JP2014165816A - Antenna unit and portable communication device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an antenna unit which does not change in reception characteristics at any rotational position and has directivity, and a portable communication device.SOLUTION: An antenna unit U has a flat plate type main body part 10 which is fitted to a back 1b of a portable communication device S by rotary support means 20, and the main body part 10 includes a shield layer 11 which cuts off an electromagnetic wave and an antenna layer 13 which has an antenna pattern. The antenna layer 13 is put over the back 1b to face the outside at a start position P1 of a rotatable range and a part of the main body part 10 projects to a side of a housing at an end position P3. The antenna unit U differs in directivity with its rotational position. Two portable communication devices are arranged contiguously and data communication can be carried out while display parts 2 of both are viewed.

Description

  The present invention relates to a portable communication device and an antenna unit used therefor.

  One communication technique defined by international standards is NFC (Near Field Communication). NFC is used for short-range communication of several centimeters to several tens of centimeters using radio waves having a frequency of 13.56 MHz. Patent Document 1 describes a non-contact type reader / writer according to RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) standard which is one of NFC standards.

  The technology of Patent Document 1 relates to a reader / writer for reading and writing data with respect to an RFID tag in a non-contact manner, and a rotatable loop antenna (movable antenna) is provided to improve communication characteristics such as a communication area and a communication distance. It can be changed. In response to the problem that impedance varies due to the distance between the movable antenna and the metal inside the reader / writer body, multiple tuning circuits corresponding to the position of the movable antenna are prepared. Is detected by the rotational position detection means, and an optimum tuning circuit corresponding to the detection position of the movable antenna is selected to prevent fluctuations in impedance.

JP 2008-28535 A

  In the reader / writer described in Patent Document 1, the rotation position of the movable antenna for which the tuning circuit is prepared is the first stage position where the movable antenna is folded and stacked on the main body (the rotation angle is 0 °). The second stage position (rotation angle is 180 °) with the movable antenna deployed forward from the main body, and the third stage position (rotation angle is 90 ° with the movable antenna perpendicular to the main body surface). ). For this reason, the movable antenna cannot be used with an appropriate impedance at a rotation position where a tuning circuit is not prepared. In order to prevent fluctuations in the impedance of the movable antenna at a large number of rotation positions, a large number of tuning circuits must be provided, which causes a problem that the circuit configuration becomes complicated.

  In addition, when the movable antenna is in the first stage position (rotation angle is 0 °) in a state of being superimposed on the main body, the distance between the movable antenna and the metal in the main body is the shortest, Since the movable antenna is strongly affected by the reaction magnetic flux generated by the eddy current generated by the radio wave passing through the antenna, there is a problem that the reception characteristic is deteriorated.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the conventional problems and provide an antenna unit and a portable communication device in which reception characteristics do not vary at any rotational position.

The present invention provides a portable device including a housing, a display unit provided on a first surface of the housing, and a rotation support unit provided on a second surface facing the first surface of the housing. An antenna unit attached to the second surface of the communication device,
The antenna unit has a flat plate-like main body portion that is attached to the housing so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis parallel to the second surface by the rotation support means.
The main body is
Including a shield layer made of a material that shields electromagnetic waves, and an antenna layer having an antenna pattern formed by a conductor placed on the shield layer,
In the antenna unit, the antenna layer is stacked on the second surface so that the antenna layer faces the outside of the casing at a position on one end side of the rotatable range.

In the present invention, the second surface is rectangular, and the rotation axis is parallel to the long side of the second surface.
The main body is
The longitudinal direction is parallel to the short side direction of the second surface;
The length in the longitudinal direction is greater than one half of the length in the short side direction of the second surface;
One end portion in the longitudinal direction is attached to the housing by the rotation support means so as to be capable of rotating 180 ° around the rotation axis from a position superimposed on the second surface. It is characterized by.

  The present invention is further characterized in that a magnetic flux converging layer made of a material having high magnetic permeability is further provided between the antenna layer and the shield layer.

  The present invention is also a portable communication device having the antenna unit.

