JP2011146845A - Irreversible circuit apparatus, communication apparatus, and characteristic adjustment method of irreversible circuit apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an irreversible circuit apparatus which can improve production efficiency, a communication apparatus using this, and a characteristic adjustment method of the irreversible circuit apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: The irreversible circuit apparatus includes: a conductor substrate; a plurality of irreversible elements mounted on the conductor substrate; a connection member 5 which electrically connects center conductors 26, 36 of the plurality of the irreversible circuit elements each other; and a dielectric member 6. The connection member 5 is installed making a space from a surface of the dielectric member 15. Moreover, the dielectric member 6 is installed on the conductor substrate 15 to cover an upper surface of a part of the connection member 5. A so-called air capacitor is formed between the connection member 5 and the conductor substrate 15 by making a space between the connection member 5 and the surface of the conductor substrate 15. Meanwhile, the dielectric member 6 forms one more capacitor between the connection member 5 and the conductor substrate 15 by installing it on the conductor substrate 15 to cover the upper surface of a part of the connection member 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a nonreciprocal circuit device including a nonreciprocal circuit device such as an isolator or a circulator, a communication device using the same, and a method for adjusting characteristics of the nonreciprocal circuit device.

  Non-reciprocal circuit elements such as isolators and circulators are used in mobile communication devices such as mobile phones and wireless devices, and base stations thereof, and the general structure thereof is described in Patent Document 1, for example. As shown, an assembly including a permanent magnet and a magnetic rotor is housed in a metal case that functions as a yoke.

  In recent years, in this type of nonreciprocal circuit element, it is strongly desired to improve the isolation performance as well as to reduce the size of the mobile communication device. The improvement in isolation performance can be realized by connecting separate nonreciprocal circuit elements on the main substrate, but in order to reduce the size of the device, an area for mounting a plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements is secured. In other words, it is difficult to achieve sufficient impedance matching between the nonreciprocal circuit elements.

  Therefore, as disclosed in Patent Document 2, a small non-reciprocal circuit device in which an isolator and a circulator with central conductors connected to each other are mounted on a single conductor substrate is often used. In this device, a flat plate portion is provided at a connection portion of each central conductor, and a dielectric is sandwiched between the flat plate portion and the conductor substrate, thereby realizing impedance matching between the isolator and the circulator.

  However, although the isolator and the circulator have the same configuration, there is a variation at the time of manufacture, so that it is necessary to finely adjust the impedance characteristics of the entire apparatus. In the case of this apparatus, since only the method of adjusting by cutting the dielectric and the flat plate portion can be used for fine adjustment, a great amount of labor is required, which causes a reduction in production efficiency.

JP 2007-288701 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-08502

  An object of the present invention is to provide a non-reciprocal circuit device capable of improving production efficiency, a communication device using the same, and a characteristic adjustment method of the non-reciprocal circuit device.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a nonreciprocal circuit device according to the present invention includes a conductor substrate, a plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements provided on the conductor substrate, and a central conductor of the plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements. A connection member electrically connected to each other and a dielectric member are included.

  The connecting member is provided at a distance from the surface of the conductor substrate. The dielectric member is provided on the conductor substrate so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member.

  According to the present invention, the plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements are provided on the conductor substrate, and the connecting member electrically connects the central conductors of the plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements to each other. Performance can be obtained.

  A so-called air capacitor is formed between the connection member and the conductor substrate by providing a gap between the connection member and the surface of the conductor substrate. On the other hand, the dielectric member is provided on the conductor substrate so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member, whereby another capacitor is formed between the connection member and the conductor substrate.

  These capacitors are in a parallel connection relationship, and the dielectric member is provided only on a part of the connection member. Therefore, the capacitance value changes according to the mounting position of the dielectric member in the entire connection member. That is, these capacitors constitute a variable capacitor having a conductive substrate and a connection member as electrodes.

  Here, as described above, even if the plurality of non-reciprocal circuit elements have the same configuration, there is a slight difference in electrical characteristics due to variations in manufacturing. Therefore, it is possible to adjust the capacitance of the variable capacitor by adjusting the mounting position of the dielectric member in the entire connection member, thereby realizing impedance matching between the nonreciprocal circuit elements.

