteristics determined by the geometry of the capacitive element.

Furthermore, it must be noted that modern car antennas require other functions in addition to the traditional reception of AM/FM radio signals. Such additional functions are the reception and transmission of cellular telephone signals and the reception of satellite signals. Obviously, said additional functions require dedicated circuits and it is difficult to achieve the correct compromise between the aesthetics of the antenna housing determined by the car manufacturer and the electronic components to be inserted into the housing to achieve the aforementioned functions.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The object of the present invention is to eliminate the drawbacks of the prior art by disclosing an antenna module for a vehicle that is efficient, effective, versatile, reliable, compact, cheap and easy to manufacture and install.

According to the invention, these objects are achieved by the features of the following technical solution.

An antenna module for a vehicle, comprising:

-a base for supporting the substrate,

a fixing system adapted to fix the base on the roof of the vehicle,

a horizontal PCB mounted horizontally on the base,

-a front vertical PCB mounted vertically on the horizontal PCB; the front vertical PCB serves as a transmitting and receiving antenna for radio signals of the cellular phone,

-a rear vertical PCB mounted vertically on the horizontal PCB behind the front vertical PCB; the rear vertical PCB serves as a receiving antenna for AM or FM radio signals,

-an IC mounted on the horizontal PCB opposite the front vertical PCB; the IC functions as a receiver and amplifier for satellite radio signals,

-a capacitive element mounted on the rear vertical PCB, an

-a cover mounted on said base in a manner to cover the horizontal PCB, the front vertical PCB, the rear vertical PCB, the IC and the capacitive element;

characterized in that the capacitive element is electrically connected to the rear vertical PCB, and

the front vertical PCB, the rear vertical PCB and the IC are electrically connected to the horizontal PCB, which is configured to amplify and equalize electrical signals from the front vertical PCB, the rear vertical PCB and the IC.

Advantageous embodiments of the invention result from further embodiments (as described in detail below).

The utility model discloses an antenna module is injectd by technical scheme as above.

Drawings

Additional features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which is given by way of illustrative and not restrictive example, and which is shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of portions of an antenna module according to the present invention;

fig. 2 is a perspective view of the antenna module of fig. 1 in an assembled state, with the cover omitted;

fig. 3 is a partial cross-sectional longitudinal view of an antenna module according to the present invention;

fig. 4 is a side view of the assembled antenna module, without the cover;

fig. 5 is a front view of the assembled antenna module, without the cover;

fig. 6 is a perspective view of the capacitive element;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a capacitive element mounted on a rear vertical PCB;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are side views of a rear vertical PCB and a front vertical PCB;

FIG. 10 is a side view of a rear vertical PCB with capacitive elements; and

fig. 11 is an enlarged view of the detail enclosed in circle a of fig. 10.

Detailed Description

Referring to the drawings, there is disclosed an antenna module in accordance with the present invention, the antenna module being generally referred to by reference numeral 100.

The antenna module 100 comprises a base 1 suitable for being fixed to the roof of a vehicle by means of a fixing system 2 of known type.

The fixation system 2 may comprise: a tabbed assembly device; a ground washer 21 having a resilient tab for engaging the mounting means; and a fixing nut 22.

The base 1 comprises a plate 10 made of Zama (zinc, aluminum and magnesium alloy) and a seal 11 provided along the periphery of the plate 10.

A generally rectangular rib 12 is provided on the board 10, the rib 12 defining a location where the horizontal PCB 3 is mounted.

The electrical connector 30 protrudes from the horizontal PCB 3 to a lower position and passes through the base 1 through the hole 13 so as to protrude from the base 1 to the lower position. The horizontal PCB 3 is fixed to the base 1 by screws 31 provided at a peripheral position.

The front and rear

vertical PCBs

4 and 5 are mounted on the horizontal PCB 3 along the center line of the horizontal PCB 3 so as to protrude vertically upward from the horizontal PCB 3. To this end, the front vertical PCB 4 and the rear vertical PCB 5 are provided with

legs

46, 56 which are mounted in slots 32 on the horizontal PCB 3.