  Further, the present invention is characterized in that the rotation support means can hold the main body of the antenna unit at a position of a predetermined rotation angle or an arbitrary rotation angle.

  The antenna unit according to the present invention can be rotated around a rotation axis parallel to the second surface of the casing of the mobile communication device, the second surface facing the first surface where the display unit is provided. The main body includes a shield layer and an antenna layer having an antenna pattern. Since the shield layer shields electromagnetic waves, only radio waves radiated from the side where the shield layer is not formed reach the antenna layer. That is, the antenna unit of the present invention exhibits directivity with respect to the radio wave transmission / reception direction. When the main body is at a position on one end side of the rotatable range, that is, a position superimposed on the second surface, the radio wave transmission / reception direction is a direction perpendicular to the second surface of the housing. In other words, when the display unit on the first surface is used as a reference, it can be said that the transmission / reception direction of the radio wave indicates directivity that is a direction extending perpendicularly to the back side with respect to the display unit. When the main body portion is rotated and the main surface of the main body portion is inclined with respect to the second surface, the radio wave transmission / reception direction with respect to the display portion can be changed according to the inclination angle (rotation angle). Therefore, when the radiation direction of the radio wave from the device to be communicated is tilted with respect to the direction perpendicular to the display unit, the optimal communication is achieved by rotating the main body of the antenna unit according to the tilt angle. The state can be obtained.

  In addition, since the present invention has a configuration in which a shield layer is provided on one side of the antenna layer, the substrate included in the portable communication device at any rotational position, including the state where the main body is overlaid on the second surface, The antenna characteristics are not deteriorated by being affected by a conductive member such as an electronic circuit. Therefore, no matter where the main body portion is located, there is little variation in the antenna impedance, so there is no need to provide a plurality of tuning circuits as in the prior art.

  According to the invention, when the second surface of the housing is rectangular, the main body portion is parallel to the short side direction of the second surface and the length in the longitudinal direction is set to the second length. Is set to be larger than one half of the length in the short side direction of the surface, and one end portion in the longitudinal direction is attached to the housing so as to be rotatable by 180 °, so that the main body portion is placed on the second surface By rotating 180 degrees from the stacked state, at least a part of the main body can be protruded to the side of the housing. In this state, the main body is arranged such that the antenna layer faces the first surface side and the shield layer faces the second surface side. Therefore, the antenna unit exhibits directivity in a direction in which the radio wave transmission / reception direction is perpendicular to the first surface of the main body and from the second surface to the first surface, and the radio wave transmission / reception region is This is the front side of the first surface. As a result, the portable communication device in which the antenna unit is rotated 180 ° and protruded to the side of the housing can communicate with other communication devices at the side position of the first surface.

  Further, according to the present invention, since the magnetic flux converging layer made of a material having high magnetic permeability is further provided between the antenna layer and the shield layer, the magnetic flux density when the radio wave passes through the antenna pattern is increased, and the antenna sensitivity is increased. In addition, the influence of the reaction magnetic flux generated in the shield layer when the shield layer is made of metal can be suppressed, so that an antenna unit suitable for NFC communication can be provided.

  Further, according to the present invention, the antenna unit of the mobile communication device has the above-described configuration, so that the antenna unit can be rotated with respect to the second surface, has directivity, and the antenna characteristics vary depending on the rotation position. It is possible to provide a portable communication device without any problem.