  In addition, since the dielectric member is provided on the conductor substrate so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member, the attachment is easily performed by covering the connection member from above the conductor substrate. Can do. Moreover, since some of the variable capacitors are air capacitors, there is little influence of aging on the impedance characteristics.

  Therefore, since the good impedance characteristic can be obtained quickly by adjusting the mounting position of the dielectric member, the production efficiency of the nonreciprocal circuit device can be improved.

  Next, a communication device according to the present invention includes the above-described nonreciprocal circuit device and a transmission unit or a reception unit, and the nonreciprocal circuit device is electrically combined with the transmission unit or the reception unit. .

  The communication device according to the present invention includes the above-described non-reciprocal circuit device, so that the same effects as those already described can be obtained.

  Next, the characteristic adjustment method according to the present invention adjusts the characteristic of the non-reciprocal circuit device described above by displacing the dielectric member with respect to the connection member.

  According to the characteristic adjustment method of the present invention, since the non-reciprocal circuit device described above is included, the same effects as those already described can be obtained.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a nonreciprocal circuit device capable of improving production efficiency, a communication device using the same, and a method for adjusting characteristics of the nonreciprocal circuit device.

It is a perspective view of the nonreciprocal circuit device according to the present invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of the nonreciprocal circuit device according to the present invention. It is a fragmentary sectional view of the nonreciprocal circuit device according to the present invention. It is the perspective view to which the dielectric material member and the connection member were expanded. It is an equivalent circuit diagram of an impedance matching circuit. It is a front view of the dielectric material member concerning other embodiments. It is a sectional side view of the dielectric material concerning other embodiments. It is the perspective view to which the dielectric material member and connection member which concern on other embodiment were expanded. It is a block diagram of the communication apparatus using the nonreciprocal circuit device based on this invention.

  1 is a perspective view of a non-reciprocal circuit device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view, and FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. In the present embodiment, a non-reciprocal circuit device having two non-reciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 is illustrated, but the number of non-reciprocal circuit elements is not limited.

  The non-reciprocal circuit device includes a case 1, two non-reciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 in which the components 20 and 30 and the lids 21 and 31 are housed in the case 1, and the non-reciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3. The connecting member 5 and the dielectric member 6 are electrically connected to the central conductors 26 and 36.

  The case 1 includes a conductive substrate 15 serving as a base and a frame 16 surrounding the components 20 and 30 of the nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3, which are integrally formed of a magnetic material such as iron. However, even if it is not such a mode, a mode in which a cylindrical case with a bottom is separately provided for each of the nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 and these cases are mounted on the conductor substrate 15 may be used. .

  The case 1 is formed at two substantially cylindrical storage portions 131 and 132, inner walls 141 and 142 defining the storage portions 131 and 132, respectively, and substantially equidistant positions on the peripheral surfaces of the inner walls 141 and 142. Three groove parts 111-113, 121-123 are included.

  In the case 1, the components 20, 30 of the nonreciprocal circuit elements 2, 3 are stacked and stored in the storage units 131, 132, and the components 20, 30 are pressed down by screwing with the lids 21, 31 at the top. As shown, screw grooves are provided on the inner walls 141 and 142.

  The lids 21 and 31 are disk-shaped bodies made of a magnetic material such as iron, and are used as yokes. When the lids 21 and 31 are assembled to the case 1, the lids 21 and 31 apply loads to the magnetic rotor assemblies 41 and 42 provided in the storage units 131 and 132. Screws for screwing with the case 1 are formed on the peripheral surfaces of the lids 21 and 31.

  The two non-reciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 include upper magnetic pole plates 22 and 32, first permanent magnets 231 and 331, first intermediate magnetic pole plates 241 and 341, and magnetic components 20 and 30, respectively. Rotors 41 and 42, second intermediate magnetic pole plates 242 and 342, second permanent magnets 232 and 332, and lower magnetic pole plates 27 and 37 are stacked in case 1 in this order. ing. Here, the magnetic rotors 41 and 42 include first ferrite bases 251, 351, center conductors 26, 36, and second ferrite bases 252, 352, respectively, which are stacked in the order described above. ing.

  The first and second permanent magnets 231, 232, 331, 332 are arranged on both sides of the magnetic rotors 41, 42 and apply a DC magnetic field to the magnetic rotors 41, 42. The DC magnetic field forms a closed loop magnetic circuit including the lids 21 and 31, the case 1, and the components 20 and 30, and exhibits the original functions of the nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3.

