JPH07183720A - Antenna unit - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily assemble an antenna unit. CONSTITUTION:An antenna 1 like a flat plate is pierced from the top to the bottom by through holes 2, and a circuit board 3 is pierced from the top to the bottom by through holes 4. Fixing pin 6 projecting upward are provided in a lower case 5. The antenna 1 is put on the circuit board 3, and through holes 4 of the circuit board 3 and through holes 2 of the antenna 1 are pierced by fixing pins 6, and the circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 are housed in the lower case 5. An upper case 7 is attached on the lower case 3, and the lower face of the upper case 7 is pressed to the upper face of the antenna 1. Through holes 4 of the circuit board 3 and through holes 2 of the antenna 1 are pierced by fixing pins 6 to position the circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 based on fixing pins 6. The circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 are interposed and fixed between the lower case 3 and the upper case 7.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to GPS (Global).
The present invention relates to an antenna unit used as a vehicle-mounted antenna or the like for receiving a Positioning System.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a navigation system for a vehicle, a device using GPS for receiving a radio wave transmitted from stationary hygiene and detecting the position of the vehicle is becoming popular. As the GPS receiving antenna, a microstrip patch antenna formed in a flat plate shape by using an antenna conductor layer and a ground conductor layer made of copper foil or the like on the front and back surfaces of a dielectric substrate is used.

This flat antenna is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-18.
As described in Japanese Patent No. 3327, etc., it is mounted in a vehicle or the like in a state where it is assembled and housed in a case in a state of being connected to a circuit board provided with an amplifier circuit and the like, and assembled as an antenna unit in this way. Is.

[0004]

However, when assembling the antenna into the case as described above, the antenna and the circuit board are aligned and connected, and further, the antenna and the circuit board are casing by using metal fittings or the like. It was necessary to fix it inside and it took time to assemble.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to provide an antenna unit that can be easily assembled.

[0006]

An antenna unit according to the present invention has a through hole 2 vertically penetrating a flat antenna 1.
And a through hole 4 penetrating vertically in the circuit board 3, and a fixing pin 6 protruding upward in the lower case 5, and the antenna 1 is stacked on the circuit board 3 to form a circuit. The through hole 4 of the plate 3 and the through hole 2 of the antenna 1 are respectively inserted into the fixing pins 6, the circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 are housed in the lower case 5, and the upper case 7 is mounted on the lower case 3. The lower surface of the upper case 7 is pressed against the upper surface of the antenna 1.

Further, in the present invention, the sealing material 8 surrounding the circuit board 3 and the outside of the antenna 1 can be sandwiched between the lower case 3 and the upper case 7. Furthermore, in the present invention, it is preferable that the height of the fixing pin 6 is set to a dimension that does not project upward from the through hole 2 of the antenna 1.

[0008]

By inserting the through hole 4 of the circuit board 3 and the through hole 2 of the antenna 1 into the fixing pin 6 projecting from the lower case 5, the fixing board 6 and the antenna 1 are referenced with respect to the fixing pin 6.
And can be positioned. Further, the circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 can be sandwiched and fixed between the lower case 3 and the upper case 7 by pressing the upper surface of the antenna 1 with the upper case 7 mounted on the lower case 3.

[0009]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to examples. The antenna 1 is formed by etching each copper foil using, for example, a double-sided copper-clad laminate to form an antenna conductor layer 12 and a ground conductor layer 13 on the front surface and the back surface of a dielectric substrate 11, and a A strip patch antenna formed in a flat plate shape can be used.
In FIG. 3, reference numeral 14 is a through hole provided at the location of the antenna conductor layer 12.