  Further, according to the present invention, the rotation support means that can hold the main body of the antenna unit at a predetermined rotation angle or a position of an arbitrary rotation angle is provided, so that a plurality of types of communication with different radio wave radiation directions are provided. It is easy to obtain the optimum reception state for each device.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of the mobile communication device S according to the present invention as viewed from the back (second surface) 1b side, and FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mobile communication device S according to the present invention as viewed from the front (first surface) 1a side. It is a rear view of the portable communication apparatus S which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. 3A is a cross-sectional view of the antenna unit U according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3B is a plan view showing the antenna layer 13 of the antenna unit U. 1 is a plan view of a mobile communication device S according to an embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates various rotation positions of an antenna unit U. FIG. FIG. 5 (A) is a plan view showing the vicinity of one end portion 10a of the antenna unit U, and FIG. 5 (B) is a view of 5b-5b in FIG. 5 (A). It is sectional drawing in a line. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of one end of an antenna unit U showing another example of the rotation support means 20. 10 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of one end of an antenna unit U showing still another example of the rotation support means 20. FIG. FIG. 8A is a front view showing an example of use of two portable communication devices S1 and S2 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8B is a rear view of the two portable communication devices S1 and S2. is there. FIG. 9A shows a usage example of the mobile communication device S according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9A is a perspective view showing the mobile communication device S and the communication stand 40 separately, and FIG. ) Is a perspective view of a state in which the mobile communication device S is assembled to the communication stand 40. FIG. FIG. 10A is a cross-sectional view exemplifying locking means for holding the antenna unit U on the second surface 1b of the housing 1, and FIG. 10A is on the second surface 1b. In FIG. 10B, the projection 3 is formed, and the engagement recess 4 is formed in the housing 1, and the engagement projection 16 is provided in the main body 10 of the antenna unit U.

  1 to 4 relate to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a perspective view of the mobile communication device S as viewed from the back (second surface) 1b side, and FIG. The perspective view which looked at the portable communication apparatus S from the front (1st surface) 1a side, FIG. 2 is a rear view of the portable communication apparatus S, FIG. 3 (A) is sectional drawing of the antenna unit U, FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view of the mobile communication device S illustrating various rotation positions of the antenna unit U. FIG.

  The mobile communication device S targeted by the present invention has a wireless communication function and can be carried by a user. For example, a mobile phone device, a smart phone device, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a tablet PC (Personal Computer) ) And notebook PCs. The following describes an embodiment of the present invention when the mobile communication device S is a smartphone device and the antenna unit U is used for wireless communication by NFC with a communicable distance of several centimeters. And communication standards are not limited to these.

  The mobile communication device S of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has a first surface of the housing 1 as a front surface 1a and a second surface of the housing 1 as a back surface 1b, and a liquid crystal panel on the front surface 1a. And an organic EL panel are provided, and an antenna unit U is attached to the back surface 1b.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the housing | casing 1 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped, Therefore The front 1a and the back surface 1b are rectangles. The antenna unit U has a rectangular flat plate-shaped main body 10, the main body 10 has a longitudinal direction parallel to the short side direction of the back surface 1 b, and one end 10 a in the longitudinal direction of the main body 10 is a housing. 1 is attached to the housing 1 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis parallel to the long side direction of the back surface 1b by a rotation support means provided on the back surface 1b of the 1. At the position (starting position) on one end side of the rotatable range of the main body 10, the main body 10 is entirely over the back surface 1 b. The pivotable range is 180 °, and at the position on the other end side (end position) of the pivotable range, a part of the main body 10 protrudes to the side of the back surface 1b. The rotation support means is not shown in FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, the main body portion 10 of the antenna unit U is formed by overlapping a shield layer 11, a magnetic flux convergence layer 12, an antenna layer 13, and a protective layer. The shield layer 11 is made of a conductor such as metal, and shields electromagnetic waves radiated from the shield layer 11 side toward the antenna layer 13. In addition, you may provide the connection part with the rotation support means which attaches the antenna unit U to the housing | casing 1 in the shield layer 11. FIG. The magnetic flux concentrating layer 12 is for converging electromagnetic waves transmitted and received by the antenna layer 13 to increase the magnetic flux density of the electromagnetic waves, and is made of a material having high magnetic permeability such as ferrite.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, the antenna layer 13 has an antenna pattern 13a and an antenna pattern 13a formed on the surface of a substrate layer 13b made of an insulator such as a synthetic resin film by a conductor such as copper foil. Two terminals t1 and t2 for electrical connection with a communication circuit provided inside are formed. In this embodiment, the substrate layer 13b has a two-layer structure, a loop-shaped antenna pattern 13a and two terminals t1 and t2 are formed on the first layer, and one end of the antenna pattern 13a is connected to one terminal t1. Connecting. In addition, a current-carrying connection member 13h penetrating the first layer is disposed in each of the other end of the antenna pattern 13a and the extension of the other terminal t2. On the other hand, the current path pattern 13c is formed on the surface of the second layer with a copper foil or the like. And when the 1st layer is piled up on the 2nd layer, it constitutes so that energization path pattern 13c of the 2nd layer may contact each of two energization connection members 13h of the 1st layer. . As a result, it is possible to provide the antenna layer 13 having a structure in which the antenna unit 13a is connected to the other terminal t2 so as to be energized, and the antenna pattern 13a having a loop structure is electrically connected to the two terminals t1 and t2. The above is an example of the structure of the antenna layer 13 and can be changed as appropriate. A protective layer 14 made of synthetic resin or the like and capable of transmitting electromagnetic waves is formed on the surface of the antenna layer 13.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, the main body 10 can rotate 180 ° with respect to the back surface 1 b of the housing 1, and the shield layer 11 has the back surface 1 b at the start end position P <b> 1 of the rotatable range. The antenna layer 13 is disposed so as to face the outside of the housing 1. In this state, the communicable range of the antenna layer 13 is an area having a distance range from the antenna layer 13 to several centimeters. However, the electromagnetic waves projected from the housing 1 side to the antenna layer 13 are shielded by the shield layer 11 in the middle. Therefore, when the antenna unit U is at the start position P1, the range from the back surface 1b outside the housing 1 to several centimeters is the communicable region R1 of the mobile communication device S. That is, the antenna unit U exhibits directivity that enables communication only in the region from the back surface 1b toward the outside. At this time, even if the electromagnetic wave generated inside the housing 1 reaches the antenna unit U, the shield layer 11 shields the antenna unit 13 from reaching the antenna layer 13. The structure is not easily affected by generated noise.