  The intermediate magnetic pole plates 241, 242, 341, and 342 are conductor plates having a thickness of about 0.1 to 0.3 (mm), and are made of, for example, iron. The intermediate magnetic pole plates 241, 242, 341, and 342 are disposed adjacent to each other between the ferrite bases 251, 252, 351, 352 and the permanent magnets 231, 232, 331, 332, respectively. , 341, 342 contribute to stabilization of the magnetic characteristics.

  On the other hand, the upper magnetic pole plates 22 and 32 and the lower magnetic pole plates 27 and 37 are conductor plates having a thickness of about 0.1 to 0.3 (mm), and are made of, for example, an alloy of iron and nickel. The upper magnetic pole plates 22 and 32 are disposed adjacent to each other between the lids 21 and 31 and the first permanent magnets 231 and 331, and the lower magnetic pole plates 27 and 37 are disposed on the bottom surface of the case 1 (the conductor substrate 15). Between the second permanent magnets 232 and 332 and adjacent to each other.

  The upper magnetic pole plates 22 and 32 and the lower magnetic pole plates 27 and 37 cancel out the change in magnetic characteristics with respect to temperature changes of the permanent magnets 231, 232, 331, 332 and the ferrite bases 251, 252, 351, 352. It has the effect of stabilizing.

  The upper magnetic pole plate 21 is provided with three convex portions 221 to 223 and 331 to 333 at substantially equal intervals on the outer periphery. The convex portions 221 to 223 and 331 to 333 function as rotation stoppers by engaging with the groove portions 111 to 113 and 121 to 123 of the case 1. Thereby, when the lids 21 and 31 are screwed, the components 20 and 30 of the nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 are rotated by the rotation of the lids 21 and 31, and the adjusted characteristics change. This can be prevented.

  The first and second ferrite bases 251, 252, 351, 352 are made of disc-shaped ferrite portions 251 a, 351 a, 252 a, 352 a made of a soft magnetic material such as yttrium / iron / garnet (YIG), and the outer periphery thereof. It has provided annular plate-like dielectric portions 251b, 351b, 252b, 352b. The shape of the ferrite bases 251, 252, 351, 352 is not limited to this, and may be a square plate or the like.

  The center conductors 26 and 36 are preferably conductor plates obtained by processing a copper plate having a thickness of about 0.05 to 1.0 mm, and the first to third terminals 261 to 263 and 361 are provided on the outer periphery. 363. Each of the central conductors 26 and 36 is sandwiched between the first ferrite bases 251 and 351 and the second ferrite bases 252 and 352. Note that termination resistors R2 and R3 may be provided on the conductor substrate 15 in the vicinity of the first terminals 261 and 361, respectively, as illustrated.

  Further, the central conductors 26 and 36 are electrically connected by a long flat connecting member 5. The connection member 5 is provided at a distance from the upper surface of the conductor substrate 15. In other words, air is interposed between the connection member 5 and the conductor substrate 15.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an example is given in which the central conductors 26 and 36 and the connecting member 5 are formed integrally, but these are formed separately. Needless to say, it may be electrically connected with solder or the like. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a long flat plate-like conductor member is illustrated as the connection member 5, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a conductor member such as a lead wire may be employed.

  The characteristic part of the present invention is that the dielectric member 6 is attached to the connecting member 5. FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the dielectric member 6 and the connection member 5 in the portion indicated by the symbol P in FIG.

  The dielectric member 6 is a U-shaped member made of, for example, ceramic, and is provided on the conductor substrate 15 so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member 5. Specifically, the dielectric member 5 includes a pair of opposing leg portions 61 and a top plate portion 62 supported by the pair of leg portions 61, and a part of the connection member 5 includes a pair of leg portions 61. It is engaged with a concave portion 63 surrounded by the leg portion 61 and the top plate portion 62. For this reason, the upper surface of the corresponding portion of the connection member 5 is in contact with the lower surface 621 of the top plate portion 62.

  The bottom surfaces of the pair of leg portions 61 are in contact with the top surface of the conductor substrate 15. Here, since the case 1 is used while being grounded, the connecting member 5 is grounded via the connecting member 5.

  According to the present invention, the plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 are provided on the conductor substrate 15, and the connecting member 5 electrically connects the central conductors 26 and 36 of the plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 to each other. Therefore, as described above, high isolation performance can be obtained.