Further, the antenna 1 has a through hole 2 penetrating vertically.
Has been drilled. As shown in FIG. 2, the through holes 2 are provided at four corners of the antenna 1 while avoiding the antenna conductor layer 12 and the ground conductor layer 13. The circuit board 3 is made of a printed wiring board provided with an amplifier circuit, an earth circuit, etc., and is formed in a circular shape in the embodiment of FIG. A copper foil is stretched on the upper surface of the circuit board 3 except for the outer peripheral portion, and a resist 15 is applied to the surface thereof, and the connection pad portion 17 is formed by removing a part of the resist 15. . Further, the circuit board 3 is provided with a through hole 4 which vertically penetrates at a position corresponding to the through hole 2 of the antenna 1.

The lower case 5 is formed of a metal material such as aluminum die cast into a circular shape. A circular enclosure wall 19 is integrally provided on the upper surface of the outer peripheral edge of the lower case 5, and a male screw 20 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the enclosure wall 19. It is sufficient that at least the upper surface and the inner surface of the lower case 5 are formed of a conductor such as metal, and the entire case does not necessarily need to be formed of metal. A circular recess 21 is provided in the center of the upper surface of the lower case 5, and a metal fixing pin 6 is provided on the upper surface of the lower case 5 at the peripheral edge of the recess 21. The fixing pin 6 may be integrally formed and formed at the same time when the lower case 5 is molded, or may be formed by another member and attached to the lower case 5. The fixing pin 6 is provided at a position corresponding to the through hole 2 of the antenna 1 and the through hole 4 of the circuit board 3.

The upper case 7 is formed of a thermoplastic resin such as polycarbonate, fluororesin, polyphenylene oxide (PPO) or the like, and is formed in a circular shape. A peripheral wall 22 hangs down and is integrally provided on the lower surface of the outer peripheral end of the upper case 7, and a female screw 23 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the peripheral wall 22. A recess 21 is provided in the center of the lower surface of the upper case 5, and a sealing material 8 such as a rubber sheet or film is provided on the lower surface of the upper case 5 so as to cover the entire inner edge of the peripheral wall 22.
Is attached.

Therefore, when assembling the antenna unit, the through hole 4 of the circuit board 3 is inserted into the fixing pin 6 to set the circuit board 3 in the surrounding wall 19 of the lower case 5, and the antenna 1 is further inserted. The hole 2 is inserted into the fixing pin 6, the antenna 1 is set in the surrounding wall 19 of the lower case 5, and the antenna 1 is placed on the circuit board 3. By inserting the through hole 4 of the circuit board 3 and the through hole 2 of the antenna 1 into the fixed pin 6 as described above, the circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 can be positioned with reference to the fixed pin 6. Thus, the circuit board 3 and the antenna 1 can be accurately aligned. The antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 are connected to each other by inserting the feeding pin 24, which is passed through the through hole 14 of the antenna 1, into the feeding through hole 18 provided in the circuit board 3 to connect to the amplifier circuit, This can be done by bringing the connection pad portion 17 provided into contact with the ground conductor layer 13 on the lower surface of the antenna 1 to connect the ground portion.

If a metal member is added to the upper surface of the antenna 1, problems such as antenna characteristics and performance may occur (thus, when the antenna 1 is fixed with a screw or the like, the screw or the like protrudes onto the upper surface of the antenna 1). Not desirable). Therefore, in the present invention, the height of the fixing pin 6 is set so that it does not project upward from the through hole 2 of the antenna 1, and the upper end of the fixing pin 6 is recessed below the upper surface of the antenna 1 as shown in FIG. The metal fixing pin 6 does not affect the characteristics and performance of the antenna 1.

Next, the lower case 5 is covered with the upper case 7, and the male screw 20 and the female screw 23 are screwed together to attach the upper case 7 to the lower case 5, and the antenna is provided between the lower case 5 and the upper case 7. The antenna unit can be assembled as shown in FIG. In this way, when the upper case 7 is screwed and attached to the lower case 5, the upper surface of the antenna 1 is pressed against the lower surface of the upper case 7, and the antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 are connected to the lower case 5.
The upper case 7 and the upper case 7 are sandwiched and fixed.