  As shown in FIG. 4, when the antenna unit U is rotated by 90 ° from the starting end position P1 and disposed at the intermediate position P2, the communicable region R2 of the antenna unit U is directed from the antenna layer 13 to the protective layer 14. The distance from the main body part 10 is in a range up to several centimeters. Accordingly, the communicable region R2 of the antenna unit U at the intermediate position P2 is located slightly away from the back surface 1b of the housing 1.

  When the antenna unit U is further rotated by 90 ° from the intermediate position P2 and arranged at the terminal position P3, the antenna unit U has the antenna layer 13 facing the front 1a side of the housing 1 and the shield layer 11 is housing. 1 is arranged to face the back surface 1b side. Accordingly, the communicable region R3 of the antenna unit U at this time is a distance range from several centimeters toward the front 1a side of the housing 1 from the main body unit 10. Thus, the antenna unit U of the present embodiment exhibits directivity in which the communication direction is completely opposite between the start end position P1 and the end position P3.

  5 to 7 illustrate the rotation support means 20 that rotatably attaches the main body 10 of the antenna unit U to the housing 1. 5A is a plan view showing the vicinity of one end of the antenna unit U, and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view taken along line 5b-5b in FIG. 5A. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of one end of an antenna unit U showing another example of the rotation support means 20. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of one end portion of the antenna unit U showing still another example of the rotation support means 20.

  In the example shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, two brackets 21 having pins are provided on the back surface 1 b of the housing 1, and one end 10 a of the main body 10 is provided between the brackets 21. , Hold in a rotatable manner. In addition, the antenna layer 13 is flexible, and a portion where the terminal t is provided is embedded in the housing 1, and the terminal t is electrically connected to a communication circuit provided in the housing 1. With this configuration, the antenna unit U of the present embodiment realizes a structure that can rotate with respect to the back surface 1b while maintaining an electrical connection with the communication circuit.