The front vertical PCB 4 and the rear vertical PCB 5 are aligned along a vertical plane perpendicular to the horizontal printed PCB 3.

The rear vertical PCB 5 has a rear edge 50 corresponding to the rear edge of the horizontal PCB 3, a horizontal upper edge 51 and a front edge near the rear edge of the front vertical PCB 4.

The front vertical PCB 4 has a front edge 40 disposed substantially half way along the length of the horizontal PCB 3, and an upper edge 41 sloping downwardly from the rear edge to the front edge. The front vertical PCB 4 is smaller than the rear vertical PCB 5.

The IC 6 is mounted on the horizontal PCB 3 opposite the front edge 40 of the front vertical PCB 4.

The front vertical PCB 4, the rear vertical PCB 5 and the IC 6 are electrically connected to the horizontal PCB 3.

The horizontal PCB 3 amplifies and equalizes the electrical signals from the rear vertical PCB 5, from the front vertical PCB 4 and from the IC 6. The horizontal PCB 3 is configured to allow impedance matching of electrical signals from or to the front vertical PCB 4. Furthermore, the horizontal PCB 3 manages the electrical output interface towards the vehicle and acts as a mechanical support for the front vertical PCB 4 and the rear vertical 5.

With reference to fig. 9, the front vertical PCB 4 implements the LTE functionality, i.e. the functionality of a transceiver antenna for mobile phone radio signals, in particular for operation at frequencies up to the fourth generation [ referred to as 4G or Long Term Evolution (LTE) ]. To achieve this function, there are rails 42 on the front vertical PCB 4. One of the rails 42 is provided with an outlet pad 43, which outlet pad 43 is arranged near the lower part of the leg 46 for electrical connection with the horizontal PCB.

Referring to fig. 8, the rear vertical PCB 5 implements an FM/AM function, i.e., a function of an antenna that receives transmission of existing Amplitude Modulation (AM) and/or Frequency Modulation (FM) radio signals where the antenna is used. This function is achieved by the conductive tracks 52 being connected in such a way as to obtain the electrical length necessary to make the capacitive element resonate in the desired frequency band, while maintaining a compact size. The rail 52 has an inlet pad 52a disposed at a lower position near the leg 56 of the rear vertical PCB 5 and an outlet pad 52b disposed at an upper position and a rear position.

IC 6 implements the reception and amplification functions of satellite radio signals suitable for calculating the exact position from geographical coordinates, known as GPS, GNSS, Glonass, beidou and Galileo.

The capacitive element 7 is mounted on the rear vertical PCB 5.

Referring to fig. 6 and 7, the capacitive element 7 includes an upper portion 70 in the shape of an inverted "U", a first inclined plate 71 and a second inclined plate 72 having protruding positions on both sides of the rear vertical PCB 5.

The upper part 70 of the capacitive element is arranged above the upper edge 51 of the rear vertical PCB 5. The upper portion 70 of the capacitive element includes front and

rear fasteners

73a, 73b that are fastened to the upper edge 51 of the rear vertical PCB 5.

Referring to fig. 10 and 11, the rear fasteners 73b of the upper part of the capacitive element are fastened to the outlet legs 52b of the conductive tracks of the rear vertical PCB 5.

Referring to fig. 5, the first and second

inclined plates

71 and 72 have an inclination angle θ between 10 ° and 30 ° with respect to the rear vertical PCB 5. However, second inclined plate 72 is longer than first inclined plate 71 of the capacitance element. The length L2 of the second inclined plate 72 is approximately equal to 1/2 of the height H of the rear vertical PCB 5. The length L1 of the first inclined plate 71 is approximately equal to 2/3 of the length L2 of the second inclined plate 72.