  A space is provided between the connection member 5 and the surface of the conductor substrate 15, so that a so-called air capacitor is formed between the connection member 5 and the conductor substrate 15. On the other hand, since the dielectric member 6 is provided on the conductor substrate 15 so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member 5, another capacitor is formed between the connection member 5 and the conductor substrate 15. Is done.

  FIG. 5 is an equivalent circuit diagram of an impedance matching circuit including these capacitors. Here, the former air capacitor is denoted by reference numeral C1, and the latter capacitor is denoted by reference numeral C2. Symbols T1 and T2 indicate electrical contacts between the central conductors 26 and 36 and the connection member 5, respectively. Symbol T3 indicates an electrical contact between the connection member 5 and the dielectric member 6.

  The capacitors C1 and C2 are in a parallel connection relationship, and the dielectric member 6 is provided only in a part of the connection member 5, so that it depends on the mounting position T3 of the dielectric member 6 in the entire connection member 5. The capacitance value changes. That is, these capacitors C1 and C2 constitute a variable capacitor having the conductive substrate 15 and the connecting member 5 as electrodes.

  Here, as described above, even if the two nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3 have the same configuration, there is a slight difference in electrical characteristics due to variations in manufacturing. Therefore, the capacitances of the variable capacitors C1 and C2 are adjusted by adjusting the mounting position T3 of the dielectric member 6 in the entire connection member 5, thereby realizing impedance matching between the nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3. Can do.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since the connection member 5 has an elongated flat plate shape, it has an inductor component effective for realizing impedance matching. Therefore, an inductor L1 is formed on one contact T1 side and an inductor L2 is formed on the other contact T2 side, with the attachment position T3 of the dielectric member 6 as a boundary, and these are connected in series. A circuit is configured.

  For this reason, the values of the inductors L1 and L2 also change as the position T3 of the dielectric member 6 changes. That is, each of these inductors L1 and L2 constitutes a variable inductor connected in series between the two nonreciprocal circuit elements 2 and 3, so that impedance matching can also be realized by adjusting the value thereof. it can.

  Since the dielectric member 6 is provided on the conductor substrate 15 so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member 5, the dielectric member 6 is attached to the connection member 5 from above the conductor substrate 15. And can be carried out easily. Moreover, since some of the variable capacitors are air capacitors, there is little influence of aging on the impedance characteristics.

  Therefore, a good impedance characteristic can be obtained quickly by adjusting the mounting position T3 of the dielectric member 6, so that the production efficiency of the nonreciprocal circuit device can be improved.

  Furthermore, if the outer surface of the dielectric member 6 is covered with a metal film, noise from the outside can be prevented from entering the recess 63, so that the characteristics of the variable capacitor can be preferably stabilized.

  6 and 7 are respectively a front view (a diagram represented by a yz plane in the drawing) of the dielectric member 6 whose outer surface is covered with the metal film 60 in this way, and a side sectional view ( It is the figure which looked and looked at the xz plane in a figure). The metal film 60 can be formed by plating, spraying, or the like, or may be configured by attaching a film or a shield tape. When aluminum is used as the metal film 60, a good shielding effect can be obtained.

  In the present embodiment, the U-shaped dielectric member 6 is illustrated, but the shape is not limited to a specific shape as long as the shape can be covered with a part of the connection member 5. Therefore, for example, a U-shaped dielectric member 6 may be employed.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, an L-shaped dielectric member 7 having a single leg 71 may be used. The dielectric member 7 includes a leg portion 71, a top plate portion 72 that is continuous with the leg portion 71 at one end of the lower surface 721, and a convex portion 73 that extends downward from the other end of the lower surface 721 of the top plate portion 72.

  According to the dielectric member 7, the leg portion 71 is in contact with the conductor substrate 15 and the lower surface 721 of the top plate portion 72 is in contact with a part of the connection member 5. Therefore, the same effect as that of the dielectric member 6 described above can be obtained. In addition to the performance, the use of a single leg portion 71 also has the effect of reducing the area required for installation.

  Furthermore, the protrusion 73 engages with the end of the connection member 5 to facilitate the positioning of the dielectric member 7 in the y direction in the figure, and also has only a single leg 71. Regardless, the dielectric member 7 can be stably fixed on the conductor substrate 15.