  In the example shown in FIG. 6, one bracket 22 into which the pin 23 is inserted is provided on the back surface 1 b of the housing 1, and a notch 15 is formed in one end 10 a of the main body 10 of the antenna unit U. In a state where the bracket 21 is inserted into the portion 15, the one end 10 a of the main body portion 10 is rotatably held by inserting the pin 23 through both of them. The pin 23 is made of a conductor, and the terminal t of the antenna layer 13 is brought into contact with the pin 23, and a communication circuit provided in the housing 1 is electrically connected to the pin 23. With such a configuration, the antenna unit U of the present embodiment realizes a structure in which the antenna layer 13 and the communication circuit are electrically connected through the pin 23, and at the same time, the main body 10 can be rotated with respect to the back surface 1b. ing.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, a flexible connecting portion 24 is provided at one end portion of the main body portion 10 of the antenna unit U, and the connecting portion 24 is attached to the back surface 1 b of the housing 1. In this example, the main body 10 can be rotated by the flexibility of the connecting portion 24. In this example, the antenna layer 13 of the antenna unit U and the communication circuit provided in the housing 1 are connected by the lead wire 30. As a result, the antenna unit U of the present example electrically connects the antenna layer 13 and the communication circuit, and at the same time enables the main body 10 to rotate with respect to the back surface 1b.

  The above-described portable communication device S exhibits an excellent effect in the usage modes described below. FIG. 8A is a front view showing an example of use of two portable communication devices S1 and S2 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8B is a rear view of the two portable communication devices S1 and S2. is there. This embodiment shows a case where data communication by NFC is performed between two mobile communication devices S1 and S2. In the conventional portable communication device, an NFC antenna circuit is embedded on the back or near the back of the casing. Therefore, when performing NFC communication, the back of the two portable communication devices are brought together and data is stored in this state. A transfer is in progress. Therefore, when the state during data transfer is displayed on the two display units, the user can view only the display unit of one of the portable communication devices.

  However, according to the present embodiment, the antenna unit U1 of one mobile communication device S1 is rotated 180 ° from the start position P1 to the end position P3, and a part of the main body 10-1 is moved to the side of the housing 1. Protruding toward. Then, the other mobile communication device S2 is disposed on the side of the one mobile communication device S1, and the antenna unit U2 at the start end position P1 of the back surface 1b is overlaid on the one antenna unit U1. Thus, the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2 are in a state where the antenna units U1 and U2 are in contact with each other, and data communication by NFC is possible. In addition, at this time, since the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2 face the same surface, the data communication states displayed on the display units 2 of the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2 can be visually recognized simultaneously. Benefits are gained.

  By the way, when the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2 are adjacent to each other, the condition that the antenna unit U2 at the start position P1 and the antenna unit U1 at the end position P3 overlap is as follows. However, in the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2, the front surface 1a and the back surface 1b of the housing 1 are rectangular, and the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2 are adjacent to each other at the long side portion.

In FIG. 2, the length in the longitudinal direction of the main body portion 10 of the antenna unit U is L, the length in the short side direction of the back surface 1b is W, the distance from the main body portion 10 to one long side of the back surface 1b is a, The distance from the portion 10 to the other long side of the back surface 1b is b, and the main body portion 10 is centered on the rotation axis parallel to the long side of the back surface 1b by the rotation support means provided at the one end portion 10a. It is possible to turn 180 ° from the start position P1 to the end position P3. At this time, the protrusion length by which the main body 10 protrudes to the side of the back surface 1b is Lb. The condition that the main body 10 always protrudes to the side of the back surface 1b at the end position P3 of the rotatable range and overlaps the adjacent main body 10 is Lb> a. On the other hand, the relationship between the length W of the short side of the back surface 1b and the length L in the longitudinal direction of the main body 10 is W = L + a + b. From these two expressions, the condition that the main body 10 always overlaps with the adjacent main body 10 at the end position P3 of the rotatable range is the following expression 1,
L> W / 2 (1)
It becomes.

  Since it is desirable that the main body 10 of the antenna unit U does not protrude to the side of the housing 1 at the start position P1, the length L in the longitudinal direction of the main body 10 is the length in the short side direction of the back surface 1b. W or less.