Thus, the capacitive element 7 has an asymmetrical cross section with respect to the plane of the rear vertical PCB 5. This asymmetry of the capacitive element 7 advantageously provides an additional degree of freedom to optimize the shape of the radiation pattern of the AM/FM and LTE antennas, which becomes omnidirectional due to the introduction of such asymmetry, which can always produce equal or opposite effects due to other unavoidable asymmetries of the antenna module 100, such as asymmetries relating to the position of components on the horizontal PCB 3, asymmetries relating to the electrical connection position of the horizontal PCB 3 with one of the sides of the front vertical PCB 4 and the rear vertical PCB 5, or asymmetries relating to the inherent left-right asymmetries of the front vertical PCB 4 and the rear vertical PCB 5, without any limitation. Furthermore, the asymmetry of the capacitive element 7 greatly reduces the risk of the capacitive element 7 vibrating, thereby reducing the risk of generating noise that may interfere with the occupants of the vehicle. This asymmetry of the capacitive element also provides the designer with a greater degree of freedom with respect to the correct position of the resonant frequencies acting on either side of the capacitive element. Finally, this asymmetry of the capacitive elements allows to mount the front vertical PCB 4 and the rear vertical PCB 5, and in particular the rear vertical PCB 5, in a position that is laterally displaced and not located on the vertical symmetry axis of the horizontal PCB 3, enabling the designer to place the vertical PCBs in the available space and the components on the horizontal PCB 3 in an optimal way, without having to force the interconnection point to be placed in a position centered on the longitudinal symmetry axis of the vertical PCB.

The capacitive element 7 is made of an electrically conductive material, such as steel, brass or aluminum, and is finally surface-treated with zinc plating or tin plating to have good electrical conductivity. According to a different embodiment, the capacitive element 7 can be made of plastic material and be suitably surface-treated in order to be electrically conductive.

The capacitive element 7 is electrically connected to the rear vertical PCB 5 by electrical contact between the rear fastener 73a in the upper rear portion of the rear vertical PCB 5 and the outlet pad 52.

This connection in the rear position of the rear vertical PCB 5 allows to obtain an electrical extension of the radio frequency current along the conductive tracks 52 of the rear vertical PCB 5 and along the path of the capacitive element 7, thus providing a greater freedom in the dimensioning of the conductive tracks 52 of the rear vertical PCB 5 to optimize the performance of the antenna.

The rear vertical PCB 5 and the capacitive element 7 are dimensioned so as to provide optimum operation at FM frequencies, due to the electrical length of the conductive tracks obtained on the rear vertical PCB 5 in combination with the electrical effect of the capacitive load of the capacitive element 7. Extending the capacitive element 7 in the lateral direction with respect to the basic two-dimensional geometry of the rear vertical PCB 5, operation at FM and AM frequencies of the same overall height of both elements can be optimized.

In addition to its electronic function, the rear vertical PCB 5 also acts as a mechanical support for the capacitive element 7, optimizing the performance of the AM/FM function in a simple mechanical manner with lower production costs and with the same available space.

A buffer 8 of a foamed plastic material, for example foamed polyurethane, is applied on the outer surfaces of the first 71 and second 72 inclined plates. The damper 8 has a thickness of about 2-5mm and serves to damp residual vibration of the first inclined plate 71 and the second inclined plate 72 of the capacitive element.

A cover 9 of the shark fin is mounted on the base 10 in a manner to cover the horizontal PCB 3, the front vertical PCB 4, the rear vertical PCB 5, the IC 6, and the capacitive element 7 mounted on the rear vertical PCB 5. The cover 9 is fixed to the base 1 by screws 90.

The front vertical PCB 4 can be arranged in a manner to follow the inclined longitudinal profile of the cover 9, while keeping at its rear the maximum height possible below the cover 9, to achieve operation that optimizes the LTE functions. The two vertical PCBs (front vertical PCB 4, rear vertical PCB 5) are dimensioned and possibly separated by a distance (in the range of 1 to 10mm or more, depending on the frequency band specified) to reduce mutual influence and optimize the regular operation of the antenna module 100.