  Next, the characteristic adjustment method according to the present invention adjusts the characteristics of the nonreciprocal circuit device by displacing the dielectric members 6 and 7 described above with respect to the connection member 5. According to the characteristic adjustment method of the present invention, since the non-reciprocal circuit device described above is included, the same effects as those already described can be obtained.

  In other words, as described above, the mounting position T3 of the dielectric members 6 and 7 in the entire connection member 5 is adjusted in order to achieve impedance matching. In this adjustment, it is indicated by the symbol D in FIGS. Thus, if the dielectric members 6 and 7 are displaced from one of the central conductors 26 and 36 to which the connection member 5 is connected to the other, the values of the variable capacitors C1 and C2 and the variable inductors L1 and L2 are changed simultaneously. Therefore, the electrical characteristics of the device can be suitably adjusted.

  However, in consideration of changes in the values of the variable capacitors C1 and C2 and the variable inductors L1 and L2 due to various factors, the method for adjusting the electrical characteristics of the device is not limited to this.

  For example, the dielectric members 6 and 7 may be displaced in the y direction in the figure, or may be rotated in the xy plane. Furthermore, within the scope of the present invention, impedance matching can be realized by preparing a plurality of types of dielectric members having various shapes, sizes, and materials, and using them appropriately.

  In adjusting the characteristics, the nonreciprocal circuit device according to the present invention is connected to a measuring instrument such as a network analyzer, and the characteristics such as input loss, output loss, and insertion loss are confirmed by the measuring instrument. These characteristics are important indicators for measuring the quality of signal transmission in the communication apparatus described below.

  FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a communication device using the nonreciprocal circuit device according to the present invention.

  This communication apparatus is provided in, for example, a base station in a mobile communication system, and includes a reception unit 9 and a transmission unit 8, both of which are connected to a transmission / reception antenna 80. The reception unit 9 includes a reception amplification circuit 92 and a reception circuit 91 that processes a received signal. The transmission unit 8 includes a transmission circuit 81 that generates an audio signal, a video signal, and the like, and a power amplification circuit 82. In the communication device described above, the nonreciprocal circuit devices 83 and 84 according to the present invention are used in the circuit from the antenna 80 to the reception unit 9 and the transmission unit 8 and the output stage of the power amplification circuit 82. The nonreciprocal circuit device 83 functions as a circulator, and the nonreciprocal circuit device 84 functions as an isolator having a termination resistor R0.

  The communication device according to the present invention includes the above-described non-reciprocal circuit device, so that the same effects as those already described can be obtained.

  Although the contents of the present invention have been specifically described above with reference to the preferred embodiments, it is obvious that those skilled in the art can take various modifications based on the basic technical idea and teachings of the present invention. It is.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15 Conductor board 2,3 Nonreciprocal circuit element 26,36 Center conductor 5 Connection member 6,7 Dielectric member 60 Metal film 3 Lid 4 Magnetic rotor 8 Transmitter 9 Receiver

Claims (8)

A nonreciprocal including a conductive substrate, a plurality of nonreciprocal circuit elements provided on the conductive substrate, a connecting member that electrically connects central conductors of the nonreciprocal circuit elements to each other, and a dielectric member A circuit device,
The connecting member is provided at a distance from the upper surface of the conductor substrate,
The dielectric member is provided on the conductor substrate so as to cover a part of the upper surface of the connection member.
Non-reciprocal circuit device. The non-reciprocal circuit device according to claim 1,
The dielectric member has an outer surface covered with a metal film,
Non-reciprocal circuit device. A non-reciprocal circuit device according to claim 2,
The metal film is made of aluminum.
Non-reciprocal circuit device. A non-reciprocal circuit device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The connecting member is flat.
Non-reciprocal circuit device. A non-reciprocal circuit device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The dielectric member is U-shaped or U-shaped.
Non-reciprocal circuit device. A communication device including the nonreciprocal circuit device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 and a transmission unit or a reception unit,
The nonreciprocal circuit device is electrically combined with the transmitter or the receiver.
Communication device. A method for adjusting characteristics of a non-reciprocal circuit device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
Adjusting the characteristics by displacing the dielectric member with respect to the connecting member;
Characteristics adjustment method. A method for adjusting characteristics of a non-reciprocal circuit device according to claim 7,
Adjusting the characteristics by displacing the dielectric member from one of the central conductors connected to the connecting member toward the other;
Characteristics adjustment method.

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