As shown in FIG. 8, when two portable communication devices S1 and S2 are arranged adjacent to each other, the two antenna units U1 and U2 always overlap even if a gap α is provided between them. The equation 1 is corrected as the following equation 2.
L> W / 2 + α (2)

Furthermore, when the antenna units U1 and U2 can communicate even if they are separated from each other, if the distance is β, data communication is possible even if the two mobile communication devices S1 and S2 are adjacent to each other with a gap α therebetween. The conditions of the length L of the main body parts 10-1 and 10-2 that can be made are as follows:
L> W / 2 + α−β (3)
It becomes.

  If one of the two adjacent mobile communication devices S1 and S2 includes the rotatable antenna unit U1 of the present embodiment, the other mobile communication device S2 has an antenna as in the conventional case. May be embedded in the back surface 1 b of the housing 1.

  FIG. 9 shows a different usage example of the mobile communication device S according to the present invention. FIG. 9A is a perspective view showing the mobile communication device S and the communication stand 40 separately. B) is a perspective view of a state in which the mobile communication device S is assembled to the communication stand 40. FIG.

  The communication stand 40 shown in the figure has a fitting recess 42 for fitting the housing 1 of the mobile communication device S and a communication antenna unit 43 for NFC communication in a base part 41. The power supply cable for supplying power to the communication stand 40 and the communication cable for transmitting and receiving data signals are not shown.

  As shown in FIG. 9A, the antenna unit U of the mobile communication device S is rotated to about 70 to 90 °, and in this state, as shown in FIG. Then, it is fitted into the fitting recess 42. Then, the antenna unit U is brought into contact with the communication antenna unit 43 on the base unit 41. As a result, the mobile communication device S can perform data communication by NFC with the communication stand 40 and display desired information on the display unit 2.

  FIG. 10 exemplifies locking means for holding the antenna unit U that can rotate with respect to the housing 1 on the back surface 1 b of the housing 1. FIG. 10A shows two protrusions 3 formed on the back surface 1b, and the main body 10 of the antenna unit U is engaged between them to hold the main body. FIG. 10B shows an example in which an engagement recess 4 is formed in the housing 1, and an engagement protrusion 16 is provided in the main body 10 of the antenna unit U so as to be inserted and locked in the engagement recess 4. is there.

  In addition, although not shown in the drawings, the rotation support means provided on the housing 1 and rotatably attached to the antenna unit U is a mechanism that can hold the main body 10 at a desired rotation angle or an arbitrary rotation angle. It is good.

S mobile communication device U antenna unit 1 housing 1a front (first surface)
1b Rear surface (second surface)
2 Display unit 10 Body unit 11 Shield layer 12 Magnetic flux converging layer 13 Antenna layer 13a Antenna pattern 13b Substrate layer 14 Protective layer 20 Rotating support means

Claims (5)

A portable communication device having a housing, a display unit provided on a first surface of the housing, and a rotation support unit provided on a second surface opposite to the first surface of the housing, An antenna unit attached to the second surface,
The antenna unit has a flat plate-like main body portion that is attached to the housing so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis parallel to the second surface by the rotation support means.
The main body is
Including a shield layer made of a material that shields electromagnetic waves, and an antenna layer having an antenna pattern formed by a conductor, which is disposed on the shield layer,
The antenna unit, wherein the antenna layer is stacked on the second surface so that the antenna layer faces the outside of the housing at a position on one end side of the rotatable range. The second surface is rectangular, and the pivot axis is parallel to the long side of the second surface;
The main body is
The longitudinal direction is parallel to the short side direction of the second surface;
The length in the longitudinal direction is greater than one half of the length in the short side direction of the second surface;
One end portion in the longitudinal direction is attached to the housing by the rotation support means so as to be capable of rotating 180 ° around the rotation axis from a position superimposed on the second surface. The antenna unit according to claim 1.   3. The antenna unit according to claim 1, further comprising a magnetic flux converging layer made of a material having a high magnetic permeability between the antenna layer and the shield layer.   A portable communication device comprising the antenna unit according to claim 1.   5. The portable communication device according to claim 4, wherein the rotation support means can hold the main body of the antenna unit at a predetermined rotation angle or an arbitrary rotation angle. .