Since the antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 can be sandwiched and fixed between the lower case 5 and the upper case 7 as described above, it is not necessary to fix the antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 using metal fittings, etc. The number of parts and man-hours can be simplified, and the antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 can be pressed between the lower case 5 and the upper case 7, so that the antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 are warped or twisted. To prevent the connection pad portion 17 of the circuit board 3 and the ground conductor layer 1 of the antenna 1.
It is possible to stabilize the electrical connection with 3.

When the upper case 7 is screwed and attached to the lower case 5 as described above, the surrounding wall 19 of the lower case 5 is attached.
The sealing material 8 provided on the lower surface of the upper case 7 is elastically contacted and adheres to the upper surface of the lower case 5 and the upper case 7 so as to seal the antenna 1 and the circuit board 3 between the lower case 5 and the upper case 7. Etc. are surely prevented from entering. In the embodiment of FIG. 4, the seal material 8 is provided on the entire surface from the inner side of the peripheral wall 2 on the lower surface of the upper case 7 to the peripheral edge of the recess 21.
Not only the upper surface of the enclosure wall 19 of the lower case 5 but also the antenna 1
The sealing material 8 is also elastically contacted with the upper surface of the above, so that the effect of pressing the antenna 1 by the upper case 7 can be enhanced.

The sealing material 8 is the upper case 7 as described above.
In addition to the above, it may be provided on the upper surface of the enclosure wall 19 of the lower case 5, or may be provided on both the upper surface of the enclosure wall 19 of the upper case 7 and the lower case 5.

[0019]

As described above, according to the present invention, the plate-shaped antenna is provided with the through holes extending vertically and the circuit board is provided with the through holes extending vertically so that the circuit board protrudes upward into the lower case. A fixing pin protruding from the circuit board, the antenna is overlaid on the circuit board, the through hole of the circuit board and the through hole of the antenna are respectively inserted into the fixing pins, and the circuit board and the antenna are housed in the lower case. Therefore, the circuit board and the antenna can be positioned with the fixed pin as a reference, and the circuit board and the antenna can be accurately aligned at the same time when the circuit board and the antenna are assembled in the lower case. Also, the upper case is attached on top of the lower case so that the lower surface of the upper case is pressed against the upper surface of the antenna, so that the antenna and circuit board are clamped between the lower and upper cases and fixed without the use of metal fittings. Do Bets can be, to simplify the number of parts and man-hours for assembly, it is capable of the cost as well as improve productivity.

Further, since the sealing material surrounding the outside of the circuit board and the antenna is sandwiched between the lower case and the upper case, the antenna and the circuit board are sealed between the lower case and the upper case to prevent rainwater. It is possible to reliably prevent the intrusion of the like. Furthermore, since the height of the fixing pin is set so as not to project upward from the through hole of the antenna, the upper end of the fixing pin does not project downward by retracting from the upper surface of the antenna, and the fixing pin made of metal is used. When used, the fixed pin does not affect the characteristics or performance of the antenna.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the above embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the above antenna.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Antenna 2 Through Hole 3 Circuit Board 4 Through Hole 5 Lower Case 6 Fixing Pin 7 Upper Case 8 Sealing Material

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (72) Inventor Yoshihiro Maeda 1048, Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric Works Co., Ltd.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A flat plate-shaped antenna is provided with through holes that penetrate vertically and a through hole that is penetrated vertically through a circuit board, and a fixing pin protruding upward is provided in a lower case. Stack the antenna on the circuit board, insert the circuit board's through hole and the antenna's through hole into the fixing pins, respectively, and house the circuit board and antenna in the lower case, and mount the upper case on the lower case. The antenna unit is characterized in that the lower surface of the upper case is pressed against the upper surface of the antenna. 2. The antenna unit according to claim 1, wherein a sealing material that surrounds the outside of the circuit board and the antenna is sandwiched between the lower case and the upper case. 3. The antenna unit according to claim 1, wherein the height of the fixing pin is set so as not to project upward from the through hole of the antenna.