Numerous equivalent variations and modifications can be made to the present embodiment of the invention, which are within the reach of a person skilled in the art, and which in any case fall within the scope of the invention as disclosed in the appended claims.

Claims

1. An antenna module (100) for a vehicle, comprising:

-a base (1),

-a fixing system (2) adapted to fix the base (1) on the roof of a vehicle,

-a horizontal PCB (3) mounted horizontally on the base (1),

-a front vertical PCB (4) mounted vertically on the horizontal PCB (3); the front vertical PCB (4) serves as a transmitting and receiving antenna for the radio signals of the cellular phone,

-a rear vertical PCB (5) mounted vertically on the horizontal PCB (3) behind the front vertical PCB (4); the rear vertical PCB (5) acts as a receiving antenna for Amplitude (AM) or Frequency (FM) radio signals,

-an IC (6) mounted on the horizontal PCB (3) opposite the front vertical PCB (4); the IC (6) acts as a receiver and amplifier for satellite radio signals,

-a capacitive element (7) mounted on the rear vertical PCB (5), and

-a cover (9) mounted on said base (1) in such a way as to cover the horizontal PCB (3), the front vertical PCB (4), the rear vertical PCB (5), the IC (6) and the capacitive element (7);

it is characterized in that the utility model is characterized in that,

the capacitive element (7) is electrically connected to the rear vertical PCB (5) and

the front vertical PCB (4), the rear vertical PCB (5) and the IC (6) are electrically connected to the horizontal PCB (3), the horizontal PCB (3) being configured to amplify and equalize electrical signals from the front vertical PCB (4), the rear vertical PCB (5) and the IC (6).

2. The antenna module (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the rear vertical PCB (5) comprises conductive tracks (52) connected in a spiral configuration, so as to obtain a suitable electrical length to resonate the capacitive element (7) in the specified frequency band, while maintaining compact dimensions.

3. The antenna module (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that the conductive track (52) of the rear vertical PCB has an outlet pad (52b) and an inlet pad (52a), the outlet pad (52b) being arranged in a lower position and connected to the horizontal PCB, the inlet pad (52a) being arranged in an upper position and connected to the capacitive element (7).

4. The antenna module (100) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the capacitive element (7) comprises an upper part (70), the upper part (70) being shaped as an inverted U with a first inclined plate (71) and a second inclined plate (72) in a protruding position on both sides of the rear vertical PCB (5).

5. The antenna module (100) according to claim 3, characterized in that the capacitive element (7) comprises an upper part (70), the upper part (70) being shaped as an inverted U with a first inclined plate (71) and a second inclined plate (72) in protruding positions on both sides of the rear vertical PCB (5).

6. The antenna module (100) according to claim 4, characterized in that the capacitive element (7) is laterally asymmetric, the second tilted plate (72) of the capacitive element being longer than the first tilted plate (71) of the capacitive element.

7. The antenna module (100) according to claim 5, characterized in that the upper part (70) of the capacitive element comprises a rear fastener (73b) fastened to the exit pad (52b) of the conductive track of the rear vertical PCB.

8. The antenna module (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the front vertical PCB (4) and the rear vertical PCB (5) have legs (46, 56) protruding in a lower position for engagement in slots (32) in the horizontal PCB (3); in the front vertical PCB (4) and in the rear vertical PCB (5), pads (43, 52) are provided at positions close to the legs (46, 56) for electrical connection to the horizontal PCB (3).

9. The antenna module (100) according to claim 4, further comprising a bumper (8) made of a foamed plastic material applied on the outer surface of the first inclined plate (71) and the second inclined plate (72) of the capacitive element.

10. The antenna module (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the base (1) is made of Zama.

11. The antenna module (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that the cover (9) is shaped like a shark fin and the front vertical PCB (4) has an upper edge (41), which upper edge (41) follows the slanted contour of the cover (9).